Radiator coolant - how to tell?

[GTXJosh]

2009 1500 5.7. So looking ahead of time the other day to do an oil change and swap the belt since it is starting a little squeaky sound. Had the truck for about 8 months now. Saw the upper radiator hose was slightly collapsed (engine cold). Check the overflow and nearly nothing in there. I figured it sucks back what is there while cooking as it should, and there just isn’t much left in the overflow now. Pop the cap, radiator is full, can tell if it is a yellow or green color but looks like one of those two.

Reading the manual, says HOAT coolant. And reading enough to no want to mix types.

I know the previous owner said he had the radiator replaced, just never sure if a shop put in what is factory recommended or something else. I’ve sent previous owner a message to see if he knows or at least what shop did his work so I can try and contact them.

So long, but I guess the question is there a way to test what is in the truck right now. Color doesn’t seem to be reliable since all kinda colors are being used nowadays.

 

[kurek]

Up to you what you do but I started making it a practice years ago, whenever I get a used vehicle I just service every fluid in it regardless of what the seller said. That includes coolant and if the car's more than a couple years old, brake fluid. Cheap insurance in my book.
So with that in mind if I was you I'd just drain it, run a couple rounds of distilled water through ( let it get up to full operating temp to get it through the block and heater core) and then refill with OE specified coolant. Distilled water is cheap, coolant is cheap compared to replacing a heater core or an engine.

 

[turkeybird56]

If you get a reply from previous owner be great. If not, flush system and continue till runs clear then put in proper coolant and proper mix for your area. The only other way to know what is in there is send a sample to a private lab, heck of a lot cheaper flush and refill.

ALSO basically post #2 which posted while I was typing.

 

[GTXJosh]

Thanks for the replies so far. Sucks there isn’t an easy way to tell, and I too hope I get a reply. Doesn’t get too cold here, so I may just put a little distilled water in the overflow for now so there is something. The mix won’t be that far off and better than nearly nothing in there I guess.

The Mopar stuff is orange and zerex brand is light yellow from what I’m reading?

 

[Burla]

Peak Global life is made for this, as long as you didnt use iat green, then you use PGL which is universal base. Read this entire thread. Once the coolant has degraded or switched out that that chain has been broken, as in a truck that was drain filled regularly with oem coolant, don't be afraid of the right universal coolant. The issue is Chrysler oat and hoat can look the same once the purple is gone You can think it is orange so it is hoat, could be right or could be wrong. Once on PBL, you just use that forever.

 

[GTXJosh]

Once the coolant has degraded or switched out that that chain has been broken, as in a truck that was drain filled regularly with oem coolant, don't be afraid of the right universal coolant.

That is my issue I guess. Just the unknown. I gotta be happy I guess that the previous owner I think was honest and told me the radiator had been changed. I’m still waiting to hear from him where the work was done. He said most of his work was done at one of the two dealerships in town. But oil changed were almost always done at a couple other shops that are local small oil changed places, and carfax info confirms this.

A local radiator shop I’ve used in town goes to a “universal base” when they do a flush and fill. And I think for ease and costs most shops that are not dealers would do this.

If I have oat, I’ll use oat. But if after the radiator it was done at a shop that used HOAT, then I’ll stil with that. For now it’ll be distilled water (off to get a few jugs to keep around for other stuff right now as a just in case stick for the garage) until it is confirmed. This area gets pretty hot during summers (100-115 isn’t uncommon) but rarely below freezing but for a dozen or so cold nights of the year. A little extra water in the mix won’t hurt.

On hot days temp reads right at the line on the dash I think it is 197-199. Lately since it is the cooler season it reads about 194-195. So seems the cooling system is working properly still.

After all this I kinda hope it was changed to oat on the radiator swap. Will make it easier to deal with in the future and I’ll just add a note to the glovebox.

 

[Burla]

If you read the thread you would understand the reason for universal. Hoat has additives to protect metal before the base can populate the metal. Once a radiator has a populated film, those additives are a hinderance to lifespan, thus hoat is only 5 years. Thus why you have seen coolants go to long term or even lifetime fills. Because they use pure base, IE peak global. Now oat is more complicated because of dex and dex clones, of which you want nothing to do with as dex will kill a ram radiator, gm are built for dex ours are not, IE peak global, no dex additive. good luck man, if you want to see the minutia, read the thread and see the ingredients in each coolant, they are posted.

 

[GTXJosh]

Yeah I read it all. And the chemical data in the links.

Now I should have looked in the radiator a bit more carefully. Now that it is daylight and no evening it is in fact more of a red color. I think. Really hard to tell going on the very little residual that was in the overflow tank. I think I though yellow or green before because the level stick is kinda a dirty white and I just assumed that.

I’m going to wait til it cools down now and then pop the radiator cap and check color. If it is red/orange ish type color I’m going to suspect the previous owner did in fact get this done at a dealer and they filled it with Mopar brand HOAT.

Maybe I’ll call the dealers in town and see if they can lookup records if the previous owner doesn’t get back to me.

I don’t see any external leaks. But there is a little belt squeal. I’ve also asked the previous owner if he ever changed the belt. He owned the truck since about 40k on it and now has 178k. No unheard of to have belts last that long or longer. No printing so it certainly isn’t too new but that is all I know. Doesn’t look cracked but rib’s getting a little rough overall.

That belt squeaks is what prompted me to just see this slightly collapsed hose and not the near nothing in the overflow to begin with.

 

[GTXJosh]

Another thing I thought was odd is upper hose was hot to the touch but radiator cap was not. I suppose it could be that after the few stops I made the cool distilled water I added to the overflow had been sucked into the system and cooled the cap area a bit ‍♂️

 

[kurek]

Maybe I’ll call the dealers in town and see if they can lookup records if the previous owner doesn’t get back to me.

Make an account on mopar.com and you can view your original window sticker for your VIN, look up any recalls and see any dealer-performed service records for your truck as long as you're the current owner of record with the DMV