This summer, use antifreeze to keep your engine cool (and running in the winter)

With recent temperatures starting to increase this summer, it is critical to ensure that the fluid levels in your vehicle are topped up and contain the proper antifreeze dilution. Let us take look at how antifreeze works and why it is critical to keep your car running not only in the winter but also during the hotter summer months.

What is the significance of antifreeze?

Antifreeze and engine coolant are the same thing and serve a dual purpose in your vehicle, helping to regulate the temperature of your engine. Antifreeze is so named because it protects your engine from extreme cold temperatures during the winter months.

If the fluids in your engine freeze, it could result in serious damage and cracking of the engine block. Simultaneously, when the engine is running, it becomes extremely hot. As a result of its high boiling point, antifreeze's coolant properties prevent overheating by removing excess heat from the engine.

If your engine is not properly cooled, the lubricant that keeps the moving parts moving smoothly will break down, resulting in premature engine failure or increased exhaust emissions. It is recommended that you have your coolant serviced along with your car service in Reading once a year.

How does antifreeze work?

Ethylene glycol has a freezing point of about -12 degrees Celsius on its own, which isn't exceptionally low. When it is mixed with water to make antifreeze, however, the chemical structures of the two liquids interfere with one another, causing the freezing point to drop considerably. Using a high concentration of antifreeze can reduce the mixture's freezing point to as low as -64 degrees Celsius. Antifreeze is also found in de-icer sprays and screen wash, which help to clear an icy windscreen and keep your windscreen washer feeds from freezing.

Selecting the Best Antifreeze

The engine coolant that helps regulate engine temperature has become more advanced as cars have become more advanced. Antifreeze contains corrosion inhibitors that extend the life of your coolant; however, different inhibitors are used by vehicle manufacturers, and selecting the incorrect one could result in engine component damage and seal deterioration.

Vehicles manufactured prior to 1998 require a silicate-based antifreeze, whereas those manufactured after 1998 require organic acid technology (OAT) based antifreezes, though there are exceptions, and some modern vehicles use a combination of inhibitors.

Always consult your vehicle's owner's manual before topping off your coolant levels, and if in doubt, contact your local car garage, who can advise you on the proper antifreeze for your vehicle as well as test the strength of your existing antifreeze.

The Origins of Antifreeze

French chemist Charles-Adolphe Wurtz discovered antifreeze long before it was used in automobiles. Wurtz invented ethylene glycol, the primary chemical of antifreeze, in 1856, when it had no commercial application. Indeed, early applications of ethylene glycol included the manufacture of dynamite, as it was discovered that the chemical's cooling properties could lower the freezing point of nitro-glycerine, allowing dynamite to be used in colder climates. When the first commercial cars rolled off the assembly line at the turn of the twentieth century, many of them used water as a coolant to keep the engine from overheating. However, it was quickly discovered that when the temperature dropped below zero, the water would freeze and expand, causing damage to the engine. Following several failed attempts to find an alternative coolant that would not cause corrosion to engine components, ethylene glycol was first used in automobiles in 1926 and has since been widely used in antifreeze.

4 Advantages of Antifreeze/Coolant

The advantages of antifreeze/coolant are numerous, which is why they have gradually become a requirement for vehicles. Here we will go over some of the advantages that these coolants provide:

1.     Maintains Optimal Fuel Economy

Antifreeze/coolant is in charge of extending the life of your car's engine. These fluids run at the proper temperatures in your car's body, extending the life, protecting, and lubricating all of its components.

2.     Lowers maintenance costs and downtime

Several bench tests, lab tests, and fleet tests were conducted to ensure that these antifreezes protect the various components of a vehicle. Radiators, water pumps, wet sleeves and all of the polymers and metals found inside your vehicle's engine are examples of these parts.

3.     Protects the Engine

These antifreezes/coolants contain concentrated blends of high-quality, long-lasting inhibitors that have been shown to provide up to 12,000 miles of guaranteed protection against very high temperatures, corrosion, rust, scale, and premature water pump failure.

4.     Prevents Car Breakdowns 

A problem in the vehicle's cooling system causes approximately 40% of all over-the-road breakdowns. However, if used properly, these antifreeze/coolant options can protect the vehicle for at least a year.