Engine Ice and Redline with Water Wetter work by lowering the surface tension of the coolant allowing it to get closer to the surfaces of the water jackets and carry more heat away than would be possible with more surface tension. For a cheap example of surface tension, we've all seen water bead up on a freshly-waxed painted surface. Any other coolant that has tension-breaking compounds mixed in should do the same thing.

* Last updated by: Danno on 3/17/2015 @ 12:19 AM *

I just use plain old Kawasaki coolant cut 50% with distilled water so no question in this camp. The stuff stays in there a long time so I don't want to do any guesswork about safety.

I get this. "Dont fix it..."

I *would* like to know what mfgr.'s "green stuff" Kaw decided to re-brand. Who's is it? Anyone know? Do you know if Kaw would spec. their own additives? They might be a big enough buyer, for a chemical mfgr. to consider taking the contract.

I'll check w/ Prestone, and see what they say about alum. engine qualifications. Back in one...

I don't understand why people are 'cutting' the factory coolant.It's premixed.Am I missing something here?According to Kawasaki...what I've read in the manual,you only add distilled water in an emergency situation..like a leak or something till you can get to a repair shop or whatever.I've NEVER had to premix any Kawasaki coolants.

Right now,I'm using Motul engine coolant.No mixing with that either.

* Last updated by: Grn14 on 3/18/2015 @ 10:54 AM *

Meb, I think the people who make Sta-bil for gasoline make it for Kaw, found this fact sheet,

That being said, you can use Peak 50/50 long life, if you want, won't hurt aluminum or seals in
water pump etc ... unless they changed the formula, used it for years in the Busa, no problems ..

CLick Here for Fact Sheet !!!!

When I had my 07,I tried the 'water wetter' deal.I honestly didn't see any real difference in temps.IDK...factory coolant seems fine to me.There's more going on than just 'cooling'.I think,but can't prove it,that the Kawasaki coolant is formulated to achieve the best balance of engine temps for optimum parameters of performance.For these motors anyway.

So, I looked for the Kaw specs. to attempt to find something to "bump" against.

The Service Manual says it's "Color: Green, and Type: Permanent".

Gee, for a manual that has three text lines describing in *excruciating* detail what the spec is for the oil, I'm having trouble getting excited about the coolant spec.

The Owners Manual is a bit better here. Page 131: "Use a permannent type of antifreeze (soft water and ethylene glycol plus corrosion and rust inhibitor chemicals for aluminium engines and radiators) in the cooling system.

Better, but no spec.

Im confused, my kawasaki anti freeze say it is NOT pre diluted ,when I look at the MSDS,
it doesn't list water, its says :

<90% ETHYLENE GLYCOL, <5% DIETHYLENE GLYCOL and <10% PROPRIETARY INGREDIENTS

????????

* Last updated by: carabuser on 3/18/2015 @ 11:52 AM *

Here's the spec for the Prestone Low Tox stuff. The boiling point and freeze points are impressive.

There's also a laundry list of spec. references for the corrosion inhibitor properties.

http://www.shamrockchicago.com/PrestLTAFSpec.html

I don't understand why people are 'cutting' the factory coolant.It's premixed.Am I missing something here?

Im confused, my kawasaki anti freeze say it is NOT pre diluted ,when I look at the MSDS,
it doesn't list water, its says :
<90% ETHYLENE GLYCOL, <5% DIETHYLENE GLYCOL and <10% PROPRIETARY INGREDIENTS

The brand I have used 3 times is Kawasaki AlumiCool. It's green. It's not pre-diluted and I presume it is the factory specced coolant. $11/bottle at dealer.

* Last updated by: carabuser on 3/18/2015 @ 3:15 PM *

The brand I have used 3 times is Kawasaki AlumiCool. It's green. It's not pre-diluted and I presume it is the factory specced coolant. $11/bottle at dealer.

Spot on, D. Out of guilt I bought a bottle from Bentley's Kawasaki when I was doing my 11,000 mile service. It was branded Kawasaki Aluma-Cool and you mixed it 50/50 with distilled water according to the label.

Looking back, I would feel safe using any reputable ethylene based coolant that contained the proper corrosion inhibitors.

I'm intrigued with Evans Waterless having such a low vapor pressure at high temps. I'm going to research their product further.

Hmmm.well..the coolants I've always used...never needed mixing.IDK...maybe they were like Prestone or something.Definitely the kawi green color.Aluminum safe.?????I should say,they WERE(and are) Aluminum safe.

So you guys are buying a coolant that requires mixing?I've never seem one like that at a Motorcycle shop.I'm using Motul coolant right now.No mixing with that either.

* Last updated by: Grn14 on 3/18/2015 @ 9:49 PM *

I had to order Aluma-Cool the last time...few months ago.

The chart from carabuser is good info.

Note that only the ethlyene glycol provides *more* freezing protection, when diluted 50/50, with it having the lowest (smallest) freezing protection (+8 deg) when at a 100% concentration (which is still quite good for protection in north america).

Both chemicals decrease their boiling point protection when diluted 50/50.

Either chemical should provide excellent boil over and freezing protection at 2:1 mixtures (2 parts glycol: 1 part water), with the nod going to proplyene glycol because it offers much better freezing protection at that same dilution (if you need that), or to ethylene glycol for slightly better boil over protection at that same dilution (if you need that).

It's no wonder that the MSDS sheet for the AlumaCool / Kaw product shows a boil over point > 300 deg., since it's at 100% concentration in the delivered bottle. That's not what you'll get when diluted to 505/50 per Kaw instructions. You might be better off at 2:1, in this case. The additives should last longer, too. Just my .02

Thanks very much carabuser, nice finds.

"I'm intrigued with Evans Waterless having such a low vapor pressure at high temps. I'm going to research their product further."

So far what little info I have been able to find, has been all good, I know some of the privateer AMA superbike
teams use it, and some factory Motocross teams use it ....

I'm looking into coolant and trying pick something good.
It seems Honda makes an automotive coolant that is silicate free called "type 2" and that it has been used by some (in other forums) with success.
Motul makes the "green"=usual ethelyne glycol + additives and "red"=organic acid technology + additives coolants, the red being the superior one.
Then there is evans coolant which seems to have a following, almost religious, as a waterless coolant - but a search on "Evans coolant problems" surfaced some limitations... almost spooky.

As you all point out, the zx-14 manual says nothing helpful on coolants, the owner's manual doesn't even say how much coolant is needed!

Like you, I would like a coolant that doesn't corrode the metals, especially during winter storage. Aside from religious coolant flush'n'fill, I don't know of any magic elixir, but I doubt my knowledge has a lot of holes!

Can you share your knowledge & experiences? Greatly appreciate it!!!

Johnny.

I've always used Kawasaki Aluma-Cool. Never had a problem. You need to mix 50/50 with distilled water but I see that as a big plus over premixed. Costs a hell of a lot less than premixed too. I would not use anything that is not made for aluminum engines and I would stick with motorcycle spec coolant. I have a tutorial on coolant change and it states the exact fluid capacity of my '08. The only tricky part is to get the coolant to the right strength after flushing with distilled water. If you flush, there will be several ounces of pure water in there and that is enough to throw off the proportions of water/coolant.

radiator flush and engine coolant change

* Last updated by: Rook on 7/9/2015 @ 9:04 AM *

Hi guys - Bumping this old thread cuz I'm doing my coolant change and found info that doesn't seem to be in here: From DeWitt's High Performance Aluminum Radiators' website:

Do Aluminum Radiators Need Special Coolant?

The key to maximizing the life of an aluminum radiator is not so much the radiator coolant brand as it is the water type. All coolants sold today will protect aluminum radiators. This wasn’t always the case, however. Traditional copper/brass construction was the primary radiator material for six or seven decades and most coolants sold over the counter at your favorite parts store did not have the proper additive and protection package for aluminum radiators. So, you had to be cognizant of not only your radiator’s build materials, but what radiator coolant you were purchasing. Today, all modern coolant brands are sold with the ability to work in traditional copper/brass construction, aluminum and composite construction, and full aluminum construction with a coolant additive for aluminum radiators.

Should I Use 50/50 Coolant or Concentrate?

Concentrated ethylene glycol based coolant creates a potential problem because this lets the installer choose the water source and that is where many make a big mistake. The solution to this water problem is simple, do not purchase the concentrated engine coolant. Buy the coolant in a pre-mixed form to eliminate the possibility of any errors. Pre-mixed 50/50 coolant already contains the distilled water and the proper ratio to make filling your cooling system simple. You no longer have to pre-mix the engine coolant or guess at what water ratio you have. Just pour it in and forget it.

* Last updated by: extrapolator on 8/22/2022 @ 10:44 AM *

I only feel comfortable using Kawasaki coolant. I'm confident it's the safest thing to use and that includes that they are formulated for aluminum radiators. I'm not aware of any properties that other coolants claim to have except the ones that are supposed to make the engine run cooler than normal coolant does. A lot of people have raved about those extra cool coolants but I don't feel I needed my bike to run cooler than it did anyway. I have heard negatives about using those coolants too.

I do not like premixed coolant even if it is bike specific. It might be exactly the right strength before you put it in but if it doesn't float as many balls as you need it to, you're SOL. You can't richen it up unless you add concentrated coolant. If you flush with distilled water before you put the fresh coolant in, there will be enough water left in the engine to lean out your mix to float one less ball. If you don't have concentrated coolant, forget about trying to adjust the strength. If the coolant is not the optimum strength, it's not protecting your cooling system against scale forming either. I flushed and changed a few times and it is tricky if you want to get it perfect. With premixed, it will be way off if you flushed, mark my words....

Concentrated ethylene glycol based coolant creates a potential problem because this lets the installer choose the water source and that is where many make a big mistake.

* Last updated by: Rook on 8/22/2022 @ 10:59 PM *

I flushed with a few courses of distilled water and then one last flush with coolant I mixed 50/50. That last flush of 50/50 was to turn the residual flush water in the engine as close as possible to the proper strength. Believe me, the distilled water leaned that batch out significantly even after mingling with all of the 50/50 that went in. I believe I threw tat whole batch away and poured in a new batch of 50/50. It was still a bit lean but close enough that I was able to richen it up as needed to float my 4 balls. If I were to do it again, I probably would try to salvage that flush with 50/50, richen it up and pour it back in. The concern was contamination of the coolant after it drained out. ...I guess if you're careful, might be worth a try to salvage it.