COOLANT CHANGE

I plan to change the coolant in my 1985 VW Transporter T1900, so could you tell me the capacity of the cooling system and also give me any tips on bleeding it out. I’ve owned the van for around eight years and have to date only topped up the system with antifreeze a few times. I know the coolant should have been changed a while back, but I have been putting the job off. Frank Wood From the data I have the capacity of the cooling system is 17.5 litres. The system will have to be drained down from the radiator at the front and if you wish to completely drain the system you will need to remove the drain plugs in the cylinder heads.

Old coolant should not be allowed to run down the drain, as it is harmful to animals, so should be captured and stored in a container. This can then be disposed of at your local recycling centre.

The system should then be refilled with a mix of coolant. By removing the front grille, the bleed screw in the radiator should be visible and this should be removed before the cooling system is filled.

Next, the header tank should be unbolted and raised to assist in filling the system with coolant. With the bleed screw still out of the radiator, the engine should be run to push the coolant around the system. When coolant begins to flow from the bleed screw in the radiator, the bleeder can then be replaced. Ensure the heater is getting warm and that the coolant is flowing around the system.

The engine should then be turned off and the cooling system allowed to settle. Once the engine has cooled down the process will normally need to be repeated again to allow the coolant to push out any remaining air pockets. Once the radiator is warm across the core and the heater is blowing out hot air, the system should then be fully bled.