Oops, anti-freeze as engine coolant?

quadsbaby · 01-10-2010, 05:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kannibul

Wat?

No...

Wiper Fluid = Alcohol and Water

Anti-Freeze = Ethalin Glycol (sorry for spelling), with maybe an additive.

Pre-Mixed Anti-Freeze = Ethaline Glycol and Water with maybe an additive at 50/50 ratio.

Anti-Freeze = Engine Coolant - the terms are interchangeable.

Wiper fluid is not either of those.

Yes.

Wiper Fluid = Water, Alcohol (either isopropanol, methanol, or ethanol), and often Ethylene Glycol (to keep the wiper fluid from freezing in colder climates).

Engine Coolant = either Ethylene Glycol or Propylene Glycol or Organic Acid + Corrosion inhibitors... very rarely (I think mostly in the UK now, methanol is used as a substitute for glycols).

Engine Coolant is a subset of Antifreeze, so not all antifreeze is considered engine coolant. Given the way the OP described it, I assumed he meant antifreeze wiper fluid, which would be Methanol + Ethylene Glycol, which would be fine for his engine coolant as the added methanol's not going to really be a problem. Even if he used wiper fluid without antifreeze, it's still not a huge problem as long as it's just a top off.