What would cause COOLANT to be BROWN?
Alice Tung
(I originally posted in rec.autos.misc)
Additional info: there appears to be no leaks (I've only seen water
underneath my car from the air conditioner)
Any info would be appreciated.
Note from other news group:
I have a '93 Toyota Camery that's just 2 years old w/26200+ miles on it.
When I looked under the hood yesterday, I noticed that the coolant level
in the reservoir was slightly below the low level line and it was dark
brown. It didn't have any deposits/chunks floating around. The only thing
I have done to car is replacing the oil & filter every 3000 - 5000 miles.
Can anyone tell me what might be the cause coolant turning brown?
I had a Sentra for 8 years and nothing like this happen to it.
I'm taking the car to the dealer this week but would appreciate any info
on this subject.
Thanks in advance!
-Alice
Dan Roberts
(Alice Tung) wrote:
--
my guess would be rust...flush out the system and replace it with new coolant..
--
Dan Roberts
BRISTOL-MYERS SQUIBB PHARM. RES. CENTER "Nature is last at Bats"
PRINCETON, NEW JERSEY U.S.A. PLANET EARTH, MILKY-WAY GALAXY
<<<<INTERNET ADDRESS>>>>Roberts_Dani...@MSMAIL.BMS.COM
Andrew Moynahan
Robert Joseph Pelletier <rj...@wam.umd.edu> wrote:
>Brown is bad. Usually brown coolant is the result of neglect,
>but your veichel isn't old enough to be a victom of neglect.
>
>Things that come to mind, Bad head gasket allowing combustion
>products or oil to mix with the coolant. The same would go for
>cracked or warped head or block. Other things, bat coolant
>from the factory ie no rust inhibators, corrosive substances
>added to the cooling system, either by mistake or ill intent.
>
>This sort of thing is not normal, my 87 camry has over 160,000
>and the coolant is still a pretty light green (I change it
>every 40,000 ish give or take a few).
Well, I have a slightly different story to mention about brown coolant.
I was helping a friend do a coolant flush on his Chevy Nova (Toyota
Corola ?) and we noticed his coolant was brown. This was a DEEP brown
and not just a dirty looking brown. He called the dealer (Chevy) and
was told that some of the Chevy/Toyota models were shipped from the
factory with the brown coolant. No joke. They also told him that no
extra precautions needed to be taken when switching from the brown to the green
coolant. Merely flush the system and put in the new coolant.
Is the traditional green coolant naturally that color? I mean couldn't
they color it purple if they wanted to?
Andy
Brian Sydness
On 24 Jul 1995, Alice Tung wrote:
> Any info would be appreciated.
> Note from other news group:
>
> I have a '93 Toyota Camery that's just 2 years old w/26200+ miles on it.
> When I looked under the hood yesterday, I noticed that the coolant level
> in the reservoir was slightly below the low level line and it was dark
> brown. It didn't have any deposits/chunks floating around. The only thing
> I have done to car is replacing the oil & filter every 3000 - 5000 miles.
>
> Can anyone tell me what might be the cause coolant turning brown?
>
Question, you did not mention it but is the color of the coolant in the
radiator? My '92 Geo has a tendancy to collect dirt/contaminents in the
resevoir causing a brown/black oily residue. The radiator coolant is
perfectly fine. Analysis shows no signs of oil in the coolant. The
dealer says it is normal.
DWagner
>From: alice...@lexis-nexis.com (Alice Tung)
>Subject: What would cause COOLANT to be BROWN?
>Date: 24 Jul 1995 17:55:27 GMT
>I have a '93 Toyota Camery that's just 2 years old w/26200+ miles on it.
>When I looked under the hood yesterday, I noticed that the coolant level
>in the reservoir was slightly below the low level line and it was dark
>brown. It didn't have any deposits/chunks floating around. The only thing
>I have done to car is replacing the oil & filter every 3000 - 5000 miles.
>Can anyone tell me what might be the cause coolant turning brown?
>I had a Sentra for 8 years and nothing like this happen to it.
>I'm taking the car to the dealer this week but would appreciate any info
>on this subject.
>Thanks in advance!
>-Alice
Alice most foreign car companies use a brown or reddish colored coolant.
Don't let the color bother you it's perfectly normal. I usually flush my
system once a year. But i usually follow my own strict maintenance schedules.
Your coolant should be fine, but for your peace of mind it may be worth
having it tested.
Dan Wagner
92 Camry
90 Corrola
88 Tercel
James A Larosa
> I have a '93 Toyota Camery that's just 2 years old w/26200+ miles on it.
> When I looked under the hood yesterday, I noticed that the coolant level
> in the reservoir was slightly below the low level line and it was dark
> brown. It didn't have any deposits/chunks floating around. The only thing
> I have done to car is replacing the oil & filter every 3000 - 5000 miles.
>
> Can anyone tell me what might be the cause coolant turning brown?
My guess is rust. This is not good. Have the coolant drained and
replaced. It's pretty easy to do yourself if you have tools, a service
manual, and some paitience. But then you have to dispose of the used
coolant. Some auto parts places or gas stations may take it for free or
for a couple of bucks. You should replace the coolant every 2 years or
20k miles.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
< James LaRosa #24 | >
> jla...@gas.uug.arizona.edu | "I was born with a Lexan <
< * 1974 Ford F-250 SuperCab | spoon in my mouth" - Me >
> * 1989 Schwinn Impact | <
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Davin Lim
>
>I have a '93 Toyota Camery that's just 2 years old w/26200+ miles on it.
>When I looked under the hood yesterday, I noticed that the coolant level
>in the reservoir was slightly below the low level line and it was dark
>brown. It didn't have any deposits/chunks floating around. The only thing
>I have done to car is replacing the oil & filter every 3000 - 5000 miles.
>
>Can anyone tell me what might be the cause coolant turning brown?
>
>I had a Sentra for 8 years and nothing like this happen to it.
>I'm taking the car to the dealer this week but would appreciate any info
>on this subject.
>
>Thanks in advance!
>-Alice
Ummm... are you sure the coolant was *ever* green? If I'm not mistaken, Toyota
has used (still uses?) a coolant that is dyed "red", but looks more brown when
viewed through a coolant reserve bottle or inside a radiator. If the coolant
is
indeed supposed to be red/brown, I'd not worry at all - though two years is a
good time to be safe and do a flush/fill (this time with good old green stuff.)
Can someone confirm or deny this? BTW, I think red/brown is a terrible choice
for coolant color, especially in the US where everybody else uses green.
--
...................................................
* Davin Lim *
* mailto:li...@arraytech.com -- Boulder, Colorado. *
Robert Joseph Pelletier
Dick ONeill
>==========Alice Tung, 7/24/95==========
>
>Whoops...I think I posted my question in the wrong newsgroup -- sorry!
>(I originally posted in rec.autos.misc)
>
>Additional info: there appears to be no leaks (I've only seen water
>underneath my car from the air conditioner)
>
>Note from other news group:
>
>When I looked under the hood yesterday, I noticed that the coolant level
>in the reservoir was slightly below the low level line and it was dark
>brown. It didn't have any deposits/chunks floating around. The
I believe that the factory coolant should be in better shape after two years,
so
in addition to a flush and refill, I'd suggest checking for head gasket
leakage
just in case.
>only thing
>I have done to car is replacing the oil & filter every 3000 - 5000 miles.
>
>Can anyone tell me what might be the cause coolant turning brown?
>
>I had a Sentra for 8 years and nothing like this happen to it.
>I'm taking the car to the dealer this week but would appreciate any info
>on this subject.
>
>Thanks in advance!
>-Alice
>
>
Dick O'Neill
Dick....@DaytonOH.ATTGIS.COM
(513)445-0658
VP 622-0658
Richard Herbert Irmen
Rick
--
Richard H Irmen (Rick) E-mail rh...@virginia.edu
Graduate, Nuclear Engineering @ UVA C-ville (804) 296-2546
Richmond (804) 746-4549
George B
moyn...@axe.asel.udel.edu (Andrew Moynahan) wrote:
I mean couldn't
>they color it purple if they wanted to?
>
>
>Andy
Andy,
I HAVE seen purple coolant...can not remember the make...maybe it was Toyota
but I am not sure. I replaced it with green coolant.
Everyone knows that reds are HOT colors and blues are COLD colors. If the
coolant is green that means it has more blue and is therefore COOLER than a
purple coolant (containing more red) ;)
George Bonser
gr...@cris.com
Tim Irvin
: Can someone confirm or deny this? BTW, I think red/brown is a terrible choice
: for coolant color, especially in the US where everybody else uses green.
Actually, until the laws of chemistry change so that rust is no longer a
reddish-brown color, that will be an awful choice no matter *what* any
particular maker or nation typically use.
--
* Tim Irvin is zig...@rahul.net * WWW: http://www.rahul.net/ziggy29
*****************************************************************************
* Beware of geeks bearing .GIFs! * GCS: !h s:+ !g au+ C++$ v++ w+ U N++
* softball 95: 23 games, 11-12, .655 * W po+ Y+ j++ B-- e+++ u** r+++ y+++
Alice Tung
>
>alice...@lexis-nexis.com (Alice Tung) wrote:
>
>>
>>I have a '93 Toyota Camery that's just 2 years old w/26200+ miles on it.
>>When I looked under the hood yesterday, I noticed that the coolant level
>>in the reservoir was slightly below the low level line and it was dark
>>
>>Can anyone tell me what might be the cause coolant turning brown?
>>
>>I had a Sentra for 8 years and nothing like this happen to it.
>>I'm taking the car to the dealer this week but would appreciate any info
>>on this subject.
>>
>>Thanks in advance!
>>-Alice
>
Toyota
>has used (still uses?) a coolant that is dyed "red", but looks more brown
when
>viewed through a coolant reserve bottle or inside a radiator. If the
coolant
>is
>indeed supposed to be red/brown, I'd not worry at all - though two years is
a
>good time to be safe and do a flush/fill (this time with good old green
stuff.)
>
choice
>for coolant color, especially in the US where everybody else uses green.
>
Thanks for all of the responses! I can't remember if the original coolant
was red/brown......that's why I was worried. However, with some good info
and advice from the readers of this newsgroup, I checked with the Toyota
dealer and they said that Toyota uses reddish brown coolant. Someone else
also indicated that a lot of the foreign cars use this type/color/colour of
coolant.
Since I haven't replaced the "major" fluids yet, I'll be doing that soon.
Hopefully, my coolant will be non-brown so I can monitor it better!
Thanks again for all of your help--really appreciated it!
-Alice
cgab...@erinet.com
>> Note from other news group:
>>
>> When I looked under the hood yesterday, I noticed that the coolant level
>> in the reservoir was slightly below the low level line and it was dark
>> brown. It didn't have any deposits/chunks floating around. The only thing
>> I have done to car is replacing the oil & filter every 3000 - 5000 miles.
>>
>> Can anyone tell me what might be the cause coolant turning brown?
>>
>radiator? My '92 Geo has a tendancy to collect dirt/contaminents in the
>resevoir causing a brown/black oily residue. The radiator coolant is
>perfectly fine. Analysis shows no signs of oil in the coolant. The
>dealer says it is normal.
>
Your supposed to flush the cooling system once a year to keep the system
clean,and flowing smoothly , the brown stuff as you call it , is a
mixture of coolant , water and rust have it flushed
-chris
V...@vm.temple.edu
>When I looked under the hood yesterday, I noticed that the coolant level
>in the reservoir was slightly below the low level line and it was dark
>brown. It didn't have any deposits/chunks floating around. The only thing
>I have done to car is replacing the oil & filter every 3000 - 5000 miles.
>
>Can anyone tell me what might be the cause coolant turning brown?
>
First of all, open the radiator cap (when the car is cool, of course) and
check there. Then, call the dealership service dep. and ask them what
color Camry's antifreeze is supposed to be. If they say red-brown, as
somebody had already suggested, you have nothing to worry about. SAAB
OEM antifreeze is pink :-). But it may be rust.
As a side note:
if you open your owner's manual and in the maintenance section, you'll
see that you're supposed to change your antifreeze every 2yrs/24k miles.
Same goes for brake fluid. The moral: there is a lot more to car
maintenance than just changing oil/filter.
Vlad.
Charlie Kaiser
>I have a '93 Toyota Camery that's just 2 years old w/26200+ miles on it.
>When I looked under the hood yesterday, I noticed that the coolant level
>in the reservoir was slightly below the low level line and it was dark
>brown. It didn't have any deposits/chunks floating around. The only thing
>I have done to car is replacing the oil & filter every 3000 - 5000 miles.
>Can anyone tell me what might be the cause coolant turning brown?
>I'm taking the car to the dealer this week but would appreciate any info
>on this subject.
>Thanks in advance!
>-Alice
not really be dirty, though. Toyota uses a dark red coolant, not green
or blue. If it's dirty, flush it. If its not dirty, flush it. Old
coolant wears out and will not protect your engine from internal
corrosion.
Charlie Kaiser
ASE L1 Master Tech
char...@ccnet.com