So finally I shelled out some bucks to get a decent coolant for my car's cooling system. At first, I got this standard Guard Original Anti Rust Solution for rs.500 :
But over the night, I could not sleep. There was this uneasy feeling disturbing me because the coolant did not say 'ethylene glycol' on it. So I went over the shop the next day and got the much more expensive Caltex Havoline coolant labelled as ethylene glycol for rs.950 per litre.
I did this because the service manual specifically mentioned an ethylene glycol antifreeze. With regards to water being used instead, the manual neither encouraged or discouraged it, but did say to use distilled water.
First, I intended to do the job at home due to it's simple nature. I wanted the whole system flushed twice before I poured this expensive coolant in. Unfortunately, I could not locate the drain plug underneath the car and decided to go to oil shop for this work because heck, I could not afford losing the coolant.
The mechanic also tried to locate the drain plug but there wasn't any. He said the radiator wasn't OEM and had been replaced.
So thats what I get for buying a pre-owned car. Fair enough. I made him flush the car twice of the green osaka coolant. That thing was still there even after one complete flush of the radiator before when the fluid burst out. Here is the car after two flushes:
The coolant was poured (1 litre) and the rest (2 litres) was water. I know that it isn't the ideal 50/50 mix but I was stripped out of cash and the serviceman said "this is how we have always done it".
So.. let's see how it holds up the test of time. Bear in mind my car's fan is direct and thermostat is removed (karachi's summers + traffic + AC needs). I might make it automatic in the near future, but not at the moment.