PhillyNate

So I haven’t been driving my car much lately and today for the 2nd time my low coolant light came on and went away quickly in my 2010 base Cayman manual. I HAVE NO VISABLE LEAKS but I went and bought coolant anyway. I could not find my distilled water I’d stored in the garage so I was forced to buy premixed German coolant. A couple surprises happened. I finally found what I needed but it was Prestone, smh. However according to Prestone, Peak and a few other manufacturers of coolant the recommended color for Porsche and other German brands is no longer pink but is now violet/purple. No biggie, I bought the purple premix and went on my way. The 2nd surprise was my car took a whopping 2 QUARTS!! I was like wtf... I put the coolant in and checked for leaks and there were NONE I could see. Took the car on a very long and spirited drive with no complications whatsoever. Car behaved flawlessly per usual. I had not added coolant to my car in 5.5 years so from what I’ve read it is not unusual to need to add coolant much sooner. I assume what was already in my system was the older pink coolant. Was it ok to top off and mix with the newer( and I assume more advanced) violet/purple stuff? EVERYTHING I’ve read (and my car’s performance) has indicated that it is indeed fine but I want to hear from the experts here pls....
Thanks

ledbette

I've experienced coolant evaporation in my 981 and have seen several people note the same on Planet-9. I got a low coolant light at about 4yr 50K miles, topped it off with about 1 1/2 qts and have been good to go.

So from my experience, it seems like that is within reason.

TMc993

Make sure the cap on your coolant system is sealing properly. If it is difficult to remove and/or if there is residue on the sealing surfaces it would probably be a good idea to replace it.

ledbette

+1 on that - I did replace my coolant cap at about the same time. It was warped and very hard to turn. I believe that was a contributor to my coolant loss.

PhillyNate

Spot on. I ordered a cap today based on some other things I read as well. Thank you everyone for your input.

badabing

In a pinch when refilling the coolant system on my track car, I had to use some Peak violet pre mix to finish off the job, added to the concentrate Pentosin (mixed with distilled water) I had run out of.

Also Zerex G40.

No issues.

kiznarsh

I think you should completely drain and refill your coolant for complete peace of mind, but that's just me.

Do you know if it's ever been flushed in the past 10-11 years?

MrMoose

The purple stuff is, I believe, G13. The original Porsche pink stuff in 2010 should've been G12+. They are compatible, though there may be some loss of corrosion protection if you can trust the chart here:

https://www.wolflubes.com/EN_EU/Blog...d-coolant.aspx

ekam

I got a low coolant warning about a months ago and being unable to check the coolant level yourself (Thanks Porsche!), I took it to my mechanic and got it topped up as it lost 1.5qt.

I just checked my cap and there's white residue AND the cap part # ends in .00 - not good.

New cap is ordered and I should be able to find out mid next week which version they currently have.

kiznarsh

Say what now?

On the 987 there are plastic min and max "plates" inside the filler neck, and there's a dipstick on the 981.

deilenberger

I think the question is correct "if you can trust the chart.." mainly shows that the product they're offering is compatible with everything - despite it being based on a changed antifreeze agent. And it's the only antifreeze they offer, a byproduct apparently of oil production. And their primary business is producing oil. The chart has nothing about G40 - which is a much newer standard and rated for use with Porsche engines and mixable with earlier types of antifreeze.

While it might be nice to completely drain the system and flush it then drain it again and refill it - the reality of this is - it's rarely going to happen unless some leaks or damage occurs at the front end of the car where the radiators live. Even then, I might expect the majority of coolant to be removed, but I doubt if many shops would consider refilling the system with distilled water, then running it, then again draining it yet again and refilling it with new coolant and distilled water. I think the labor cost would make this impractical. But that's just my opinion for whatever it's worth - some fanatic might have done this at some time - more power to them.

PhillyNate

I don’t unfortunately. Worse is at 68k miles I’m on the original water pump and know full well I’m on barrowed time.

MrMoose

No Don: G40 is just BASFs name for their G12++ product.

G12, G12+, G12++, and G13 are all supposed to be backwards compatible to a reasonable extent. They're all VW/Audi specs. FCP Euro has a similar table (though the colors seem to be wrong, G12+ and G12++ are very often pink in my experience).

https://blog.fcpeuro.com/how-to-pick...t-for-your-car

PhillyNate

Funny story, I will have light blue cap that is right of trunk oil cap shortly. Now I believe it’s the other one under the engine cover that may be the problem after talking to friend. I called the closest dealer to me and inquired if they had the trunk cap and they said they had 2 left. My Son and I drive over 20 miles only to find out they only had the one under the engine cover. They apologized and not only agreed to send it to my house BUT said NO CHARGE. KUDOS TO PORSCHE OF THE MAIN LINE near Philly. That’s real customer engagement and service.
I do have chalky residue on the trunk cap but can’t gauge if that is enough to explain the amount of loss. Will instal when I receive and continue to monitor.

HenryPcar

Whenever you find white residue buildup on the cap is always a sign that someone in the past has filled the cooling system with tap water. I found even dealers rarely use distill water to top up the system. The dealer did it once and I gave them a earful afterwards because once they use tap water, the system will forever be contaminated unless you do a complete flush.