Coolant Choices and Evans waterless coolant alternative

Bob O'Bryan

Bob O'Bryan

Joined
Jul 7, 2013
Messages
51
Location
Macomb, MI
Bike
1998 ST1100
As you may have seen in my other threads, I'm the proud new owner of a 1998 ST1100. I'm in the process of learning about it, and doing all the basic maintenance. One thing I'll be doing is changing the coolant. Now, in my other bike, and 1983 V45 Sabre, I made the switch to Evan's waterless coolant. It's a bit of a chore because you have to get all the water out before filling with the new waterless coolant. Once you have, however, the benefits are no corrosion, a boiling point of 375 degrees, and freezing point of about 40 below, and no pressure build up in your system (no water again). I found out that you want their Powersport type as it's thinner than their regular fluid. So far the Sabre is doing well with it, but I think there are other issues that will need to be addressed. In any case, I'm thinking I'll switch it over when I put it away in the Fall. Has anyone else made the switch to Evan's? If so, is it working well for you? When I'm heading home after work in the Summer and baking on I-94 during rush hour stop and go traffic, I want to make sure my bike has every advantage to deal with the heat. I'm also thinking about an oil cooler, but I' haven't had a chance to look into that yet. Anyone else?

Thanks again for all your feedback on the other threads, I really appreciate it!

Bob.
 
Everything working correctly, overheating should NEVER be an issue, and they already have an oil cooler. To each his own, good luck.
 
Brant said:
...they already have an oil cooler.
Click to expand...
Only the models with the oil-cooled 26A genny till '95... on all later models with the air-cooled 40A alternator the oil cooler (located at oil filter base) is omitted for obvious reasons... dunno if that Evan's stuff is worth the money, for over two decades regular, silicate free, quality/brand premix coolant worked brilliantly in all ST1100's around the globe...
 
I have made several post about Evans - I use it in all my vehicles and it is definitely worth it. It is permanent - never needs changing, no oxide buildup in the cooling system, no corrosion of radiator or components, very little pressure buildup as the coolant boiling point is 375 deg. F. - pressure is no longer needed to increase the boiling point of the coolant. Hoses, seals and gaskets last longer with the lower pressure and the lubricity of the coolant helps maintain water pump seals etc. Your engine will never boil over and can run at extreme temperatures without incurring damage using Evans. In the long run using Evans will save you a lot more money than conventional coolants that contain water - more than offsets the higher cost of the coolant. Just my .02.

Dan
 
[QUOTE;1642593]I had used this in my 72 olds as it used to sit a lot. It is having a chassis off resto now and when drained the block etc was clean. I did not upgrade this it was like this when I bought it some years ago. I never thought of it in the bike. Interesting. What is the process, you talk about NO water left in it... Let me know. Thanks.[/QUOTE]
I first drained the system, and pulled off all the hoses and used my shop vac to pull any coolant I could. I also used my air compressor, set on low pressure, to blow some of the coolant out. Evans makes a prep fluid that you put in next, which is like dry gas (absorbs water). Run the motor with this in it until the thermostat opens and the coolant is circulating. Drain the prep fluid, and fill with the Evans coolant. It's permanent, doesn't degrade or be replaced. I think I have about $75 into it with prep fluid and a gallon of Powersport coolant, delivered off Amazon. I found out about this on Jay Leno's Garage website. Let me know if you have any other questions.
 
I used Evans in my ST1100 and then my ST1300. Before I used Evans in my ST1100, I had a radiator cap go bad, and I lost a lot of coolant, especially so when going up in elevation. Probably would not have been a problem had I been using Evans at the time. It apparently has a little less specific heat than antifreeze/water, so it may need to circulate a little more briskly, but seems well within the operating parameters of the system. When it comes time to change the coolant in my new ST1300, I'll probably use Evans.

Bill
 
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For those that run the evans, how does it reduce system pressure unless you swap the radiator cap out?
 
It is my understanding with the high boiling point (375 deg.) and without water present the expansion rate of the fluid is reduced and this reduces pressure. I know this - on an engine with Evan coolant, you can take a radiator cap off a hot engine and there is no blow out at all. With an engine with water based coolants as soon as you open the cap on a hot engine the water in the coolant can immediately boil and expand as the pressure loss reduces the boiling temperature point of the water and this is why the coolant blows out on a hot engine. The only reason for pressure in a cooling system is to increase the boiling point of the water/ coolant. With Evans coolant you no longer need a pressure cap at all and many people actually remove the seal from the radiator cap as pressure is no longer needed.

Dan
 
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