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AaronM AaronM is offline
Ornery Bastard
 
Join Date: Sep 2001
Location: South Sound
Posts: 2,880
Easy Coolant Bleeding

I got turned on to this by a fellow who does a lot of work with older BMWs and has the same issue we do with the fill point often not being the highest point in the system.

NAPA has a radiator funnel kit (Part Number 77-4000) that you attach in place of the expansion tank cap, resulting in a large, and tall, funnel sitting atop the fill point.

Simply fill the system until the funnel is full, (over-filling the tank), and then start the engine and let it run long enough to open the thermostat. I just wait until the fans come on low (stock, 92-degree fan switch and the 87-degree Behr thermostat) and then shut the car off.

Then open the bleed screw and let the funnel's height force out the air bubbles with no risk of having more air sucked in.

The funnel has a device to plug it so that it can be removed with minimal spillage and the unused coolant returned to a bottle. You'll have to use a turkey baster or something to get the excess coolant out of the expansion tank, but overall it's a pretty simple process and it has worked well for me. Much better than the "drive, bleed, top-off, repeat" process or using a pressure tester and having to be careful not to let the level in the expansion tank get low.
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Old 02-16-2015, 06:18 PM
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