I just changed the antifreeze in my 1995 pickup. I've owned the truck for about four years and haven't changed the antifreeze before. The stuff I drained was brown, which I thought meant it was discolored and rusty, but apparently it was a special type of antifreeze. I replaced it with Prestone green antifreeze. Then a friend tells me that Toyota recommends using their brand of red antifreeze. The official line is that the green antifreeze contains something (silicone?) that will screw up the water pump. Of course, the Toyota antifreeze costs eight or nine times what the Prestone costs.

I've been buying Toyotas since about 1988--including a few new ones--and this is the first I've heard that a particular type of antifreeze was such a big deal. Anybody know anything about this?

I know that for newer Tacos, the red antifreeze was a requirement for them, but on my '99 I've been using the green stuff with no probs.

Thanks. The '95 truck and a Corolla from the same year are the newest vehicles we have. That may be why we never heard about the red antifreeze. The friend who told me about it has a much newer Corolla.

In the 90's, GM came out with some orange antifreeze for their vehicles, and it ended up causing damage instead of helping anything. I just use Prestone in all my junk.

Toyo5930,

Your friend is correct. The Toyota brand "red" coolant lacks silicates, which cause more rapid corrosion of aluminum and degrading some seal types. Toyo started using this as OE fluid in the late 80s or so. Your truck would have come with it as OE.

You can run other coolants and they will work - e.g., they will provide cooling and anti-freezing properties. However, they will be more harsh on your aluminum components - usually your heads and radiator in modern cars (I think yours has a iron block). The toyo stuff is more expensive, but it is also longer life (30k miles, 2 to 3 years) vs only 12 months for the regular "green" stuff. Anecdotal comments I've seen from some very knowledgeable mechanics say they see more coolant-related wear and corrosion in BMW, etc. vehicles running silicate-content fluids than in cars run with Toyo Red. I've seen this reported enough times from enough experienced mechanics to believe it.

This is one of those "how long do you want to own the car" kinda questions. If you foresee owning it a long time, and replacing timing belts, water pumps, and trying to get your radiator to go 200,000 miles or more, go for the Toyo Red (which I put in my all aluminum V8 Audi, too). I have a Toyo LC which I haul horses with and plan on owning many years, so I definitely use the Toyo Red with it, too. If your truck has been on the Red until now, I'd keep it on it. Since you just changed it, I'd either flush and change back now, or run it through the winter as is, then in the spring switch back to the Red (flush thoroughly between the change). Use 50/50 oToyo Red/distilled water and I think you have freeze protection down to -30F.

I also understand Zerex 5/150 (their "extended life" product) from Valvoline is silicate free and meets Toyota's specifications, so you could try that, too.

Kamerer--
I stopped checking the forum before you answered. You sound like you know what you're talking about, worse luck. I can't really afford to pour newly installed antifreeze onto the ground, but come spring I'll be changing the Prestone for one of the recommended brands. Thanks for the comprehensive answer.