Dirty/ Black antifreeze

[jxh2297]

Hello I am new to the forum and have been chasing a problem on my 2004 fz6 and thought I would come here for some opinions.

I have had the bike for about 3 years and had never changer the coolant. Well the other day I got bored in the shop and decided to flush the system. I was surprised as the coolant that was in there was almost black. I end up flushing the system with distilled water until the water was clear coming out. The first thing I suspected was oil. But it does not smell like oil and im not losing oil. There is also no antifreeze in the oil. I ended up putting fresh antifreeze in and running it for about 100 miles.. well its back to being a little dirty. Not near as bad as it was but deff something there. Any advice would be appreciated.

 

[Ssky0078]

Hello I am new to the forum and have been chasing a problem on my 2004 fz6 and thought I would come here for some opinions.

I have had the bike for about 3 years and had never changer the coolant. Well the other day I got bored in the shop and decided to flush the system. I was surprised as the coolant that was in there was almost black. I end up flushing the system with distilled water until the water was clear coming out. The first thing I suspected was oil. But it does not smell like oil and im not losing oil. There is also no antifreeze in the oil. I ended up putting fresh antifreeze in and running it for about 100 miles.. well its back to being a little dirty. Not near as bad as it was but deff something there. Any advice would be appreciated.

Black/dirty antifreeze is normal. I believe the manual says to change every 2 years or 24,000 miles. Antifreeze is a consumable just like oil. And should be replaced at proper intervals. The fact that it still may have a little black in there is because that stuff got gunked up in between the fins and if you really wanted too you could boil over the coolant a couple times.

This is probably stupid and really dangerous but I did it on my old jeep and it made the coolant system work like new. I would get the thing to it's hottest point, pull over and let the cap off without burning myself (used dishwasher gloves) and then would fill with water. After the second time the fluid was perfectly clean and I filled with anti-freeze. The car ran way cooler because the surface of the fins was now clean.

I have not done this on the bike, but same principle would apply I'm sure.

 

[FinalImpact]

Black/dirty antifreeze is normal. I believe the manual says to change every 2 years or 24,000 miles. Antifreeze is a consumable just like oil. And should be replaced at proper intervals. The fact that it still may have a little black in there is because that stuff got gunked up in between the fins and if you really wanted too you could boil over the coolant a couple times.

This is probably stupid and really dangerous but I did it on my old jeep and it made the coolant system work like new. I would get the thing to it's hottest point, pull over and let the cap off without burning myself (used dishwasher gloves) and then would fill with water. After the second time the fluid was perfectly clean and I filled with anti-freeze. The car ran way cooler because the surface of the fins was now clean.

I have not done this on the bike, but same principle would apply I'm sure.

^^ Nothing personal and I'm glad this worked for you but I DO NOT RECOMMEND ANYONE REMOVING THE RADIATOR CAP ON A HOT ENGINE!!!!

You risk 2nd or 3rd degree burns and its just NOT WORTH IT!!! Spend the extra time and materials to run it for a week and flush it until it comes out clean. As stated, there are so many places for foreign materials to bond in the coolant system and it just doesn't all come out at once.

OP - IMO its not normal to be black but once its contaminated its not ALL going to come out at once. Its very likely someone mixed products causing some kind of reaction. Leave it a bit longer each time and repeat until it comes out clean.

 

[Ssky0078]

^^ Nothing personal and I'm glad this worked for you but I DO NOT RECOMMEND ANYONE REMOVING THE RADIATOR CAP ON A HOT ENGINE!!!!

You risk 2nd or 3rd degree burns and its just NOT WORTH IT!!! Spend the extra time and materials to run it for a week and flush it until it comes out clean. As stated, there are so many places for foreign materials to bond in the coolant system and it just doesn't all come out at once.

OP - IMO its not normal to be black but once its contaminated its not ALL going to come out at once. Its very likely someone mixed products causing some kind of reaction. Leave it a bit longer each time and repeat until it comes out clean.

I totally agree and said it was stupid. I used the glove and a rag. Would pop the top and then hold it there for a second with a rag and then step back and watch it gush after the initial pressure burst was released. It worked well an the radiator looked like new after I did it a couple times.

 

[jxh2297]

Yeah deff won't do the open cap method. But would you guys suggest running it for a week or so with distilled water or coolant to flush it? I don't mind the cost of coolant, the issue is getting rid of old stuff

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[FinalImpact]

^^
Agreed about getting rid of it being an issue. The seal actually needs something for lubricant. If freezing or boil over conditions are not likely, you could do 80/20 water/antifreeze mix or grab some water weter.

I'm sure many have done just distilled but it can lead to more rust, corrosion, and potential seal damage. Not to mention the reduced boil over protection from raising the boiling point. A couple a weeks for a good cleansing.