Coolant Question
 

Okay so I am getting my car ready for my first track day of the season and I been doing a lot of searching on a lot of things. I am at the point were I want to flush the radiator. I see in a few posts on here that say NOT to run anti freeze on a car that is seeing the track. To use just distilled water and water wetter and I am fine with that. My question is will this work good on the street and if not is it okay to add a touch of anti freeze to the setup. Thanks guys

You would at least need some anti freeze in the winter. If you are driving it on the street, I would just put the minimum antifreeze you can for the coldest temp you are likely to see.

Yeah being in NY this winter we saw temps under 20.

http://www.peakantifreeze.com/images...tion_chart.jpg

Antifreeze protection chart

so how does our radiator hold ?

The track operators request that you not use antifreeze for safety reasons. In the event that your car (or anybody else's) were to blow a hose and dump coolant onto the track surface, water will evaporate quickly and not create a hazard, whereas glycol is somewhat slippery and will remain in place for quite a while.

You can get away with driving to and from the track on pure water, however it's not recommended that you run like this on the street for extended periods of time. Antifreeze solution also has anti-corrosive and lubricating qualities, and this is a Good Thing™. You should run about 25-30% antifreeze in distilled water, even in the summer.

The volume of the stock cooling system (quoting from the '99 service manual) is 6 liters.

Thanks for the info Joe

fyi, I have never had a technician check my car for coolant, so you can take a risk and just leave your coolant in and hope it doesn't blow. If it doesn't blow anywhere, then great. If it does blow on the track, there is usually a fine you have to pay depending on how long the cleanup takes.

Well the track days I am doing are all hosted by NASA and there website says

"ENGINE – The engine should not have any leaks that will allow liquids to fall onto the track. These fluids will cause slippery conditions on the track. This includes radiator fluid (antifreeze) which is very slippery. The battery should be secured with two (2) bolts. The battery terminals should be covered to prevent any arcs in case of accidental contact"

So I guess they assume you are using antifreeze. I am going to use 30% antifreeze like Joe said. I don't feel like changing every time I go to the track.

Here's a slightly related hint: Royal Purple's water wetter product does not raise the boiling point of distilled water, and it'll still boil over. Use only water wetter.

I think that quote from NASA is just saying to look for coolant leaks, not just oil leaks. It doesn't specifically say "don't use any antifreeze". That being said if you have the time, switch out to distilled water/water wetter and switch back asap.

changing coolant doesn`t take long anyways. Incase your bad at math thats only a half gallon of anti freeze your tossing if you run 30%. 6.50 dollars worth of prestone or what they would fine you to clean up the track....... hmm tough one

Free Dexcool FTW :)

You could probably claim ignorance the first time.

Hmmmm I like that Idea lol. I will look into if there are track fees. I hope not