Anti cavitation coolant treatment products / alternatives ?

[Scott Olson]

I am wondering what people have used for anti cavitation treatments? I am looking for solutions that would be more cost effective and or more readily available than a Ford, OEM, dealer product.

I guess the question would be if you used a product and still had an engine failure, I would like to know what it was ??,,,so I do not use something that would allow a failure.



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[DrCharles]

Cost effective? 4 gal. of Fleet Charge SCA runs about $75 (plus 4 gal of distilled water). Or you can use regular green antifreeze with additive. Since the shop that changed my heads used the green stuff, I went to the Ford dealer and spent a whopping $15 for the two pint bottles of Motorcraft VC-8 additive...(4 oz per gallon of system capacity)

How cheap do you expect such an additive to be? The antifreeze is going to cost considerably more than the additive, either way.

 

[nostrokes]

Cost effective? 4 gal. of Fleet Charge SCA runs about $75 (plus 4 gal of distilled water). Or you can use regular green antifreeze with additive. Since the shop that changed my heads used the green stuff, I went to the Ford dealer and spent a whopping $15 for the two pint bottles of Motorcraft VC-8 additive...(4 oz per gallon of system capacity)

How cheap do you expect such an additive to be? The antifreeze is going to cost considerably more than the additive, either way.

Yep... Regular green antifreeze, Napa brand, and Napa cool additive. Make sure whatever brand additive you use that the test strips are specific to that additive. You can not use motorcraft test strips for the Napa brand additive and vice versa. The test strips are kinda expensive and have an expiration date so be aware of that too.

 

[Mammoth73]

I've been meaning to look into mixing it myself, given usually when I'm dealing with it I'm just trying to fix a leak. But I've been using the prediluted orange fleetcharge and I'm the 3rd owner with 256 on the clock. I get it for roughly 15 a gallon at oriellys and she's still kickin

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[Macrobb]

I've been using Zerex HD ELC coolant. Based on my research, it should do well against cavitation, not need constant additive checks, and won't destroy seals. NAPA has it, P/N "ZXED1"

 

[reset2]

Rotella ELC antifreeze. Tested my truck after a drain flush, flush flush, and fill (concentrate at 50% water). The test strips said it was at spec for the chemicals. I will check again. If its off spec I will post here again.

O yea: I use my condensate out of my Hot Water Heat Pump for my water. Mineral free.

 

[m67tang]

Amsoil advertised their Diesel engine coolant with their own anti cavitation formula, non SCA so to speak.

 

[Fixnstuff]

I bought my truck 3 years ago and I flushed the brand new light green antI-freeze because the SCA test strips I ordered showed NOTHING. It was probably extended life coolant so I wasted a lot of money there.

I bought FLEET CHARGE, SCA Precharged, which is a dark pink color. I chose it because I wanted to be 100% sure that I was getting the proper or best anti-cavitation additives for this OLD IDI DIESEL ENGINE. The Extended Life Coolants all said "for Newer Diesel Engines" on the labels and furthest back they mentioned was 2006 and later.
As it turns out, those labels were a SNAFU for the most part as the anticavitation additives inthe ELCs are almost guaranteed, (by my research) to be BETTER than the OLD SCA's So using the Fleet Charge SCA Prechared was the SECOND bunch of gallons of antifreeze and distilled water I wasted.

I don't know if anyone has mentioned it yet but having to mess with test strips and maintaining SCA additive levels is a gigantic nuisance. I don't want to do it and I'm not going to do it.

Later this year I am switching to Extended Life Coolant and my choice is Fleet Charge Global. ELC for diesel engines. Like the Fleet Charge SCA Prechargesd, it is manufactured by the manufacturing company that owns the PEAK label. I have researched that company and I very much trust their research and expertise.

No more test strips, no more concerns about the correct SCAs and SCA levels.

That's the most economical route that I know of and I think it's also (very likely) to be the Best Protection. That is "Extended Life Coolants" for diesel engines.