[ianwilson000]

Now that my insurance has expired, its time for some long over due maintenance and I've got a couple of questions.

-I've got a couple of oil leaks that I need to diagnose and fix and I'm wondering if its a bad idea to let the engine sit for a while with no oil in it?

-The manual recommends ethylene glycol based coolant for aluminum engines. I have some coolant that contains ethylene glycol but it doesn't say anywhere that its specifically for aluminum engines, will it work?

Thanks.

 

[TeeTee]

There's enough film left behind that sitting with no oil even all winter won't harm anything.

Not sure about the coolant but I'm pretty sure it's all teh same stuff. We've had car engines with aluminium heads for decades and they always just used the regular coolant.

 

[ianwilson000]

Thanks alot.

 

[Commuter Boy]

It's not the ethelyne glycol in the coolant, it's all the other additives in it that make a difference.

Biggest thing is just to not mix and match coolant, as the different additives may not work well together.

At this stage, I'd just flush it with clean water, and add whatever you want. I like the propylene glycol stuff because it's less toxic, and I don't have to worry about disposing of it when I change it next time, or if there's a spill when I'm doing some maintenance.