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'99 XX...how much coolant?


Zero Knievel

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The manual says the radiator, engine and reserve tank should take just over 1 gallon, but I don't even get 3 quarts total.

The system is drained, I add until full then run until the motor heats up. When the level goes down, I add again until it's full. The rest goes into overflow and the cap is on. My experience says any air in the system will bleed out into the overflow tank and fluid will be sucked in if there is a shortage, but still, I expect to put almost a gallon in before this.

Am I doing something wrong? :wacko:

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As I recall, there's nothing special. Once you run the bike enough for it to heat up, the thermostat opens and coolant can circulate. This should let you fill the whole system. The whole "air self-bleeds" via the overflow tank was a way to not worry if you didn't get it all, but I got little more than 4 cups of coolant in before it was full, and it was getting up there in temperatures (idling in front of the garage).

The manual describes "bleeding" by "blipping" the throttle 2-3 times once the engine gets up to temp. I might try that another day and see if the fluid level drops significantly.

Edited by zer0netgain
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I have found that squeezing the lowest radiator hose helps push air out and burp the system. Do it gently because it usually pushes some out the top of thr radiator...of course the cap should be off and engine cool.

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There's a second drain point on the front of the motor, closer to the left side, if memory serves. Even using the second drain point I never removed or replaced more than 3 quarts without seriously disassembling things. I just assumed there's plenty of nooks and crannies in there for fluid to pool in.

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The process my son and I use to burp our birds is kinda simple but still a PITA.

On sidestand, pour fluid into radiator filler cap (and fill header tank as welll) and then start engine.

Idle to warm keeping an eye on the fluid level in the radiator filler neck, topping as needed

blip the throttle occasionally to move bubbles around

switch off and let the bike cool down - the fluid level drops bigtime. Top up again and idle till warm with throttle blips where desired.

When no more bubbles appear, put cap on and ride.

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I had to pull the upper radiator hose and pour coolant in there before I could get the pump to actually circulate the coolant. Still didn't take 3 quarts to get it full, and I unscrewed all the drains I could find in the book.

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I wonder where Honda gets their numbers from, then.

Gotta replace the radiator cap. Rubber gasket is 50% larger than is should be...swelled up like a sponge. I guess 15 years on the OEM one isn't bad.

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Mike, there's a lot of coolant that simply cannot drain out under any normal circumstance. When I disassemble an engine, its always a mess. Not so much from oil, but from coolant that's trapped in nooks and crannies. When Honda says the capacity is a gallon, that means how much you put in a newly assembled bike. Kinda like its damned near impossible to get all the peanut butter out of a jar.

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Kinda like its damned near impossible to get all the peanut butter out of a jar.

Poor analogy. In my house, you could whisk it with a paper towel and store cotton balls in it when we finish one off. B)

I get your point, though...won't get more than 3 quarts in before I'm flowing over.

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Oh I do a full flush and drain. So, that means it's not quite 50/50 since some water was hiding in there.

Odd as coolant should CIRCULATE...not get stuck in pockets. The drain point should let it all come out.

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Odd as coolant should CIRCULATE...not get stuck in pockets. The drain point should let it all come out.

Have you ever pulled a motor out of a car and put it on a engine stand? When you turn the motor over, a ton of water comes out.

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Oh I do a full flush and drain. So, that means it's not quite 50/50 since some water was hiding in there.

Odd as coolant should CIRCULATE...not get stuck in pockets. The drain point should let it all come out.

It circulates just fine, when the motor is running.

But you be sure to drop the engineers at Honda a strongly worded letter to let them know about this horrible flaw of coolant not circulating when the motor is off.

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Well, I'd expect some coolant to stick in the motor if the thermostat is closed...vacuum keeping it from draining properly, but a coolant pump isn't a sealed unit. Fluid can flow against gravity and out the drain hole. It's not a true one-way mechanism.

I'm thinking if you're to put 50/50 mix in and a proper flush and clean leaves X amount of H2O stuck in the engine block, they should tell you to put in X amount of straight antifreeze then 50/50 to attain the proper overall proportions.

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Well, I'd expect some coolant to stick in the motor if the thermostat is closed...vacuum keeping it from draining properly, but a coolant pump isn't a sealed unit. Fluid can flow against gravity and out the drain hole. It's not a true one-way mechanism.

Where did I mention a one way system or the water pump being a sealed unit? The system traps some fluid, that's to be expected.

I'm thinking if you're to put 50/50 mix in and a proper flush and clean leaves X amount of H2O stuck in the engine block, they should tell you to put in X amount of straight antifreeze then 50/50 to attain the proper overall proportions.

See, these are the little challenges you're going to run across in life. You can roll over them (this one should have taken maybe 5 minutes total to do a bit of math and then drain/top off the system with the appropriate fluid) or you can obsess about how stupid the design is and bitch about it on the internet. I envy you if you have the space in your life to think about this "problem" for any longer than it takes to solve it. ;)

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See, these are the little challenges you're going to run across in life. You can roll over them (this one should have taken maybe 5 minutes total to do a bit of math and then drain/top off the system with the appropriate fluid) or you can obsess about how stupid the design is and bitch about it on the internet. I envy you if you have the space in your life to think about this "problem" for any longer than it takes to solve it. ;)

A lot of time passes between weekends. You think I really have that much time to wrench after I get home from work?

Hell, I'm still waiting for my replacement radiator cap.

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He is not talking about wrenching but about how obsessing over a problem that isn't one. Buy premix or mix it yourself and fill it until it is full, done. That will give you time to think about things like the meaning of life or something.

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See, these are the little challenges you're going to run across in life. You can roll over them (this one should have taken maybe 5 minutes total to do a bit of math and then drain/top off the system with the appropriate fluid) or you can obsess about how stupid the design is and bitch about it on the internet. I envy you if you have the space in your life to think about this "problem" for any longer than it takes to solve it. ;)

A lot of time passes between weekends. You think I really have that much time to wrench after I get home from work?

Hell, I'm still waiting for my replacement radiator cap.

Get a wife and kids...that prevents me froM taking time to harbor on completely rediculous scenarios such as this one.

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