What should I do to make sure my vehicle is properly prepared for Winter/Spring/Summer?
Oklahoma is famous for extreme seasonal weather changes and these temperature changes can be hard on your vehicle’s cooling system. To make sure that your vehicle’s cooling system is working at optimal efficiency; you should maintain the coolant/anti-freeze in your vehicle by periodically flushing it with clean, fresh fluid.
Coolant flushes provide many benefits to your cooling system. It is important to maintain your cooling system, just like every other part of your automobile, which is why we recommend a coolant flush once a year to keep your cooling system working effectively.
What is a coolant flush?
Your engine temperature is maintained by the flow of anti-freeze, more commonly referred to as coolant. A coolant flush pushes anti-freeze through your cooling system in order to do a complete cleanse by clearing out all of the old anti-freeze and any contaminants that have built up. When you get a coolant flush, all of the old anti-freeze is evacuated from your system, ensuring that when we put new anti-freeze in, it won’t mix with the old. Lastly, conditioners are added in order to prevent rust and scale deposits, resulting in new longer-lasting anti-freeze.
What are the benefits of a coolant flush?
- Coolant flushes remove rust and scale deposits, which build up over time. It’s important to get rid of these deposits because they can cause overheating and damage your entire cooling system.
- The new anti-freeze contains additives that work to lubricate your automobile’s water pump, which can help extend the life of your water pump.
- The additives in the new anti-freeze also help prevent rust from building up in the water pump, which allows the cooling system to operate more efficiently.
- Over time, the old anti-freeze loses its anti-corrosive properties, which allows for contaminants to build up in the cooling system. Getting a coolant flush will completely clean these particles from the system.
- When you get a coolant flush, it is also common to receive an inspection of your entire cooling system including the thermostat, radiator and all hoses and belts. This is beneficial because it checks for leaks and other potential problems.
- Getting a coolant flush will prevent the old anti-freeze from becoming acidic. This is important because once it starts to become acidic it will break down and can damage the bearing in the water pump, the rubber hoses and the aluminum components of the engine.
Every make and model is different, and therefore is on a varied maintenance schedule. Check your owner’s manual to see when it’s time for your vehicle to receive a coolant flush. Usually this flush needs to be performed once a year. If it has been over a year since your vehicle has received a coolant flush, visit your local Christian Brothers Automotive today.
