(G) Changing coolant

Hi guys,
iv just bought a fiat marea elx auto 1998 so iv just joined your club. What a nice smooth car it is.Well i was just going to do the normal things when i buy a car and that is service it, im ok with doing most things on the car but was wondering if there was a write up anywhere on here on how to flush and change the coolant? i know some cars have to be bled and some are usally ok with just running the engine when filling them so just wanted to be sure.Any advice much appreciated thanks.

sean

Which engine...??

interested to know about the 2.0 20v 147 engine, shall i use panaflu?

Yes.
But be aware, there are two kinds of Paraflu, the original blue/green stuff, and the Long Life orange/red Paraflu coolant.

Its a 1600 16v auto. Also is it ok to use the anti freeze from halfords or does it have to be paraflu ?

Cheers sean

Halfords will be OK, watch the color that's in it now, probably green/blue, and use the same color Halfords coolant.
Better to make it yourself with a few bottles of anti-freeze together with distiled water, mix it to about -25 degrees Celcius.

So you cant just use water out of the tap and anti freeze ? Also would you know where the thermastat is? got the problem with no heating.
Sorry for all the questions but just want to make sure i do it right .

Cheers sean

Distiled water is very clean and pure, and no chalk...( which will built up inside the cooling system, causing all kind of problems...), besides is very inexpensive, (and it's also good for using in window sprayers...)
The thermostat is under the coilpack, it has one or two wires+ sensors on top, and it's a complete unit, (housing + thermostat)
The thermostat on the 1.6-16V is a weak part, when it fails, the engine temp. reader will stay low while driving, it will only move up when idling.

Ok thats great thanks for your help peter much appreciated.

Cheers sean

How easy is it to remove the coil pack and replace the thermostat as Im thinking my 1.6 is suffering from the same issue

The coils are easy to remove, just two or three bolts.
I own a 16-16V Fiat Palio ( same engine like Marea) and with my car it was necessary to remove the battery to get more working space.
The thermostat unbolts easily too, just watch carefully what bolts/nuts needs to unscrew, and there are several large and small hoses to remove. ( a few squirts of WD-40 on the bolts, nuts and clamps will make things easier...!)
Remember to put a new gasket between the thermostat housing and the engine, and don't overtightened the nuts when putting them back on...)