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How To: Change Coolant (660)

99327 Views 33 Replies 12 Participants Last post by  nlschoneberger
14
I have seen guys asking questions about this kinda stuff before, so someone will get use out of this kinda info.

Changing your cooling system coolant.

Tools and items: Basic sockets, a long extension, a screwdriver, channel lock/water pump pliers, big bottomed drain pan, Coolant

Time: 1-2 hours (+ time to run to town if you are testing your rad cap)

Difficulty: Easy, just takes time to fully flush out the system

Application: All Years Grizzly 660

Warning - Do not attempt if engine is warm - hot. If the engine is warm, your coolant system may be pressured, and dangerous to open. Start quad, move it to your work location, shut it off (MINIMAL run time)
- Animals love the taste of antifreeze, unless you have a neighbors dog you dont like dispose of it properly as it is poisonous.

Step - 1: Remove the front rack by removing the two bolts in the top of the bumper, the two fender support bolts, and the two rearward bolts (need a long extension).



- 2: Remove (or pop up if you have snorkels routed through it) the front "hood" by removing the two bolts in the rear outer corners, the popping it off.



- 3: Remove the rad cap by depressing, and twisting as indicated on the cap.



- 4: Remove the seat and drivers side engine cover.

- 5: Remove the drivers side wheel well/floor board by removing the 4 bolts (You may choose to put some type of penetrating oil on them) in the bottom of the floor board, and the 6 phillips head bolts + lock nuts holding the wheel well to the fender.



- 6: Remove the plastic cover that is around the pull start by removing the 4 bolts. (long extension needed)



- 7: Locate the water pump.



- 8: There is only about 1.8Liters (1.9 US quarts) so you don't need a deep drain pan, but with the weight of the water coming out of the small drain hole it can squirt around 4 feet away from the drain hole, requiring a large bottom drain pan (or multiple small one's).
Remove the drain bolt (be careful to not loose the small copper washer).




- 9: Drain the coolant over flow tank by removing the suck back hose, and flush out the tank.



- 10: Take a look at the coolant you drained from your system, if it is clean like mine you can simply flush the old coolant out of the system. If it is full of dirty junk, you will want to now use a cooling system cleaner that is safe for aluminum engines and rads (follow instructions on bottle)

My system is clean so i can skip using a cleaner, and continue onto step 11.

- 11: Flush the old coolant out of the system. Put the drain plug back in(7.2 ft • lb) and fill the rad full of water using a garden hose. Put rad cap back on.



- 12: Run the engine for a minute or two to help the water mix with any coolant left in the system. Then remove the cap, and drain the water/coolant out again by removing the drain bolt.

- 13: To help make sure there is nothing blocking any of the passages in your rad i removed the upper rad hose from the rad and forced water into the rad from that location using a garden hose.



Also try forcing water into the upper rad hose to help clean out the engine.

- 14: Put the upper rad hose back on, and using the garden hose add water to the rad while letting it drain out to help clean any old coolant or any possible junk out of the system.

If the water coming out of the drain still contain junk, Repeat steps 10 to 14 (using more cooling system cleaner).
If the water is still colored from the old coolant, repeat steps 11 to 14.

- 15: It is a good idea to go to a local lube shop and get your rad cap pressure tested. 13.5 to 17.8 PSI is the recommended pressure that the cap should hold. If it does not hold 13.5 PSI, replace cap (local shop should have one of that size in stock) TEST YOUR NEW CAP! Just because its new, does not mean it will hold the pressure it is rated for.
Also pick up some antifreeze. I went with Prestone Premixed (no mixing required) antifreeze/coolant.



- 16: Put drain bolt(7.2 ft • lb) back into the water pump, and hook the suck back hose back onto the over flow tank.

- 17: Fill the rad (the system) with your coolant. It will take about 1.8 L , but in the end we want the system to be FULL (not including the overflow tank).



I used a old 600ML bottle to pour the coolant, allowing me to keep track of how much i have added just for personal reference.

Fill the over flow tank to the "Full line".

- 18: Start you grizz, and let it warm up. You will see bubbles coming out if the rad. This is air being purged from the system. Add more coolant as needed to keep the rad full. Try squeezing one of the rad hoses slightly, or giving the grizz a bit of throttle to help purge the system.

- 19: Put the rad cap back on and allow the grizz to continue to run to get it warm. Add to the over flow tank as needed. Once your engine cools down, you may also have to add more to the over flow tank.



- 20: Reassemble your rack and covers in reverse order that you disassembled them.

It can be recommended that you go on a quick ride to let the quad warm up again and suck back liquid. When the engine cools off again the over flow take may have gone down again, fill up to the full line as needed.

The next ride or two you may need to top up the overflow tank a bit again.

You probably don't have to flush the system out as thorough as i did, but i want to make sure i get the best performance out of my system, while not having to flush it out again for a few years.

Good luck!

Rob
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Hmmm. We are def working on a serious thread hijack here so, if you would like more suggestions, I'd go ahead and fire up a new thread in the Engine & transmission forum but...if it's quite loud, I'd be looking for a leak / crack in the pipes or muffler. If a lot of the noise seems to be coming from forward of the muffler, you almost certainly have a header, pipe, or header gaskets issue. Check the joint where the muffler clamps on to the pipe too.
Thanks, a lot of good info here on the rad flush and replacement of coolant and other maintenance stuff. I'm going to have to re-read the posts a few times and I'll probably have some questions. I want to d this in the next day or so.
While your at it replace the thermostat and rad cap for a like new cooling system. Its only a few bucks more and youll know your good to go.
All we need now is a related thread that shows the replacement of the thermostat...! In the mean time I'll check the Yamaha manual and look into that. I'm looking at my overflow "jug" and the rad fluid is really brown. Somewhere along the line I lost my overflow jug cap. And ideas of a temporary fix for that...? As I'll likely do the flush and fill of the coolant tomorrow. And is it ok to use LOW SILICATE pre-mix...? (says it's safe for aluminium).
I read somewhere about a jug cap temp replacement till new one came in, As i remember they used a cap off something around the house that had a tight fit, Drilled a hole in the center for hose and duct taped it till new one came in.
While your at it replace the thermostat and rad cap for a like new cooling system. Its only a few bucks more and youll know your good to go.
I was hoping to change out the rad coolant this morning, and I was going to re-use the rad cap and stay with the thermostat on this occasion. Due to my location, It may be some time before I can get to a yamaha dealer to get the new rad cap and thermostat. And as long as just doing a coolant flush and fill it works on the short term, I can get those new parts and change out the fluids and parts, when I get the parts to do it.
Well Gr personnel... I did a rad flush due to the color of the fluid. And it went well. I remember a Yamaha shop changed it out about two years ago, and I'm of the opinion that they forgot to put the overflow jug cap back on. So I'll have to jerry-rig a temporary solution and have already tried a few caps from plastic bottles and they are either too large or too small. I don't recall if they have a breather hole in the top, as ole brute has suggested. So I'm not too sure about that little feature. It time for another small part to add to the list...! Thanks for your help and suggestions...!
We need someone with a grizz to chime in here, I dont remember if the grizz has the hose in the cap or beside it.
What happins if you break a bolt on the water pump
Great job on the tutorial. Also like that idea you used with the water bottle.:thewave:
What happins if you break a bolt on the water pump
When I read your post I gather that you broke the bolt... If so, be very careful in removing the broken piece. If your not comfortable in doing the extraction. See if you can find someone who can do it without damaging the threads for the bolt hole. If needed go to an atv shop or machine shop and pay the nickels and dimes to have it done so that you can use the bolt thread home again when you change the thermostat.
Also I'm using a shampoo lid to for the overflow jug. It seems to be working and I'll get the proper cap for it soon.
I have seen guys asking questions about this kinda stuff before, so someone will get use out of this kinda info.

Changing your cooling system coolant.

Tools and items: Basic sockets, a long extension, a screwdriver, channel lock/water pump pliers, big bottomed drain pan, Coolant

Time: 1-2 hours (+ time to run to town if you are testing your rad cap)

Difficulty: Easy, just takes time to fully flush out the system

Application: All Years Grizzly 660

Warning - Do not attempt if engine is warm - hot. If the engine is warm, your coolant system may be pressured, and dangerous to open. Start quad, move it to your work location, shut it off (MINIMAL run time)
- Animals love the taste of antifreeze, unless you have a neighbors dog you dont like dispose of it properly as it is poisonous.

Step - 1: Remove the front rack by removing the two bolts in the top of the bumper, the two fender support bolts, and the two rearward bolts (need a long extension).



- 2: Remove (or pop up if you have snorkels routed through it) the front "hood" by removing the two bolts in the rear outer corners, the popping it off.



- 3: Remove the rad cap by depressing, and twisting as indicated on the cap.



- 4: Remove the seat and drivers side engine cover.

- 5: Remove the drivers side wheel well/floor board by removing the 4 bolts (You may choose to put some type of penetrating oil on them) in the bottom of the floor board, and the 6 phillips head bolts + lock nuts holding the wheel well to the fender.



- 6: Remove the plastic cover that is around the pull start by removing the 4 bolts. (long extension needed)



- 7: Locate the water pump.



- 8: There is only about 1.8Liters (1.9 US quarts) so you don't need a deep drain pan, but with the weight of the water coming out of the small drain hole it can squirt around 4 feet away from the drain hole, requiring a large bottom drain pan (or multiple small one's).
Remove the drain bolt (be careful to not loose the small copper washer).




- 9: Drain the coolant over flow tank by removing the suck back hose, and flush out the tank.



- 10: Take a look at the coolant you drained from your system, if it is clean like mine you can simply flush the old coolant out of the system. If it is full of dirty junk, you will want to now use a cooling system cleaner that is safe for aluminum engines and rads (follow instructions on bottle)

My system is clean so i can skip using a cleaner, and continue onto step 11.

- 11: Flush the old coolant out of the system. Put the drain plug back in(7.2 ft • lb) and fill the rad full of water using a garden hose. Put rad cap back on.



- 12: Run the engine for a minute or two to help the water mix with any coolant left in the system. Then remove the cap, and drain the water/coolant out again by removing the drain bolt.

- 13: To help make sure there is nothing blocking any of the passages in your rad i removed the upper rad hose from the rad and forced water into the rad from that location using a garden hose.



Also try forcing water into the upper rad hose to help clean out the engine.

- 14: Put the upper rad hose back on, and using the garden hose add water to the rad while letting it drain out to help clean any old coolant or any possible junk out of the system.

If the water coming out of the drain still contain junk, Repeat steps 10 to 14 (using more cooling system cleaner).
If the water is still colored from the old coolant, repeat steps 11 to 14.

- 15: It is a good idea to go to a local lube shop and get your rad cap pressure tested. 13.5 to 17.8 PSI is the recommended pressure that the cap should hold. If it does not hold 13.5 PSI, replace cap (local shop should have one of that size in stock) TEST YOUR NEW CAP! Just because its new, does not mean it will hold the pressure it is rated for.
Also pick up some antifreeze. I went with Prestone Premixed (no mixing required) antifreeze/coolant.



- 16: Put drain bolt(7.2 ft • lb) back into the water pump, and hook the suck back hose back onto the over flow tank.

- 17: Fill the rad (the system) with your coolant. It will take about 1.8 L , but in the end we want the system to be FULL (not including the overflow tank).



I used a old 600ML bottle to pour the coolant, allowing me to keep track of how much i have added just for personal reference.

Fill the over flow tank to the "Full line".

- 18: Start you grizz, and let it warm up. You will see bubbles coming out if the rad. This is air being purged from the system. Add more coolant as needed to keep the rad full. Try squeezing one of the rad hoses slightly, or giving the grizz a bit of throttle to help purge the system.

- 19: Put the rad cap back on and allow the grizz to continue to run to get it warm. Add to the over flow tank as needed. Once your engine cools down, you may also have to add more to the over flow tank.



- 20: Reassemble your rack and covers in reverse order that you disassembled them.

It can be recommended that you go on a quick ride to let the quad warm up again and suck back liquid. When the engine cools off again the over flow take may have gone down again, fill up to the full line as needed.

The next ride or two you may need to top up the overflow tank a bit again.

You probably don't have to flush the system out as thorough as i did, but i want to make sure i get the best performance out of my system, while not having to flush it out again for a few years.

Good luck!

Rob
Thank you for posting this, great read and I am sure it will make the job go much faster.
-Laine
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