Evan's Waterless Coolant.

[Guest Lord Sward]

Has anyone ever used this stuff?  I realise the cost of converting is the same as most of our cars are worth.  However, my local factors are now stocking this stuff and its therefore not the cost of liquid magma. 

[vulgalour]

I considered for the Rover when the head was done and was given this advice: Is your coolant system prone to leaking?  Then don't buy it.

 

So providing you're chucking it in something that stays watertight, it's a sensible investment.  It seems more suitable for modern cars with finer tolerances than old stuff that tends to dribble.  Unless you're Jay Leno.

[SiC]

What actually is the benefit of it?

[Guest Hooli]

What actually is the benefit of it?

 

it can't boil from what I understand, at least not at temps engines can produce.

 

 

However it's not as efficient as water in conducting heat. So it needs not to boil as your engine will be hotter. Sounds like an ideal way to kill an old engine to me as if it's not conducting the heat away as well any hotspots will be worse than normal.

 

As far as I can tell, it's the answer to a question that's never been asked. Just like electronic handbrakes.

[saucedoctor]

ISTR someone saying it fucked up an XK straight six bigstyle?

[michael1703]

If you'd just spent a few grand having a minty mcmint engine rebuild on your polished rocker covered straight 6, I'd say go for it.

 

If you're going to put it into something that someone might have filled with screenwash by mistake or hard water or has rust in the system, you might as well burn a £50 note instead

[Guest Lord Sward]

I've loosely heard that its killing head gaskets, but nothing confirmed.  I understand an engine runs hotter with it.  

[Mr_Bo11ox]

water has a super high heat capacity, I bet £5 this stuff has a lower value than water, making it simply less good as a means of soaking up heat so it can be shifted to the radiator. I say leave it to classic car show mentals with more money than sense.

[Dead_E23]

Seems that it is made of gycol, has a boiling point of 180 C and doesn't encourage corrosion.     However, it's not going to be as good at transporting energy away from hot bits as water is, because heating water takes more energy than heating anything else (apart from liquid ammonia), hence the engine will run a bit hotter.  

 

I suppose it would be a bit like filling your coolant system with oil; high boiling point, lower specific heat capacity.  Does that sound like a good idea?  Not to me.

[Guest Lord Sward]

I'm using my TD5 to tow a caravan to the south of France this summer and I was seriously considering it.  But I beginning to think its just a waste of money.  My cooling system was been regularly maintained with fresh OAT and Royal Purple additive. 

[Pillock]

 

 

I suppose it would be a bit like filling your coolant system with oil.

Permission to make a K-Series joke please?

[cort16]

What was the stuff the PO used to run in all their vans that wasn't just  normal coolant?

[Mr_Bo11ox]

It had liquified 2nd class letters in it

[cort16]

I remember it was vodka

[DodgeRover]

A friend runs similar in a MGF track car, its weird - it doesn't expand like water therefore absolutely no pressure in the cooling system when up to temperature, his hasn't had a melt down yet even when being properly hammered round various tracks with a supercharger attached.

I don't think it needs replacing as regularly as antifreeze does.

[Uncle Jimmy]

Regular blue glycol coolant is very effective; it allows a higher operating temperature than water before boiling, pressuring the closed system allows for even higher temperatures before boiling, the glycol inhibits corrosion of alloys as well as cast iron and it acts as a wetting agent lowering the surface tension of water reducing cavitation.

At least I think that's right. Any rate glycol coolant is A1 and anything that attempts to replace it is either a cynical marketing exercise or a misguided attempt to be environmentally more friendly.

[PiperCub]

Aside from anything else, I think it's extremely expensive, you need to purge all the water/old coolant from the system and it gets ruined if it accidently gets topped up with water IIRC. 

 

As others have said, not really for our older stuff I suspect. Personally, I'm sticking to blue/green non-OAT flavour antifreeze changed regularly thanks very much. 

[OwdChina]

ISTR someone saying it fucked up an XK straight six bigstyle?

Yup. See ghostys "After  three years" thread, page 14,  #394.....................IT'S FOR RACE ENGINES mostly ..............you do not need it in any daily driver....... at all.......... even in the frozen North Pole or the Arizona desert. Use neat antifreeze..........same benefits......less problems.

[Richard]

.

[michael1703]

Neat antifreeze blocks up heaters too

[Mr_Bo11ox]

This stuff might have a higher boiling point than water, but so what? If your temperature gauge was 90% of the way into the red, you wouldn't keep on going cos you had more margin before a boil-up would you. You'd say 'this is running too hot' and try to sort it. It could have a boiling point of 800deg C, good luck stabilising your cooling system at 600.

[UltraWomble]

Regular blue glycol coolant is very effective; it allows a higher operating temperature than water before boiling, pressuring the closed system allows for even higher temperatures before boiling, the glycol inhibits corrosion of alloys as well as cast iron and it acts as a wetting agent lowering the surface tension of water reducing cavitation.

At least I think that's right. Any rate glycol coolant is A1 and anything that attempts to replace it is either a cynical marketing exercise or a misguided attempt to be environmentally more friendly.

Glycol can also be used to poison irritating mother in laws too...

[Tamworthbay]

water has a super high heat capacity, I bet £5 this stuff has a lower value than water, making it simply less good as a means of soaking up heat so it can be shifted to the radiator. I say leave it to classic car show mentals with more money than sense.

When I was seriously into the electric car racing we looked at a whole range of systems to cool the motors. The specific heat capacity of water was impossible to beat. I have a few contacts at the royal society of chemistry and got some of them on it and nothing comes close to the properties of water. The only option we could have used was a total loss evaporation system filled with something like methanol. I don't think I need to explain why we didn't go with that!

 

Verdict on the waterless coolant - snake oil. A good cooling system works well with standard stuff, if there are any issues they need sorting not hiding.

[Richard]

.

[Parky]

I have read about this stuff and have come to the conclusion that if it is so brilliant and long lasting, why don't any manufacturers use it as standard.

 

Wheeler Dealers used it on a Triumph TR6 once, seemed to work OK in that but for all I know Ed was sponsored by Evans that week

[Vince70]

My ex girlfriends father has this stuff in his minty MGB V8 and I don't know the ins and outs about it but since going over to it he told me his temperature gauge was high and and the car burped it up and he was getting in touch with the manufacturer about it.

 

I don't know though if it's down to something he's done wrong though but he seems to know his stuff when it comes to cars but it might of been an airlock I guess.

 

But I'm quite happy using green or blue Antifreeze in my BMWs and I've never had an issue with my cars so in my mind it's better the devil you know and I just change the stuff every 3 years or so if I keep a car that long and I've never had a core plug go yet.

[hpi_matrix]

I have read about this stuff and have come to the conclusion that if it is so brilliant and long lasting, why don't any manufacturers use it as standard.

 

Because cars are made to a price, and renewing your coolant will be extra revenue for them.

[steveo3002]

dont see any point in adding to a rusty old wanker , at least with traditional stuff you can stop at any garage or house miles away from home and top it up with tap water 

[pshome]

They used to have this chart on their website, but it dissapeared some time ago, guess why..

Good to have archives http://web.archive.org/web/20110710210032/http://www.evanscooling.com/water-based-vs-waterless-differentiators/

 

 

 

Specific heat almost half -> it cannot carry away the heat.

Viscosity way up  -> this will negatively impact the amount of liquid your water pump can haul around.

 

Your engine will run significantly hotter with this stuff -> no good.

 

From what i know, it was invented for military vehicules that have sealed colling systems and engines that were designed for this.

It does not belong into cars with cooling systems designed to use water with classic antifreeze.

[Mr_Bo11ox]

Friggin nora, replace your water with something with 30% less heat capacity, If ever there was a product to define ‘snake oil’ its that.

 

The thermostat will have to open more, increasing the coolant flow rate, to maintain the same temperature as water. Thus you will have less ‘margin’ before an overheat (i.e. less spare capacity to increase the flow rate through the radiator) AND you are going to have to put more work into the water pump (more pumping losses) to maintain the same temperature. I doubt the weekend racers factor that in when they are buying this crap from demon tweeks. Verdict: pointless shite.