Was attempting to change the coolant yesterday in my 06 GT using the Airlift system. Compressor 120-150 psi, hooked up the Airlift system giving me a tight seal on the intercooler degas bottle but was unable to pull coolant despite having good vacuum. Left the Airlift in place thinking it was due to the large reservoir of coolant and just needed time to compress hoses and pull out coolant but was unsuccessful. Is it necessary to drain the front radiator via the petcock prior to using the Airlift or do most of you skip this? I understand I'll be only able to get approximately 80% of the system's coolant out via this procedure. My other thought is a defective venturi valve? Thanks for the assistance.
Coolant Change
- Thread starter jyork965
- Start date
Xcentric
GT Owner
The airlift is not a drain system. It is a refill system intended to eliminate air locks. Drain the coolant at the petcocks. You're not going to get 80%. 50% give or take.
Here's some more on draining and using the airlift. https://www.fordgtforum.com/forums/threads/coolant-drain.36109/
Here's some more on draining and using the airlift. https://www.fordgtforum.com/forums/threads/coolant-drain.36109/
Yeah, you'll need to drain the systems using the petcocks on the nose mounted heat exchangers. With the system "empty", the use the airlift system to draw a vacuum (gauge will move over to the green vacuum zone. You can't over-do it, so just continue to draw a vacuum until the gauge won't move anymore. Close the ball valve and disconnect the line to your compressor. Connect the tube to your anti-freeze bottle and insert it to the bottom. Hint: We add a funnel into the top of the 1-gal jug of pre-mixed gold antifreeze. Crack open the ball valve and the fluid will be sucked from the 1-gal container into the car. You can control the rate with the opening of the ball valve. We open it slightly and then continue pouring into the jug at the same rate the car is sucking it in.
MAD IN NC
Proud Owner/ BOD blah bla
You can also bleed the system once you think it is full, lift the hood, look in upper left of grille, you’ll see a peacock. Put hose on Petcock, hose has to be higher than resoviuor bottles, open radiator bottle and any air trapped at top of radiator will bleed out.... I took grille off....
Worked
Worked
Nafod
GT Owner
Did this a few years ago at my dealer. Like 10 gallons of anti freeze and 25 gallons of distilled/purified water.
Mech had a slick Snap-on adapter that pressurized the system to 2-3 psi. Enough to move the fluid through the system and to the drains up front. Started adding water to the system.
Finished when clear water was draining out the peacock's. Then we stopped adding water and let the system empty.
Then used the airlift system to draw in fresh anti freeze mixture. We got very close to the prescribed volumes for both
systems. What was left in the system we feel was fresh distilled water. Maybe some fluid was still trapped due to the
thermostat.. Dont know..ymmv
Mech had a slick Snap-on adapter that pressurized the system to 2-3 psi. Enough to move the fluid through the system and to the drains up front. Started adding water to the system.
Finished when clear water was draining out the peacock's. Then we stopped adding water and let the system empty.
Then used the airlift system to draw in fresh anti freeze mixture. We got very close to the prescribed volumes for both
systems. What was left in the system we feel was fresh distilled water. Maybe some fluid was still trapped due to the
thermostat.. Dont know..ymmv