Mike J. asked if his efforts to avoid his Jag's
cooling system from freezing up are sufficient.
Mike said he doubted that there was any anti-freeze
in the cooling system at all and that had placed an
electric blanket below the engine to keep the engine
from freezing up during the current run of 10-20 degree
temperatures in the area he lives in.
>From that description, it certainly seems that the Jag
is stowed away for a long winter's nap. That being the case,
I would drain the radiator and engine of all the water
if I didn't want to be hassled for now with bringing the
cooling system up to snuff with a proper 50-50 mix
of water and anti-freeze. The current arrangement
runs the risk (worst case scenario) of still having
the engine and/or radiator freeze if something interupts
the electrical supply to the electric blanket or if the
electric blanket fails.
Draining the cooling system presents far less risk to
the car. Yes, with no or a bit of residual water still
in the engine/radiator there can be some rusting, but that
wouldn't likely be all that much over the one winter
the car is stored. Then, next spring, do a complete
radiator/engine cooling system flushing and refill with
a 50-50 mix. Use of anti-freeze not only prevents
freezing, but it also raises the boiling point of the
coolant which helps prevent boiling over in the summer.
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Bill Sohl || email
Bellcore, Morristown, NJ || UUCP bcr!taichi!whs70
(Bell Communications Research) || or
201-829-2879 Weekdays || Internet whs70@taichi.cc.bellcore.com
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