DIY Coolant Flush

Nissan Rogue forum - Includes Nissan Qashqai and Nissan Dualis as well.
Rsabcd
Posts: 22
Joined: Mon Jun 20, 2016 6:25 pm
Car: 2008 Nissan Rogue

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I know this is an old thread but...

I've used vinegar to etch an aluminum boat for paint prep, im not so sure running through your cooling system is a great idea. I may be wrong, if you ask my wife I usually am.


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Rogue Noob
Posts: 53
Joined: Tue Oct 09, 2012 11:20 am
Car: 2008 Nissan Rogue SL

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Glad to see this thread still helping people out :) I came back to the forum for a brush up on some maintenance things like the rear diff and transfer case, I'll have to use this for a refresher course on the Coolant too. haha.

disallow
Posts: 49
Joined: Mon Feb 08, 2016 11:07 am
Car: 2010 Nissan Rogue SL AWD - 110000 km
2005 Nissan Pathfinder SE Premium 4x4 - 270000km

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Great write-ups, I love all the pics.

I do have a comment though. The danger of flushing with water like this is that you can never drain all of the water out of your engine. You guys need to be careful, as you are adding premix (50/50) coolant to your system, and there is a bunch of flush water still in the block and heater core which will dilute the 50/50 mix, which is not acceptable! (In Canada that will evenutally cause a cracked block due to the really cold temps in winter)

To darylzero's point, if you think you should have been able to get another 2qt into the system, that probably means there is close to 2qt of your 'flush' water in the engine. In reality, it may be closer to 1qt, and the other qt is air bubbles. But do the math, if 1/7qts is straight water, that means overall your solution is no longer 50/50, it would be closer to 42/58. (3/6 (qts put in) = 50%, 1/7 water, = 3/7 50/50 premix, which is 42%)

I could be wrong here, but use a hydrometer to test the boiling and freezing point of the new coolant, and if it doesn't meet the spec, you will need to add some undiluted coolant to bring the solution to the proper ratio.

rogue9
Posts: 31
Joined: Wed Nov 02, 2016 5:17 pm
Car: 2008 Nissan Rogue S
Location: New Orleans, LA
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I've used vinegar to etch an aluminum boat for paint prep, im not so sure running through your cooling system is a great idea. I may be wrong, if you ask my wife I usually am.
I was thinking the same thing. I was about to do my 2008 Rogue S that I just rescued. I ordered the Green concentrate as I'm good with saving a few bucks and using distilled water from the store. I bought 2 gallons of Vinegar and then started wondering if that is safe because I did not notice the service manual mentioning a chemical flush of any kind (I could have missed it.)

Rogue Noob, still love the write-up! It's nice to see a Rogue-specific one with photos. Thanks! :bigthumb:

logster
Posts: 39
Joined: Wed Jul 16, 2014 7:07 pm
Car: 2009 Nissan Rogue S AWD

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Hi. I want to try this but I cannot see any of the photos! is this just me? please assist if anyone can. Thanks!

logster
Posts: 39
Joined: Wed Jul 16, 2014 7:07 pm
Car: 2009 Nissan Rogue S AWD

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Hi. FYI, I just called the Nissan dealership near me and they charge $95 but use the green coolant. I asked if I could get the blue instead and he said let the guy know when you bring it in. Also, they apparently also use a solution to clean it out during the flush and then another solution with the new coolant as a conditioner (and OEM coolant).

Looks like the blue costs almost double the green ... the guy on the phone seemed a little wishy washy on whether the blue would be OK as he first said well, some cars cannot handle the blue but then he came back and said the blue can go in the cars that were designed for green but not the other way around. I guess I'll talk to the guy actually doing it.

t.aboud16
Posts: 2
Joined: Tue Jul 24, 2018 7:18 pm
Car: nissan rogue 2013

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Just did mine today
Several drain and changes ( 5-6 ) and the last drain I actually took lots of time to find the ENGINE DRAIN PLUG and it took forever to open it ( because of its angle and engine was hot-ish )

Tnx for the pictures
It helped a lot especially for the engine drain plug

amc49
Posts: 1183
Joined: Mon Jun 19, 2017 7:24 pm
Car: '11 Nissan Versa
'17 Nissan Altima

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No need to use any engine drain plug at all to flush if you remix using concentrate instead of 50/50. I flush on the run and use vinegar or even pool (muriatic) acid as a cleaner and you use sense doing it. No distilled water used ever and zero problems.

The type of antifreeze matters not one whit as no car uses any new materials that were not used even back in the '60s.

nabril
Posts: 131
Joined: Mon Dec 08, 2014 7:45 pm
Car: 2015 Nissan Rogue SL
Location: Miami, FL

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@Rogue Noob and @ImStricken06
Or other experts

With all this time at home, I've decided to pamper my Rogue about with his 55k miles. He's going to get new CVT fluide (well, some of it), and a radiator flush.

1) Is it acceptable to use another brand of 50/50 antifreeze (Prestone, etc)?
2) I'm a bit confused about steps 8 and 9 - when the liquid flushed is clear and it's time to fill it back for good.
Do I fill it up with the whole gallon of the antifreeze and use distilled water for the rest?

Thanks a lot

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casperfun
Posts: 1445
Joined: Mon Oct 26, 2009 4:59 am
Car: 2009 Nissan Rogue SL AWD - Indigo Blue
Location: Mid-Atlantic States

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If you’re going to pamper, buy the Nissan blue long life coolant on EBay or your local dealership. You can also get the Aisin version which is a close second and slightly cheaper.

I got the Nissan version but I did top up with the Aisin version when replacing my radiator recently. :naughty:

nabril
Posts: 131
Joined: Mon Dec 08, 2014 7:45 pm
Car: 2015 Nissan Rogue SL
Location: Miami, FL

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ImStricken06 wrote:
Sat May 31, 2014 4:18 pm
thats because coolant is a bad conductor. the only reason we use coolant is to prevent seals from drying out, and to lube the water pump & thermostat & prevent the water from freezing. otherwise it doesnt actually cool as well as water does. water gets hot faster, thus being able to take away the heat from the metal better than coolant. the more water you have, the better cooling properties; but your freeze protection is less. in the summer you dont need freeze protection so run more water. you'll see your temp numbers spike, because the water boils faster- but the thermostat will open sooner allowing a cycle.
ImStricken - as you can see, this thread lives on as more of us, or at least me, have ample time at home to show their Rogue's some love. In your statement above, you praise water for it's awesome cooling abilities, but you caution that some coolant is needed to prevent seals from drying out and other reasons.
I've read that a few times, and I keep wondering what a good amount of coolant would be for my car in very hot Miami. We will never reach freezing temperatures, obviously, so how much coolant should I use? Buying a gallon should be more than enough, but would I pour all of it in? Shouldn't I have more water than coolant in the radiator?
Thank you

casperfun wrote:
Mon Jul 06, 2020 4:23 pm
If you’re going to pamper, buy the Nissan blue long life coolant on EBay or your local dealership. You can also get the Aisin version which is a close second and slightly cheaper. I got the Nissan version but I did top up with the Aisin version when replacing my radiator recently. :naughty:
thank you Casper. At the moment, Aisin is more expensive than the Nissan Blue (in Amazon), so I may just go blue. I will keep looking.

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casperfun
Posts: 1445
Joined: Mon Oct 26, 2009 4:59 am
Car: 2009 Nissan Rogue SL AWD - Indigo Blue
Location: Mid-Atlantic States

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Sadly ImStricken06 left a few years back after he had so many problems with his 1st gen Rogue that he left.

He was a very informative moderator here with his helpful videos still around.

Unfortunately, the long term nissan blue coolant was $3 more when I bought it last March 2019.

So I thought Aisin was cheaper, didnt do enough DD. :bowrofl:

williammajor
Posts: 2
Joined: Mon Apr 10, 2023 3:58 am
Car: 2010 Nissan Rogue S

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Has there been any updates regarding the need to remove the heater hose at the fire wall and raising it 4” as part of the refilling procedure? It is difficult to get access to this hose in my opinion. Just worried about safely burping the system without causing overheating. Thanks. 2010 Rogue S with 2.5 l engine.

Iheartjeeps
Posts: 52
Joined: Sat Oct 15, 2011 3:51 pm
Car: 1995 Nissan 300ZX Z32
2015 Nissan Frontier Pro4x
2014 Nissan Rogue Paperweight

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Just get a funnel like this and do it the easy way

https://www.amazon.com/EPAuto-Radiator- ... 104&sr=8-2

ive never removed a heater hose and tilted anything to bleed a cooling system.

that includes my 14 rogue select.

williammajor
Posts: 2
Joined: Mon Apr 10, 2023 3:58 am
Car: 2010 Nissan Rogue S

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Thank you for your advice. I’ll check it out.


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