Coolant top up

[Vince_1972]

Hi
I was driving home & the temperature indicator started flashing. The Temperature needle was where it should be. When I got home & looked at the book it said the light flashing either indicates the engine is overheating or the coolant level is empty.
I checked under the hood & sure enough it was empty. (Just had the car serviced a week or so ago, very clever of the mechanic to miss that one!!)
In the book it says I need to top it up with G12 but it needs to be a 40% mixed with water or something I couldn't quite figure it out.
Can someone please tell me (in simple terms, I am not an expert) exactly what I need to do here? & Also where can I score some VW Coolant (or any other coolant if applicable)
The car is a 1999 MK4
Thanks!!
Vince

[en.elle]

You can buy the G12 coolant from the vw service/parts department

[Vince_1972]

Hi There,

Also can hypothetically (& I do mean hypothetically) top it up with water in case of an emergency?
Thanks

Vince

[mrVR6exy]

Give Matt a call at Camden GTI in Cambelltown, he probably has the cheapest G12 you can find in Sydney in 1lt and 5lt bottles

And yes its fine to top up with water in an emergency .

[en.elle]

Distilled water

[Dingobaz]

Yes, of course you can top it off with tap water - it might say 'distilled water' on the coolant bottle and in the car's manual but I can assure you that your mechanics, even at the dealers, haven't got endless supplies of distilled water lying around to fill customers' cooling systems up - they use tap water - don't stress about it. If the temp gauge is OK anyway then you still have plenty of coolant left in the system - nothing to panic about. I would be more concerned as to why your coolant levels are low in the first place - it's usually a fairly tightly closed system - one you have topped it off I would check for leaks.

To do a proper job you will need to get yourself a 1.5L bottle of G12 coolant concentrate. You can get it from VW, Audi or Skoda dealers. You can also get it from other places slightly cheaper - if you're in Melbourne or Sydney give HSY Auto Spares a call - they will have it for just under $20 per bottle.

Don't fret too much about the exact mix - 50/50 is fine - start by mixing half the bottle of coolant with the same volume of water (distilled if you feel you have to - cheap from Bunnings) and top up the coolant reservoir to the max level. Start the engine and run until the fan kicks in (or just drive it around for 10 mins). Then check the level again and top up if you need to. And you're done.

[mrVR6exy]

Although the book says G12.... you need to be sure that whoever your mechanic is that he actually used G12 when you last had the coolant changed. i have seen non VAG workshops fill the coolant system with normal red or green coolants, mixing g12 with generic coolants is a no no and will leave your system looking like kaka. Best bet if you're not sure is drain the system . The last time i bought G12 it was from memory $40 or $45 for 5lt concentrate, don't stress about distilled water unless your really anal and you beleive that your mechanic has an endless supply of distilled water to fill up every car that comes in .;)

[Type 17]

50/50 g12 and distilled... the way to go

Engine off. Release the clamp on the bottom radiator hose, cold engine on for a 2 shakes, and run 2 ltrs of distilled as its draining.
You should run the heater core too just to get that circulating.
Engine off Re-clamp hose.
Engine On and start filling reservoir with the 50/50 mix, keep over flow tank open.
Wait for thermostat to open and run the core until it wont take anymore and is at the top of the Max level.
May take 10 minutes for the thermostat to open so be sure.
Close over flow car tight.

Check after a drive and the next day

Done.