Coolant never changed?

[motodan]

Who has never changed coolant on their Wethead? I now have a 2014 RT, there’s no record of a coolant ever being changed however, level is right on and coolant reads good to -40F.

 

[20774]

I thought everything we needed to know about coolant change was here!

https://forums.bmwmoa.org/showthread.php?104878-Coolant-change

 

[motodan]

I thought everything we needed to know about coolant change was here!

https://forums.bmwmoa.org/showthread.php?104878-Coolant-change

No Kurt it isn’t. There are a number of replies about color of coolant, those who did change coolant and other non specific comments however, the question that initiated this thread is not answered in the thread you reference. Do you have a reply to the question at hand? Have you never not changed coolant in a Wethead you’ve owned? Thank you.

 

[52184]

I haven’t changed coolant in my 2018 GS but will be doing so at next service, as the coolant is 5 years old and that’s as much as I’m comfortable with. The 12k/Annual service checklist for the brick-k bikes called for a coolant change every 4 years. That interval is not called out on the same checklist for the wedge-k bikes (or at least for my K1300GT) but those bikes require radiator removal to do a valve check, and who isn’t going to replace the drained coolant with new?

The only coolant item on the WC R1200GS checklist is “Check Coolant Level” with no replacement interval specified, at least not that I’ve found yet, and the service manual has data for testing the protection level of the coolant but is silent on its lifespan. And, looking over the fine print on my jug of official BMW coolant I find no service life or replacement interval mentioned, but in all that fine print my aging eyes could be mistaken.

Probably a good question to ask your dealer’s service writer or lead tech next time you’re in, and please share the answer. A lot of modern coolants are sold as being good for ten years, and some claim “lifetime”. As I said up front, 5 years is about as far as I’m willing to stretch it.

Best,
DeVern

 

[rhbike]

My K1600 has no service interval stated in the owners manual either, other than check the level. The radiator has to come out every 18k miles for plug replacement and valve check. Interestingly, the service disc that BMW no longer sells says to test the coolants properties if reusing, or replace. Like you say, I replace the coolant when the radiator comes out.

 

[migrant]

2018 RT with 36k miles, coolant not changed.

 

[lee]

I did not change the coolant on our 2016 R1200RSs.
When we traded near the end of 2017 I had 58,000 miles on mine and Debbie had 55,000 miles.

 

[alegerlotz]

My 2016 has 54K miles on it and the original coolant. For the first couple of years the bike used a few ounces a year (evidence of leaking out the weep hole near the oil filter). In the past couple of years it hasn't used any coolant. The engine temp behavior has remained consistent through the life of the bike.

 

[Omega Man]

I'm not really a believer that good quality anti-freeze goes bad. If it tests to the desired temperature protection and there is no visible contamination, run it. I have a 30+ year old diesel with the same A/F (except makeup due to radiator or hose change that still tests good and the block is clean.
I do add a rust inhibitor/water pump lube on a regular basis.

OM

 

[n41ef]

Just my opinion, and a little history lesson. VW and GM came out with lifetime fill coolant in the 80's and 90's (Dexcool and G11). Both were notorious for corrosion and engine failure, either from people mixing coolant when inevitable leaks happened. Sometime when you are bored fooled DeathCool and read the chemistry behind it. VW's issue was dissimilar metals in an engine, like every engine out there. I'm a little paranoid about failures and corrosion, so every 4 years, I change to coolant in my BMW R bike and in my Mini Cooper (BMW engine). A gallon of the BMW blue coolant is about $24 and does both. There is only about a liter of total coolant and water in the Bike, and about three times that in the car. I drained the bike by pulling a hose off, and there are drain plugs on the bottom of both cylinder heads.

I think it's cheap insurance. Also, then you have the Tupperware off, mark the low and high marks on the expansion tank to make them easier to see when you look through the hole in the side.

 

[globalrider]

I now have a 2014 RT, there’s no record of a coolant ever being changed however, level is right on and coolant reads good to -40F.

Thats all very nice but have you ever seen internal corrosion in an engine? I have on a used Honda I bought ages ago. It was not pretty. The aluminum crumbled away at the coolant pump. Coolant has additives in it and one of them protects you against corrosion.

For the cost of a bottle of the BMW coolant or the Zerex G48, I'd change it every 4 years. I last changed my coolant in 2020, four years after taking delivery of my GSA.

 

[saddleman]

You can buy coolant test strips that will tell you the PH of the coolant & them you can determine if you need to change the coolant.