Car Question-Coolant Tank

[Smooth]

I am a complete idiot when it comes to car care. My tank that says "coolant" on it is getting pretty low (almost the the low line). Usually Lube Pros takes care of this but I went to a different place last time which doesn't do that so I need to take care of it myself. At the store, there is antifreeze/coolant. I assume that is what I put in there. I guess antifreeze and coolant are complete opposites so that's why I'm hesitant. Also some coolants say they are already prediluted while others are not. I am planning on making a road trip soon and don't want to be stranded on the side of the road with an overheated engine. So my question is: Does the coolant tank go into the radiator and what is it's purpose? Which coolant do I get and how full do I fill it? Any help from car afficianadoes would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

[The Artful Dodger]

Antifreeze is exactly what it sounds like. It prevents your car's thermal distribution to reach the freezing point during times of very cold weather. Coolant is essentially any mixture of water and antifreeze. You want to have about 50/50 distribution between water and antifreeze so that you have some antifreeze protection for Winter while keeping the radiator's boiling point to an optimum (to prevent too much cooling). Too much antifreeze causes your radiator to overheat because this lessens the ease for the radiator to carry heat (hence, overheating).

Basically, what you do is fill your radiator tank with a mixture of let's say a half-gallon of antifreeze and a half-gallon of water. You should use distilled water because you want to prevent as many minerals from accumulating in there that'll cause deposits later.

Hope that helped.

[Dan Lambskin]

Antifreeze is exactly what it sounds like. It prevents your car's thermal distribution to reach the freezing point during times of very cold weather. Coolant is essentially any mixture of water and antifreeze. You want to have about 50/50 distribution between water and antifreeze so that you have some antifreeze protection for Winter while keeping the radiator's boiling point to an optimum (to prevent too much cooling). Too much antifreeze causes your radiator to overheat because this lessens the ease for the radiator to carry heat (hence, overheating).

Basically, what you do is fill your radiator tank with a mixture of let's say a half-gallon of antifreeze and a half-gallon of water. You should use distilled water because you want to prevent as many minerals from accumulating in there that'll cause deposits later.

Hope that helped.

or just go to Auto-Zone or some such store and tell them you're car stupid and ask them what you need

[DaShiz23]

Yeah, go to AutoZone. Some vehicles take Dex-Cool, while other use Universal Anti-Freeze. It depends on the Make of the car.
If you are talking about the overflow, then your radiator should still be full. Still, I would fill it up, just to be safe. Most "quick lubes' will fill it correctly for like $3 a quart or something.

[urbanbreez]

Is it a race car?

[DaShiz23]

Did you blow up the car? Good trip?

[BitterDodgerFan]

Is it a race car?

are you saying he's a race car driver? (sorry i couldn't resist)

[TheRock]

Be wary of mixing different kinds of antifreeze, they don't play nice together. If you need to add some, check the antifreeze bottle for the appropriate mix for your climate. You can pour it into the radiator, but don't open this when hot.

How old is the car? How long since anything was done with the coolant? The entire cooling system should be flushed and refilled every 60000 miles for most cars. Absolute best way to fix your problem? Take it in for a complete flush and fill.