Matt O.

http://www.pelicanparts.com/cgi-bin/...43-301-49-M100

Ship it!

Villian

I hear you on the Dex-Cool but that was the original formulation. GM was sued, and now all is well. The new stuff won't gunk up like the original stuff would. It's basically the same thing Porsche is using. It might actually be the exact same thing, re-branded. I doubt GM or Porsche make this stuff in house.

the flyin' scotsman

exactly

Matt O.

Might be. Even so, I'll pay $50 for a bottle of the pink stuff from Porsche instead of $30 for some GM stuff any day. Considering you might flush the system at 50,000 miles (I don't recall exact interval) it is a mathematically insignificant difference in cost per mile.

I became this way after I researched for weeks the coolant type to put in my F250 diesel. I didn't realize how important the type and quality of coolant to use was until then. I previously used the pink stuff on my 951, but that was merely upon recommendation. At that time, my research revealed the Ford stuff was far INFERIOR to the brand I ended up using (CAT ELC). In this case, Dexcool or any other isn't being portrayed as "far superior," just a few dollars cheaper.

Spending $80k+ on a new Cayenne or spending thousands more than a similar year Ford/Chevy SUV in the used market should likely mean you aren't looking to save $20-30 on a gallon or two of coolant.

To me, that is equivalent to filling with 87 octane because someone told you "it's all the same."

Quality coolant is vastly important to the health of the engine. Oil/coolant/fuel I don't recommend skimping on to save a few bucks with these cars. Just my thoughts from years of reading this and other forums.

Rossi

Wow

The light went on that I was low on coolant.
I poured in 50/50 mix of Penzoil coolant, am I in trouble?
It's just a coolant right?

Matt O.

Mixing coolant types used to be bad. Not sure the science behind it today, but I prefer to keep the same coolant.

Dan87951

The Zerex brand dex-cool I buy is less than $13 a gallon at Wal-Mart. I'd call that a good savings compared to OEM. I think the important thing here is to change it every 4-5 years (extended life).

wrinkledpants

The Porsche fluid is made by Elf or Total, can't remember which one. It's not the same as the GM coolant since European water is different than US water.

If you're using a coolant that isn't phosphate free, you have to use distilled water. It's good to make sure you're using distilled water anyway, but that's kind of the point of phosphate free as it can precipitate minerals out of the water, leading to high deposits. Euro-water has a lot more minerals in it than US water, which is part of the reason german companies went to phosphate free coolants.

And, not all coolants are reverse compatible with older or other coolants. The new G13 coolant made by VW is, and it's basically the same stuff Porsche uses. It's 23 bucks a gallon for something I'll change maybe once every 3 years.

If you're going to switch coolants, I'd make sure you completely flush out the old stuff by running straight water through the system so you don't get any gelling problems.

Matt O.

This is my point. Putting cheap coolant in your Porsche for a savings of $7.40 per year. I don't understand that for a $30-$60k SUV.

Dan87951

Why waste money when you don't have to? The only difference is one has a pretty little Porsche emblem on it and the other does not! As a person who maintains his own fleet of 7 cars, sometimes theres a reason to go OEM and other times theres not. It all depends on the circumstances. What makes you think Zerex Dex-Cool is not up to snuff or any brand for that matter? I guess it all boils down to what makes you sleep better at night. For me Dex-Cool works just fine.

FYI: I also use Dex-Cool in my Aston Martin (recommended by dealer) and I know of a few dealers who use it in Ferrari's as well.

Matt O.

Fair enough. You are right, sometimes there is reason and sometimes not. Fluids to me are one of those times to go OEM (unless, as mentioned there is substantial reason not too).

The Touareg and the Cayenne were built in the same factory, does that make them equal? My experience tells me WOMs are often times just that, WOMs. Mechanic X says this, expert Y says that. Unless overwhelming reason not too, I'll go with the engineers who built the car for an extra few pennies per mile driven.

There are so many products that are built by a single company but to different standards -- cereal, ice cream, peanuts, oil, fuel, etc... I don't however see them as equal quality at all times. Sometimes, but not always.

No big deal though, really. I hope the "cheap stuff" continues to work for you! No harm no foul, everyone has their thoughts on issues like this. I hate wasting money like the next guy, but I consider quality maintenance more of an "investment" (or sorts) in the car. Much like 93 octane or synthetic oil when recommended.

Best of luck!

Dan87951

I don't need luck, that's why we have specifications. Zerex Dex-Cool is an OAT coolant and meets ASTM D-3306 specification just like the factory stuff! Only difference, your coolant bottle has a pretty little Porsche emblem and costs 3x-4x as much. But hey, if it makes you feel all warm in fuzzy inside by all means buy it.

No doubt maintenance is extremly important! As long as the fluid meets the manufactures specification and is changed at regular intervals the car will last you a very long time. For coolant, I don't like to go longer than 4 years or 100k miles. For oil 7.5-8k is what I'm comfortable with. I guess the point I'm trying to make is, do what what works for you. If you wrench on your own cars, you probably have a good indication and knowledge of what is acceptable.

hahnmgh63

Porsche (2005-2009) anti-freeze is manufactured by Pentosin and is OAT. There are 3 basic types of coolants based on the different types of additives used:
Inorganic Additive Technology (IAT), Organic Additive Technology (OAT) and Hybrid Organic Additive Technology (HOAT). Although, technically each one of these would work on any automotive cooling system, each one was developed to meet specific manufacturer’s needs. You should only mix with another OAT anti-freeze but preferably the same brand as additive packages can be different. Beginning in 2010 Porsche still used Pentosin but switched to a newer, more environmentally safe version call H-OAT. I think it is totally or partially Glycol free but don't know the exact specs. I heard it was the same as the new Pentosin E which is a Violet color instead of the Pinkish/Red.

Villian

Exactly. While additive packages and what not can make a slight difference in additional protection, so long as whatever you're using meets or exceeds the OEM specifications then it meets OEM Specs. Simple enough.

And that's not even to mention the fact that "Porsche" Coolant is NOT "Porsche" (Produced) coolant. They use Company "A", and GM, or whomever else more than likely uses Company "A" as well! A great example of this is with oil filters. Porsche uses..let's say Purolator cartridge media. K&N uses ..let's say Purolator cartridge media. The EXACT same thing. Produced by company "A" (Or in this case "Purolator") and sourced out to the OEMS for rebranding. NO OEMS produce their own parts anymore. Just as "Porsche" doesn't actually produce 3/4ths of the Cayenne. VAG does. VAG also produces X, Y, and Z.

Villian

From a water engineers standpoint, you're going to have to explain this one to me. I get what you mean in that our city water in the US has less mineral content than European's (On average), but that's a product of varying treatment methods to produce a synthetic result (It's not anything natural) and that most definitely does not cause any difference to the quality of a product produced in Europe vs the US. Water is the same everywhere. Period. The results you desire from the industrial manufacturing process can differ.. But the same results are achievable everywhere in the world. The exact same. We all share the same technologies. Therefore, European water is NOT different than US water..and is certaintly NOT a reason to believe that a Coolant produced in Europe is any different than the same coolant produced in the US. Both factories will use the same treatment systems on their end to get the city water to THEIR standard before using it in THEIR products. The quality of water coming in to the factory is null.