Froozen coolant.
Thread Starter
Joined: Mar 2013
Posts: 5
Froozen coolant.
Hi folks! I'm new here, but I thought I would ask you for advice.
I live in Lithuania, This winter temperatures were as low as -25 °C , and my 2009 v6 convertible was sitting there all winter in my driveway, covered, but outdoors. I made a stupid mistake, I forgot to drain the coolant, another mistake was that I did not take note of how much water/antifreeze was in there or what the freeze point was. Last week when it was getting up to -10 °C at night I checked the coolant, and it was frozen, I squished the tubes and they weren't solid, but felt like they had snow in them, so was the liquid in the reservoir, not ice, but "crystal like" transparent hard snow. There were times that temperatures reached the mid +10's at daytime, so I guess If anything had cracked, I would be seeing spills or something, I checked for them but found none. anyway, my question is : Am I doomed?
I live in Lithuania, This winter temperatures were as low as -25 °C , and my 2009 v6 convertible was sitting there all winter in my driveway, covered, but outdoors. I made a stupid mistake, I forgot to drain the coolant, another mistake was that I did not take note of how much water/antifreeze was in there or what the freeze point was. Last week when it was getting up to -10 °C at night I checked the coolant, and it was frozen, I squished the tubes and they weren't solid, but felt like they had snow in them, so was the liquid in the reservoir, not ice, but "crystal like" transparent hard snow. There were times that temperatures reached the mid +10's at daytime, so I guess If anything had cracked, I would be seeing spills or something, I checked for them but found none. anyway, my question is : Am I doomed?
5th Gear Member
Joined: Oct 2009
Posts: 2,645
From: Oregon
You could be okay if the liquid in the block didn't freeze. If it did, it may have expanded and cracked something, though it may not have. I'd suggest getting a proper mix in there immediately, and if it gets that cold you should looking into getting a block warmer that you can plug in to keep the engine from freezing.
Thread Starter
Joined: Mar 2013
Posts: 5
You could be okay if the liquid in the block didn't freeze. If it did, it may have expanded and cracked something, though it may not have. I'd suggest getting a proper mix in there immediately, and if it gets that cold you should looking into getting a block warmer that you can plug in to keep the engine from freezing.
How should I proceed now? I've put a floor heater inside the engine compartment and put towels all over it, so it would "thraw" the coolant. I can press on the lower tubes where the coolant is and its liquid (no resistance) but near the top there still is some snow. I will probably leave the heater on for two hours. If I wont find any snow in the tubes, should I attempt to start the car and let the coolant flow, defrost completely? After that I'd drain it and put a normal mixture in. So the next question is, how should I know if its okay to start it ? Where should I check for cracks? leaks? I can't seem to find the freeze plugs.
4th Gear Member
Joined: Apr 2008
Posts: 1,486
From: San Diego, CA
Wow, I would assume winterizing a car is similar to a boat...how can you forget about the coolant? 
I assume its no 60/40 right?
When the car is warmed up, start it, and hope there is no water/oil leaks. Hang a high powered light bulb in the engine compartment to warm-up the engine. We do the same with airplane engines.
Never tried this, but it looks interesting.
http://www.fleetfarm.com/detail/kats...FYFxQgodky8AXA
I assume its no 60/40 right?When the car is warmed up, start it, and hope there is no water/oil leaks. Hang a high powered light bulb in the engine compartment to warm-up the engine. We do the same with airplane engines.
Never tried this, but it looks interesting.
http://www.fleetfarm.com/detail/kats...FYFxQgodky8AXA
Last edited by Roy_R; Mar 26, 2013 at 11:00 AM.
3rd Gear Member
Joined: Oct 2011
Posts: 750
From: WV
If it was slushy you should be OK, although I'm not sure about aluminum engines...
On my old Thunderbird I was running water with that Be-Cool stuff in it (or whatever you call it) years ago, and I put it away for the winter and forgot that stuff was in there. It doesn't do anything to prevent freezing. I went to check on the car in the middle of the winter and the coolant was slushy. I disconnected the lower radiator hose and just let it sit so that when it warmed up a bit the water mix would just drain out. When I got the car out in spring everything was fine, although I was having heater core issues so I think that got screwed up...otherwise it was good. *shrugs*
On my old Thunderbird I was running water with that Be-Cool stuff in it (or whatever you call it) years ago, and I put it away for the winter and forgot that stuff was in there. It doesn't do anything to prevent freezing. I went to check on the car in the middle of the winter and the coolant was slushy. I disconnected the lower radiator hose and just let it sit so that when it warmed up a bit the water mix would just drain out. When I got the car out in spring everything was fine, although I was having heater core issues so I think that got screwed up...otherwise it was good. *shrugs*
Thread Starter
Joined: Mar 2013
Posts: 5
Thank you very much for the replies.
LoL @ frozant
Well I've put in a new battery, and after a few hours of heating it with a floor heater and a hairdryer, It started almost immediately and held its rpm normally.
I let the engine run for a minute, searching for leaks or drips, and could't find any obvious issues. I drove it to a gas station to fill up on fresh fuel, pump the tires, and left it at an authorized ford service to clean the cooling system and check for cracks and whatnot, that's about 120$. There was a strange sound while accelerating, though I tried not to push it above 2500 rpm.
Well, If the engine block was cracked, I bet it would have been obvious?
LoL @ frozant
Well I've put in a new battery, and after a few hours of heating it with a floor heater and a hairdryer, It started almost immediately and held its rpm normally.
I let the engine run for a minute, searching for leaks or drips, and could't find any obvious issues. I drove it to a gas station to fill up on fresh fuel, pump the tires, and left it at an authorized ford service to clean the cooling system and check for cracks and whatnot, that's about 120$. There was a strange sound while accelerating, though I tried not to push it above 2500 rpm.
Well, If the engine block was cracked, I bet it would have been obvious?
5th Gear Member
Joined: Apr 2012
Posts: 2,793
From: Colorado
We get that cold here once in a while here in Colorado. I'm a bit surprised that you "slushed up". 50/50 mix of antifreeze and water is usually good to -50.
Anyway, you might as well drive it now, if the block is cracked, you'll find out soon enough. But if it isn't running coolant around the freeze plugs or bottom of the radiator you might be ok.
Anyway, you might as well drive it now, if the block is cracked, you'll find out soon enough. But if it isn't running coolant around the freeze plugs or bottom of the radiator you might be ok.