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Antifreeze mixture for Suzuki?

14K views 5 replies 5 participants last post by  TFee3 
#1 ·
Hello,

I have a 2001 Suzuki SV650S and I had to drain the radiator. I am wondering what type of antifreeze and what the ratio of antifreeze and water should be? Can I use car antifreeze or does it have to be special for motorcycles?

Thank you ;o)
 
#2 ·
Check with a Suzuki dealer first. I'm fairly sure you can use car anti freeze but there are many different kinds out there (like Dex-cool and the yellow stuff Ford uses) and your bike may call for a certain kind. Both my Ninja and Raptor 4 wheeler take the green stuff and I ran the green stuff in my RM125 with no problems. I'm guessing as long as it is safe for aluminum it's ok but again I'm guessing.
 
G
#3 ·
Motorcycle Anti-Freeze

Both my past Suzuki GT750 LeMans and Honda Gold-Wings simply used a 50/50 mixture of Ethylene Glycol (undiluted Automotive Anti-Freeze) and water. On the latter Distilled Water was specified to hinder corrosion of the aluminum blocks (as tap water would surely accelerate). Funny, I'm thinking that might be a good idea for ALL water-cooled systems, cars and bikes?! :D In any case, be sure to be extra careful changing and disposing of that used Anti-Freeze. The darn stuff is absolutely deadly to wildlife who are attracted to the sweet scent. There is a (?) non-toxic environmentally safe one out on the market now I think? That would be my choice IF after contacting the manufacturer you get a thumbs up. ;-) All I would add is when you go to change this stuff, make sure you drain the block as well as the radiator. Never known a system yet where you could just easily get it ALL out thru the radiator drain plug. :rolleyes:
 
#5 ·
You should always use plain green anti-freeze. The cheap stuff. DexCool (orange) has known aluminum corrosion issues. G-05 (yellow) is a mix of silicate and organic based coolant. It has superior aluminum protection, but it coats components to help them resist corrosion and repair damage. It's a great idea, but it can also cause buildup.

The best thing for most any motorcycle is plain green antifreeze and distilled water at a 50/50 ratio.
 
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