Coolant Question

[myn8m3is8ndy]

My 2001 Boxster S had a coolant leak about 2 weeks ago. Went right under the Min line on the reservoir. No lights came on. Drove to my mechanic, they topped off my coolant and "fixed" it. A week ago, the leak started again... I ripped up the trunk, no puddles there. did some research, found out that it could be from a poor coolant cap seal. Cap number was 00. Went online and bought a 04 cap. Should arrive to me in a few days. My question is what brand/type of coolant can I buy to top it off? Coolant appears to be yellow.

[particlewave]

Since you have no way of knowing what's in it, top off with distilled water only.
I'd be curious to know what the shop topped off with and if they realize the damage that can be done by mixing the wrong coolants..?

[BoxsterSteve]

The original stuff for your vintage is a yellowish colour.
You can top off with genuine Porsche coolant, which has been superseded by a pinkish coloured product, or risk the sky falling by using G12/G13 Volkswagen coolant (oh shock and horror) as I did when it was time to flush and replace my water pump.
I wouldn't risk generic auto parts store coolant for risk of gelling due to incompatible chemistry.
I couldn't tell the difference between the VW and Porsche stuff, they both tasted the same to me.

[myn8m3is8ndy]

Originally Posted by particlewave

Since you have no way of knowing what's in it, top off with distilled water only.
I'd be curious to know what the shop topped off with and if they realize the damage that can be done by mixing the wrong coolants..?

Luckily for me, my mechanic only works on P cars lol so i guess he knows what he's doing but what he poured into my coolant tank didn't seem like genuine Porsche coolant just from a faint look of the label. Didnt really get a clear look at it. Who knows, i could be wrong, might have been genuine Porsche coolant

[myn8m3is8ndy]

Originally Posted by BoxsterSteve

The original stuff for your vintage is a yellowish colour.
You can top off with genuine Porsche coolant, which has been superseded by a pinkish coloured product, or risk the sky falling by using G12/G13 Volkswagen coolant (oh shock and horror) as I did when it was time to flush and replace my water pump.
I wouldn't risk generic auto parts store coolant for risk of gelling due to incompatible chemistry.
I couldn't tell the difference between the VW and Porsche stuff, they both tasted the same to me.

Since it's not too far below the min, i'll try distilled water first. When my new cap comes and it still leaks, then I'll just flush out the system, fix the leak and go on from there.

[jsceash]

Originally Posted by myn8m3is8ndy

Luckily for me, my mechanic only works on P cars lol so i guess he knows what he's doing but what he poured into my coolant tank didn't seem like genuine Porsche coolant just from a faint look of the label. Didnt really get a clear look at it. Who knows, i could be wrong, might have been genuine Porsche coolant

Porsche coolant comes in a plain blackish colored gallon container.

[Deserion]

Well if I were a betting man, I'd say the gold coolant was Zerex G-05. Mercedes used that up until a year or two ago when it was updated to a "blue" version.

FWIW I use G-05 in my E320, can source it at NAPA.

[woodsman]

Originally Posted by myn8m3is8ndy

since it's not too far below the min, i'll try distilled water first. When my new cap comes and it still leaks, then i'll just flush out the system, fix the leak and go on from there.

wisdom!--