Volvo 2030 AntiFreeze??

[VicS]

What happens if you do mix them?

It is widely stated that it can result in an insoluble sludge although there are antifreezes which it is claimed can be safely mixed with either type.

I tried allowing a mixture to stand in the cold for a prolonged period . Nothing happened other than 1/2 test tube full of Halfords Pink plus 1/2 test tube full of Halfords Blue giving a test tube full of purple mixture,

I must try heating a mixture sometime but it will be difficult, outside the lab, to maintain a mixture at an elevated temperature for a prolonged period, and impossible to replicate the conditions that might exist in an engine cooling circuit.

I blame the blockage of the heater in a car I once owned on mixing the two types . I changed from one type to the other and back again without properly draining or flushing the system, which was foolish but at the time did not know any better

 

[Turnbuckle]

This is brilliant advice. Thank you.

From what you say, what I can rule out is sea-water in the HE - the loss of coolant is reflected in 0.5l drop in fluid level in the HE. There's no steam in the exhaust that I can spot, engine oil looks fine, and engine runs well and starts immediately. So hopefully head gasket is OK.

I will start at the easiest fix by draining down and removing the forward HE boot, which has some pink corrosion/dried antifreeze around it, cleaning, adding silicone grease, and re-seating. At the same time, I will do my best to remove the crud from the top of the engine. I will then flush and re-fill with OAT type. A careful inspection whilst running should show whether this fixes it.

If not, then suspicion will turn to a water seal leak in the water pump (as per previous comment). At £85 from Parts4Engines a new pump is not going to break the bank!

Not being an engineer (Musician mostly) taking bits off engines has a terror rating of around 90%!! But its all learning. I managed to sort a raw water blockage at anchor a couple of months back, following telephone instructions from an engineer.

Thanks for this fantastic forum and advice.