Draining Radiator

[neils]

Hi,

 

Sorry I'm probably being a bit thick but how do you drain the radiator on a 2000 1.9TDi?

 

I've done it before on a few older cars but the Galaxy seems to have a lot of pipework!

 

I was advised to undo one of the lower hoses, the fattest ones, but nothing came out. From reading other posts I suspect these were connected to the intercooler. Which hose will drain the radiator and where is it?

 

I'd like to have another go tomorrow if I know where to look. Any help appreciated.

 

Thanks....

[seatkid]

Look for a flexible rubber pipe about 1.5 inch dia connected to the inner radiator at the bottom rh side (looking towards the rear of the car) It has the typical (probably rusty) VAG spring clip which is fairly easy to remove.

 

If you just only want to top up the antifreeze level rather than change the coolant, it may be easier to just drain the expansion tank and add neat antifreeze. In this case you need to know what the current level of antifreeze is (use a hydrometer see here and here). You should have a minimum of 30% and a maximum of 50%.

 

Total coolant capacity in a Shalaxy is approx 7 litres I think.

 

 

Make sure you use only G12+ or G12++ antifreeze - other types are likely to be incompatible and can react disastrously to form gels that block the engine.

[neils]

Thanks, job done.