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I have a 2011 Justa. I took it to my German car mechanic for some maintenance, including a cooling system flush and refill. Now, my overfill tank has blue antifreeze in it. I am 99% certain the antifreeze in it before I took it to the mechanic was pink/red.
Am I losing my mind? Did it always have blue coolant? Is there blue coolant for BMW and pink for Mini? Did the mechanic use the wrong coolant?
All my gen 2 petrols (a Cooper + 3MCS) have had blue (2 year life) antifreeze. I'd say all have blue coolant but can't vouch for diesels...
The inside of the overflow tank might have had some rusty residue/ discolouration giving the appearance of pink, perhaps?
From: Greenville, SC in the United States of Awsome
Originally Posted by ECSTuning
Should be Blue , possible they put in a aftermarket blend before. Also might be an additive like wetter water which is just an add to whihc is fine. If it was another coolant for VW G12 pink or something then that the wrong stuff. But if you have the MINI blue coolant now , you are fine.
I'm absolutely NOT an expert so (anybody) please correct me...
I think pink OAT coolant contains organic, bio-degradeable (acids? and azoles?) material that's diluted 50:50 just like blue. I gather these materials 'last longer' and are usually changed after 5 years instead of the usual 2 years for blue (life-time coolant? - rubbish!!!)
Also it's in the back of my mind that if you mix pink and blue precipitation might occur with a consequent blockage risk. I haven't heard that blue CAN'T be mixed with green so I assume they're both typical silicate - based and differ by dye colour.
I've always replaced like-for-like, once I was worried about what to do with bluey-green MINI coolant and was told 'blue's ok for replacement; no need to flush out'
I've always refreshed my blue MCS coolant every 2 years - it's quite d-i-y able...
Hope this 'adds flesh' - BTW my MGF uses pink + my MCS uses blue so I see both...
BMW has issued a 1991 technical bulletin, 17-01-88-(1743), which details problems with what is known as silicate gel precipitation in engines. This is the 'green goo' (yes, it actually says that in the BMW Tech bulletin - gotta love those German translators) that results as a consequence of an antifreeze over-concentration in the coolant, combined with hard water, and the phosphates commonly used in many antifreezes. BMW factory antifreeze has been formulated to prevent this problem of silicate drop-out without any coolant performance loss. This antifreeze contains no nitrites and no phosphates. I would stick with the factory coolant for now - 82-14-0-031-133, which is blue. We go over this and a lot more about the cooling system in our coolant change article.
Just changed coolant and filled with 50/50 mix of "OE quality" antifreeze and distilled water - yes, blue it is from factory.
Found the likely source for factory Mini/BMW coolant at local auto parts stores, many in the area carry the Pentosin (here is link to spec sheet showing Mini): http://www.pentosin.net/specsheets/Pentofrost_NF.pdf
And picked up 2 bottles (only needed about 1 and 3/4 bottles because it gets diluted with distilled water 50/50 ratio).
The drained coolant was in perfect condition, no sediment or discoloration - surge tank spotless (2009 Base with 21,000 miles).
I have a 2011 Justa. I took it to my German car mechanic for some maintenance, including a cooling system flush and refill. Now, my overfill tank has blue antifreeze in it. I am 99% certain the antifreeze in it before I took it to the mechanic was pink/red.
Am I losing my mind? Did it always have blue coolant? Is there blue coolant for BMW and pink for Mini? Did the mechanic use the wrong coolant?
Thanks in advance!!!
The Pentofrost is an acceptable substitute for the BMW/MINI antifreeze, though it is pricey.
What you should be concerned with is not the color (although you shouldn't mix different coolant/antifreezes, and the color helps with that) as much as whether the product is phosphate-free and designed for aluminum blocks.
Xerex G-05 is available at Walmart (pre-mixed for about $16/gallon) and is a safe, acceptable coolant that is readily available. It is certified by Daimler as safe for their European cars with aluminum blocks, so I'm pretty sure that it's OK for your MINI. It's what I use in both my BMWs and my MINI.
Just don't mix coolants! Drain & fill if you're changing brands. Good luck.
