Evans Coolant

kennith · Jul 22, 2015

Has anyone used it in a Rover V8?

We know that THE RV8 "problem" is caused by coolant, and most coolant issues are related to water content. Obvious stuff.

That being the case, using a coolant that contains no water seems to make sense on paper.

I'd never heard of this stuff before, but I had YouTube auto-playing on a computer while I was doing stuff, and Jay Leno's Garage came on. I heard someone say "waterless coolant", and I had to turn around and look.

I've used stuff like this in computer radiators (a pretty demanding, if clean environment), for many of the reasons listed on their site. Not once had it occurred to me that a radiator is a radiator, no matter how big or small.

Now, lots of celebrity claims are made in regard to bullshit products, but this is Leno. He doesn't need any cash, and he claims to be using it in some expensive stuff.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t7PykrgzWPQ

Think about it before you jump around and start doing cartwheels. Get past the snake oil smell, have a beer, and think. Might this actually be a good idea?

I read it's higher viscosity than conventional coolant, and they note the obvious in regard to a slight temperature increase.

Cheers,

Kennith

MM3846 · Jul 22, 2015

I use Zerex green. It's actually real old-school green coolant... not the "all makes all models" crap. The last couple days it has been 95F with 95% humidity... With the AC on, I'm idling in the sun at 205-208F, 195-200F while driving around town, 190F on the highway.

The waterless coolant seems gimmicky to me. Just use the right fluid to being with, and you don't need additives or anything like that. And why would you want to use a product that increases your water temperature?

jafir · Jul 22, 2015

IBM keeps jugs and jugs of coolant in the data center for the z196 and the zEC12 mainframes. I wonder if they'd give me some

kennith · Jul 22, 2015

MM3846 said:
I use Zerex green. It's actually real old-school green coolant... not the "all makes all models" crap. The last couple days it has been 95F with 95% humidity... With the AC on, I'm idling in the sun at 205-208F, 195-200F while driving around town, 190F on the highway.

The waterless coolant seems gimmicky to me. Just use the right fluid to being with, and you don't need additives or anything like that. And why would you want to use a product that increases your water temperature?

I don't want to use it, as you're stuffed if you spring a leak. Adding water defeats the purpose, and may even be bad for it. I'm not clear on that just yet.

Either way, that's not good on a trip, which is when I care.

If I ever pick something up to keep nice for around town use, though, it's a consideration. Raising the temperature a few degrees isn't as big of a deal as corrosion.

If adding water doesn't actually hurt the stuff, and only brings you back to the same old ways, I don't see how it could cause a problem unless the viscosity is an issue.

Even if you ruin the coolant with some water, you've still had all those miles and time before it happened.

I personally use universal coolant, and until that stupid hose (that I forgot about) cracked, I haven't had any issues at all. It's easy to find, and I change it frequently.

I'm just curious about this stuff.

Cheers,

Kennith

kennith · Jul 22, 2015

jafir said:
IBM keeps jugs and jugs of coolant in the data center for the z196 and the zEC12 mainframes. I wonder if they'd give me some

That would be interesting, but not interesting enough for me to drain any of my PCs. :rofl:

Cheers,

Kennith

seventyfive · Jul 22, 2015

i used that years ago in one of my volkswagens. not worth it in my opinion. stick with organic coolant, distilled water, and water wetter.

robertf · Jul 22, 2015

if its the same stuff i read about years ago its good for less corrosion when used in a vehicle that rarely gets driven

jafir · Jul 22, 2015

kennith said:
That would be interesting, but not interesting enough for me to drain any of my PCs. :rofl:

Cheers,

Kennith

I'll wait until I see stuff piled up for new upgrades.... maybe I can get them to bottle up some of the stuff that comes out of the old processing units. I assume (and I could be wrong) that they always use new coolant when installing a million dollar upgrade system.

Tugela · Jul 22, 2015

One gallon of Evans waterless coolant is selling for $50 on Amazon. Maybe you can get it cheaper elsewhere. The cooling system on a Disco holds what, 3 gallons? And no less an authority than Professor Schram encourages owners to change their coolant every 24 months. Assuming you buy a Disco for $4,000 and own it for 6 years, you would spend $450 on Evans coolant over the ownership period (this also assumes you change the fluids at purchase and have no coolant leaks whatsoever and Evans coolant requires changing at the same intervals as conventional coolant). If the service interval on this kind of coolant are longer, then maybe it's more economical in the long run.

You potentially end up spending 11% of the purchase price of the vehicle on coolant over 6 years. Yes, it's no mystery that engine overheating is a vulnerability on Rovers, but for that kind of money you could just about replace the entire cooling system and have a more durable solution. Or add a row to your radiator.

Evans coolant sounds like a great product but only if your cooling system is already in good nick and you have some sort of special need, like you tow your gold bullion up hills in Abu Dhabi in July. I can't justify putting something so fancy in my beat-up, 17-year old Disco. I would put it in my L405 or even my L322, or my F-type. If I owned any of those.

jafir · Jul 22, 2015

Tugela said:
One gallon of Evans waterless coolant is selling for $50 on Amazon. Maybe you can get it cheaper elsewhere. The cooling system on a Disco holds what, 3 gallons? And no less an authority than Professor Schram encourages owners to change their coolant every 24 months. Assuming you buy a Disco for $4,000 and own it for 6 years, you would spend $450 on Evans coolant over the ownership period (this also assumes you change the fluids at purchase and have no coolant leaks whatsoever and Evans coolant requires changing at the same intervals as conventional coolant). If the service interval on this kind of coolant are longer, then maybe it's more economical in the long run.

I think the idea is that no water means no corrosion, and so no additives to wear out. So no changes. Ever. At least according to the video.

kennith · Jul 22, 2015

Schram is absolutely right. That interval is the the least you should be looking at.

I think, though, with something like this coolant, it might not be as critical. Think about a RV8 run from new with non-corrosive coolant. Fuck, change it every now and again. What's a few hundred bucks every two years?

Most people consume more alcohol than that in two years.

These engines are highly sensitive to coolant condition. What if that condition was always perfect? Hell, we're running the poster-engines for this stuff.

Cheers,

Kennith

kennith · Jul 22, 2015

jafir said:
I think the idea is that no water means no corrosion, and so no additives to wear out. So no changes. Ever. At least according to the video.

It's going to get some shit in there eventually, if only from the leftovers that crop up every now and again. That part of the problem with oil.

My fancy 25,000 mile synthetic may not suffer age or "wear" (within reason), but the engine will suffer from everything it picks up while it's being sloshed around in there, and the oil filter doesn't catch it all.

I think that's why they're adamant that the water content be kept below a certain single-digit percentage. If it ain't something else in there, it will likely be water, and that will defeat the purpose of the product.

I haven't seen too many legitimate complaints aside from viscosity concerns.

Cheers,

Kennith

Tugela · Jul 22, 2015

kennith said:
Think about a RV8 run from new with non-corrosive coolant. Fuck, change it every now and again. What's a few hundred bucks every two years?

This is part of my point. Using Evans on a new engine makes sense. Not on my 167,000-mile engine whose history/care/maintenance prior to 123,000 miles is unknown to me and whose lifespan won't be materially affected by switching to fancy coolant at this point.

I probably consume $150 worth of alcohol in far less time than a coolant change interval. The amount of satisfaction I derive from $150 worth of Scotch is far greater than than the corresponding satisfaction from having waterless coolant in my aging Disco. I'm content with a new radiator, hoses, T-stat, 24-month conventional coolant changes, and ScanGauge temperature readings below 205F.

jafir · Jul 22, 2015

Not much can be done about the water, unless something like a dryer that only absorbs the water and leaves the coolant alone exists. I wonder if a diesel fuel water separator would work, or if the coolant is water soluble.

As far as other contaminants go, maybe a coolant filter would help with SOME of them.

pdxrovermech · Jul 23, 2015

I run 2/3 water, 1/3 good ol green stuff, and water wetter. water disperses heat better than coolant and here in the NW the 1/3 is more than enough to keep me from freezing up.

KyleT · Jul 23, 2015

dexcool (havoline) and the KEY is distilled water. 50/50 mix for me and no issues. i do a 24 month max interval. more like 12mos though.

ERover82 · Jul 23, 2015

pdxrovermech said:
I run 2/3 water, 1/3 good ol green stuff, and water wetter. water disperses heat better than coolant and here in the NW the 1/3 is more than enough to keep me from freezing up.

x2

ubuntu · Jul 23, 2015

Tugela said:
The amount of satisfaction I derive from $150 worth of Scotch is far greater than than the corresponding satisfaction from having waterless coolant in my aging Disco.

I think coolant tastes better than scotch. One of my friends tried to educate me on scotch but failed miserably. He gave me some peat bog shit that gave me flashbacks of drinking muddy water filled with cow shit somewhere in Angola during my military service

I'll stick to coolant thanks.

Tugela · Jul 23, 2015

ubuntu said:
I think coolant tastes better than scotch. One of my friends tried to educate me on scotch but failed miserably. He gave me some peat bog shit that gave me flashbacks of drinking muddy water filled with cow shit somewhere in Angola during my military service
I'll stick to coolant thanks.

Introducing someone to Scotch by way of an Islay malt (which your description matches) is not very user-friendly. That would be like introducing someone to Land Rovers by putting them behind the wheel of a Series 1 with no syncromesh: definitely an acquired taste for an enthusiast, not enjoyable if you're accustomed to power steering, power brakes, and coil springs.

What were you doing in Angola and when? Driving SANDF SAMILs, perchance?

ubuntu · Jul 24, 2015

SADF in mid 80s, infantry platoon sergeant, touring in Buffel, Ratel and Casspir. Dodging Russian T54 tanks and Mig 23's dropping parachute retarded bombs... great fun. Was blown up twice by Russian land mines, one incident was a tripple stacked mine which bent a Casspir like a pretzel.

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