Petrol and diesel owners have been urged to never make a simple mistake when topping up their coolant this March.
Leading mechanic Scotty Kilmer stressed motorists should not be pouring 100 percent antifreeze inside their vehicle as it could spectacularly backfire.
Antifreeze must first be mixed with water which will “cool an engine better” than any solution available.
However, water on its own could destroy vital car parts and corrode key components which is why the two solutions need to be properly mixed.
Scotty issued the latest March warming while speaking on his YouTube channel.
The top mechanic said: “Today I’m going to tell you why you don’t want to run your car on pure 100 percent antifreeze.
“If you notice, this says 50/50. This is 50 percent Toyota antifreeze and 50 percent distilled water.
“The reason you don’t want 100 percent coolant is water actually has higher specific heat so it cools your engine better than coolant does. So if you put 100 percent coolant in it will not cool as well.
“Now since water works better, why don’t we just use water? Well, two reasons. One it freezes when it gets cold and it’ll destroy your engine and two it will corrode the metal parts. You need anti-rust and corrosion inhibitors that antifreeze has in it.
“So now you know more isn’t better with antifreeze, you want 50 percent antifreeze and 50 percent water.”
According to Total Energies, antifreeze is a concentrated, glycol-based liquid that “must be diluted with water before use”.
However, they stress motorists can purchase engine coolant already mixed in most stores.
Experts at BookMyGarage claim road users should change their coolant relatively often as the solution “plays an important role” all year long.
Not changing the solution can cause “extensive damage” to vehicles with key parts becoming “clogged up”.
BookMyGarage explained: “You should book a coolant change frequently, at least every two years.
“Low coolant can cause overheating, which would have serious implications for other components on the car.
“Even though coolant can leak and evaporate over time, in many cars it often looks as though the coolant never needs changing because its level seems to stay the same.
“However, draining and flushing the coolant system, including the radiator, at least once a year is important.”
