Ask Xulfiqar - An Automotive Encyclopedia

[sardarg]

please don't be naive why not buy a fresh new and use clean electrolyte prep with correct SG (specific gravity)

[perspolis12x]

As you say... But do guide me a bit.

For the best quality battery, is the OEM Atlas Honda one reccomended?

Will it be dry in the box? And for the SG values, where could one find it for the specific battery? As well as source sulphuric acid.

What could be the reason for a 5 month old battery going wack? This doesn't seem normal...

[sardarg]

5 MONTHS old battery going whack is alarming.
i'd suggest to search the topics as 'new battery dead' 'battery draining over night' & same verbs, here.

what is morning start condition?
does is work good all day?
is your vehicle electrical system fully isolated from leaks after key is pulled out.
is there a tracker device in vehicle ?
please pin your location so anyone can guide you to an electricain for diagnostics and a reliable battery shop nearby.

sir @perspolis12x

[perspolis12x]

Sadly, this is the new normal for me, living with a chinese bike... RP 70, 2024 of Nov model. Even timing chain is rattling now. Will change it soon myself with Pridor one.

I'm sorry but you seem to be confusing it for a car battery. It's not. Checked the fuse next to the battery, and the wiring, everthing is within spec. Only the battery won't hold a charge. Rather puzzling. Used to work perfectly before.

"is your vehicle electrical system fully isolated from leaks after key is pulled out."
Haven't checked that out, but when the battery used to be functional, it would hold a charge for a few days.

I live in Lahore. Purchasing a battery isn't the issue, but please guide on how to make the best quality electrolyte for my bike, to make the new battery last a long time. Will be buying a Honda battery now, is the included electrolyte of any quality?

[sardarg]

you seem to be confusing it for a car battery. It's not.

am sorry i missed to notice smaller battery pic & to read that you are referring to a motorcycle

[perspolis12x]

For a proper coolant change in a 2012 Prius, I will be:

1. draining the tap water (horrid USTAAD special)

2. Flushing with distilled water twice

3. Using Toyota SLLC, instead of mixing my own coolant. Is it a better idea, or should I use Caltex concentrate, which I can't verify meets Toyota's requirements?

[Xulfiqar]

Great
But when doing distilled water flushing, how are you going to drain the water?

And whats your plan for the inverter coolant change?

[perspolis12x]

I'm sorry, but you didn't seem to answer my real question. Is Caltex Dexcool/Orange Concentrate a good subsitute for Toyota SLLC? And is AC water/ Battery water a good enough subsitute for distillate water? If not, please guide on a way to easily make distilled water in large qualitites.

As per your questions: (Method derived from TCCN Ahmed's guides and Toyota Manual as well as your advice)
For distilled water flush, will drain from Two places:

Radiator Drain Cock Plug

Cylinder Block Drain Cock Plug

Then refill, put car in Maintainance mode,

Before starting the engine, turn the A/C switch off.

Adjust the heater control to the maximum hot setting.

Adjust the blower speed to low setting.

wait till two fan cycles

Sorry for being vague about inverter, I intend to change it too:

Will change inverter coolant, still the factory fill. Under the transmission, a hex bolt is to be loosened. Will drain, then overfill till inverter coolant reservior nears max. WIll put car in maintainance mode. Two full fan spin cycles. Inverter coolant level will drop quick, so will add quickly as needed.

Before starting the engine, turn the A/C switch off.

Adjust the heater control to the maximum hot setting.

Adjust the blower speed to low setting.

As always, feel free to correct me whenever I make a mistake. My first coolant flush.

[Xulfiqar]

The difference between your issue and whatever ahmad from tccn tells you is that he is dealing with cars in usa and none ever have the issue of being rusted to death with tap water only.

The problem you will face is to remove the coolant from the engine and heater core. You will have to undo the thermostat housing (its low point) and manually flush out the heater with it disconnected as its designed like a sink, (it sits lower than both the pipes attached to it)

Disconnect it and use a funnel to flush it with some coolant (you will lose some coolant in this, about half liter or so)

If you dont flush the heater and dont open up the thermostat you will have distilled water in the system which will further dilute your premixed coolant in the engine.

For the inverter, draining is super easy, be ready with a lota of fresh coolant to pour as the pump speeds up, it sucks it down super quick. (Lota pours quicker than bottle)

SLLC is great for this but being premixed means you need extra steps to take care of to make sure you dont end up with a 20 or 30% mix.

And yes you will need maintenance mode startup after everyrhing.

[perspolis12x]

Ingenious thinking man! Always two steps ahead, aren't you? Will grab a few bottles of SLLC and do as you say. Thanks for the guidance.

[xzap042]

But is caltex extended life coolant suitable as a replacement of Toyota sllc?

[perspolis12x]

Best to use SLLC for such Toyotas.They have stringent requirements, and is honestly priced the same as Caltex premix. Don't risk it.

Edit: Seems like Caltex coolant concentrate will be fine as well, if mixed and used appropriately.

[perspolis12x]

Carburetors have chokes. I have heard from tuners that removing it results in better airflow and performance.

Is there any merit to their claims, and does removing it outweight the benefits in a hot humid climate like ours?

[xzap042]

Caltex is concentrate. Price per litre is much cheaper.

[Xulfiqar]

To be honest; the caltex stuff is very good and works perfectly fine on any system fully cleaned and purged of any other coolant.

And its cheaper too.

[perspolis12x]

Using caltex concentrate, I can skip the part where I have to drain the heater of the distilled water before adding coolant, right?

Or will it be a nessecity as well?

[Xulfiqar]

Yes, this is why concentrate is always better. You can get a true 50% mixture in a single step and not have to later test with a refractometer and balance the mix.

Unfortunately toyota doesnt sell SLLC as concentrate.

If you are flushing and filing, havoline/caltex is awesome.

[perspolis12x]

Great! Caltex it is.

My 2012 Prius with 124k kms is still on the OEM spark plugs and transaxle fluid. Should I get these changed? 8-9kmpl on
short trips, and 19 kmpl on long (Maybe spark plugs)?

And are General tyres okay for everyday use? They cost a quarter of eqivalent Michelins, and I am no heavy user. Money is a bit tight.

And the windshield happens to be broken. A OEM one imported costs 250k, a okayish Chinese one costs 35k, and a nice and lightly used scrapped OEM 'kabli' one goes for 30k. Which one would you reccomend?

And would you reccomend Osama from Syncview for all these tasks? Will be a hefty charge from him, but I think he is honest and dedicated like you.

[omarabdullah022]

General tires are fine bro. Its annoying to see people save up money for imported tires whilst driving around in beat up cracked Yokohamas with rotten rubber. General tires are slightly noiser probably but I dont see how the price difference justifies that if I have to drive in stop and go city traffic. Safe, puncture free tires are the way to go in my experience.
The gear oil is not a lifetime fill pretty much ever, i change mine every 60k kms.
If you get spark plugs, get the real deal from a toyota parts counter once and install properly with a torque wrench. Its slightly pricier but you can forget about spark plugs or the next 100k kms. Same goes for brake pads.