The radiator coolant in my truck is low. its just about at the bottom of the tank and the "level when cold" mark is about half way up the tank. Is there a specific kind I should get, or will any work? and how much is it.

edit

do I have to drain everything thats in there or can i just top it off?

 

you can top it off with regular green antifreeze. dont use any orange or red. what i would do is top it off with water and have a coolant flush done to it sooner or later. this way you'll have all new coolant and you wont have any/as much crap that built up in the coolant system over the 16 years. was it low when you bought it?

 

I didn't check. It passed inspection, so I thought they would have checked it. when I put more in I'll give it a quick look and make sure it's not leaking.

 

MD can honestly care less about the fluid levels. all they need for inspection is all emmisions parts visually being there, some areas in MD have actual emmisions tests. e-brake/park brake has to work. has to run and move obviously. no oil burning or coolant burning and no leaks that are related to emissions like the exhaust and pcv system. and then the steering and suspension has to all be there and tight with limits on exhaust and lifts and a few more things but those are the main things they look at. who'd you have inspect it? if it was low on coolant then the shop could have at least told you but like i said they dont care to look at those things.

 

It was a local ford dealer that did the inspection

 

For now, just add water.

 

^^^^The amount it'll take to top off the tank is insignificant compared to the system quantity...good 'ole H2O!!

 

sounds good. i'll go fill it up

 

Ford's recommendations are in the PDF under the Quick Reference Charts tab on this page, but if you use aftermarket coolant, READ THE LABEL. They're all doing different things & using different colors - no standard has yet emerged. Just don't buy "Ready-Mix" and avoid "Long-Life". Both are rip-offs.

 

I poured a bottle of water in, and it looks like mud in there. How do I flush it out?

 

get a bottle of coolant flush and read the directions. every one i've used you just run it in the coolant system for about 15 minutes to a half hour(you can run it longer but thats all they required) and then either use a machine and change it or drain and fill.