You know that there have been no ill effects because...

What would be an example of poor quality coolant?

One that looks like mud?

__________________
DJ


84 300D Turbodiesel 190K with 4 speed manual sold in 03/2012

That, I believe, woud be a description of condition, not quality.

At one time radiators did not develop a pronounced buildup in their cores. I have always been a little suspicious of the green antifreeze as the cause. In earlier times you ran water in the summer and winterized every fall with new antifreeeze. The radiators appeared to stay like new internally in comparison to later rads.
The concept of leaving anti freeze in year long eventually occured. That white buildup that also occured around the enterance to each tube might either be some component in the green antifreeze or a breakdown of that component.
For all I know whatever the agent was it may no longer be in the green antifreeze. This effect I observed on engines with even cast iron heads. My guess it was a byproduct of never changing the original anti freeze until the system broke a hose or something.
The coolant also must have swung to an acedic level eventually as well. I assume I should have a package of ph slips in my toolbox for occasional checking when owning so many cars. A baseline can be gathered simply by checking your latest fill. Probably does apply to any color of anti freeze.
Ph strips are probably a dime a dozen so to speak. I certainly am not a coolant expert. Come to think of it I have always wondered if a car in storage for a very long time should have the anti freeze drained or not.

Depends on what type of green stuff he used. Ethylene Glycol has seemed to distribute issues for some on this board and it's because the Ethylene Glycol base is not to friendly to plastic. We use Polypropylene Glycol in the trucking industry because we use the same type of radiators that Benz uses. That is the difference between genuine MB and aftermarket "green stuff".

My theory (proven only by my own experience, 100,000's of thousands of miles in Fe+AL engines) is that the OEM stuff is of higher initial quality than off the shelf Green.

But...if you follow GOOD mtc practices and drain and flush 1x per year Green is fine.

The horror stories you hear are due mainly to

- severe neglect (10 yrs with no coolant flush)
- mixing several types in at once

My opinion anyways. I just hate going to the dealer, buying expensive coolant, then finding a problem which requires dumping the coolant and repeating the whole process.

I guess at +$3/gal, the Zerex seems the best overall choice if you want to go a few yrs between coolant changes.

__________________
Paul
Benz-less
I need an SDL !

Very good points! I should mention too that Sierra Brand Poly Coolant is what I have been using because this is what we use at the truck stop, but it comes in many brands.

I would think the quality of that kind of coolant couldn't be too good either.

__________________
DJ


84 300D Turbodiesel 190K with 4 speed manual sold in 03/2012

Just to throw these particular dogs into the fight, mine came to us full of green stuff. Waited until the first explosion and then replaced it with peak global lifetime, which we've been using ever since.

If I'm setting myself up to be a Benz statistic... then I can afford to replace a radiator in the name of science, I suppose. It seems to be decent antifreeze. Haven't had any problems.

__________________


~Michael S.~
Past cars:

1986 300SDL
1987 300SDL
1982 240D
1982 300SD


Current:

1987 300SDL

There is a lot more to anti-freeze than color, or pH, nitrates and molybdates are important, OAT is a no-no in M-B land (such as the Peak Global Lifetime et al):
https://mbwholesaleparts.com/StarTuned/pdfs/AntiFreeDec04.pdf

It takes time and equipment to detect accelerated aging/problems in most cases, you don't know what damage you might be doing.

Prevention is almost always cheaper than repairs.

__________________

Gone to the dark side

- Jeff

What kind of damage am I doing and how will I first detect it?

EDIT: Adding a link to this page.
http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/tech-help/12636-coolant-red-vs-green-post1085656.html
Post #68.

__________________


~Michael S.~
Past cars:

1986 300SDL
1987 300SDL
1982 240D
1982 300SD


Current:

1987 300SDL

Read the Star link, note the discussion about OAT (which the Peak Global is) coolants.

I don't remember the Peak Global being a diesel coolant either. I do run it in a couple of my gasoline vehicles Sam's Club used to carry it here with a good case-price.

__________________

Gone to the dark side

- Jeff

Here is an idea. Drain the coolant into a clean container. Reinstall it when the repairs are complete. Environmentally friendly and cost effective.

Diesel coolant different from gasoline coolant

__________________


~Michael S.~
Past cars:

1986 300SDL
1987 300SDL
1982 240D
1982 300SD


Current:

1987 300SDL

There is a difference between Peak and Peak Global! Peak is Polypropylene Glycol and Peak Global is Ethylene Glycol. Poly is more expensive to make. But it is more friendly to the environment and friendly to plastic tanks, which is why we use it in Freightliners and Kenworth's! Peterbuilt's must use Cat/093.