Coolant questions (one is probably dumb, the others maybe)

[re_buchanan]

I'm getting ready to flush and fill the coolant on my V70 for the first time (well, the first time to DIY it - unless you count the time my wife backed over a rock and busted the radiator, but I suppose that was just a flush.)

Went to the dealer and picked up a gallon of coolant.

Double checked the coolant capacity in the manual: 9.3 quarts.

Which, if I've done my math correctly, means with a 50/50 water and coolant mix, I'll be 1.3 quarts short.

Questions:

• Am I going to have to go back and buy another gallon to get the extra .65 quarts of coolant I need? (at $25 a gallon )
  
  Or, will I never get that 1/3 gallon out of the system? (I suppose this is moot if I do a proper flush)
  
  From investigating this procedure I've found mention of a coolant drain on the block of some Volvos, does mine have one and if so where is it? (2.5T - obviously, I haven't gotten under it to look)

While I'm asking questions:

• Is this a proper and/or effective flush procedure: empty coolant, fill with distilled water and drive around, empty water, fill with 50/50 coolant/water mix?

Thanks

[claymore850]

If you drain all the system, when you start to fill again, you have to remove all the air trapped inside the system..you will loose some coolant... To remove the air you have to start the engine...with the engine cold!!! start without the cap...and let the engine open the termostat...some air will start to make bubbles, at this moment some fluid can leak...put the cap on the reservoir but do not tight just to let the trapped air goes out...

After a few minutes with the engine hot the level will decrease, with extreme care loose just a little the cap...to let the air and pressure goes down...after that open the system and with the engine still running complete the level..

I believe you will need the two gallons, is better if you buy 50/50 premixed coolant..due they uses destilled water....good luck

[re_buchanan]

I sucked it up and went back to the dealer for the other gallon of coolant (which reminds me: always ask for a discount, the worst they can do is give you the stink-eye and say no, in this case they said yes.)

So, it's a pretty day and I'd like to do something productive, but I'm having the d@mnedest time finding the petcock valves. The closest thing I can find on the radiator, lower right-hand corner where the hose enters the radiator, there's a downward facing "thing" that accepts a hex wrench. I'm clueless on the block petcock.

Does anyone have a detailed description and/or photos of these things?

Also more disconcerting: There is orange coolant in my car. Apparently, this is what was put in when my radiator was replaced (per the aside in my original post.) I suspect it is the dreaded Dex-Cool: it's orange and the work was done by a GM shop (the shop was selected based on the my insurance company's recommendation - USAA - if I used one of their preferred shops, they guaranteed the work for as long as I owned my car.)

Is there any way to determine if this is what is in my car? If so, is it really that bad? And, most important, will the flush procedure above be sufficient for getting it out?

[regent]

The drain petcock on the rad is plastic; you need to go very easy with the allen key or it breaks.
The valve on the block is brass (I think) located just above the level of the oil pan gasket. You can find it standing by your right tire with your left hand reach down below the exhaust manifold and feel the surface of the block near the timing cover.
Or, you can crawl under the engine and look up you will see it above the oil cooler. The socket size is 13 mm.
If you are looking for a diagram, this one will show you the nipple on the block (attached from VADIS).
Hope this helps.

[re_buchanan]

I've attached a couple of images showing what I'm guessing are the block petcock (brass valve? in the middle right of 1st image) and the radiator petcock (center of 2nd image)

[regent]

Exactly.

[re_buchanan]

thank you regent

Whatever that coolant is in my car, it is non-Volvo and I think I'll be calling USAA about it (the overflow clearly states "Volvo Coolant Only".) I think it's one thing for me to cheap out, but I'm not real happy about them cheaping out.

[re_buchanan]

Here's a pic of the coolant that is currently in my car.

Before I have this conversation with my insurance company, can someone confirm that Volvo has never used an orange coolant?

[regent]

I usually buy the Volvo coolant from the stealership because it is not that expensive. However, if you can verify the additives are correct in an alternate fluid, and that it will not cause corrosion, then go with a different brand. Color by itself is only a dye ID and does not garantee specific contents.

(The color I see on the exp. tank shown in your picture looks like 'rust in the coolant' to me but it may be just my screen.) You did not have any brownish sediment in what you've drained so far, did you?

In any case, make sure you flush the system with some distilled water to get rid of any contaminants, and then drain it ALL THE WAY to ensure your new coolant stays at the correct concentation.

[re_buchanan]

I haven't drained it yet (wasted all my daylight trying to figure out what I was doing) - and I want to wait to see how the conversation goes with the insurance co.

On my monitor, it's a pretty accurate representation of the color - an opaque, Orange Crush/Orange Nehi color.

I'm hoping "rust in the coolant" a pet name for Dex-Cool and you're not saying you think that might actually indicate rust in my coolant .

From poking around on the inter-web a little, I'm getting the impression that GM reformulated Dex-Cool at some point. Any chance they have "fixed" it?