Technical Uno 1100 Coolant?

[UnoMia]

Hi,
I've owned my Uno 1100 (FIRE motor), for eight years. Over that time I've had to replace the head gasket three times! Not because it overheats but due to corrosion of the head. I'm actually doing it again today. The last time I replaced the head gasket I also bought a fully reconditioned head and fitted that. It didn't have a sign of corrosion on it but attached are photos taken of that same head that I took off today, notice how badly corroded the water passages are? I'm having the head repaired but I just don't know what to do to stop this corrosion happening. I've always used a 50/50 mix of green coolant and water but it doesn't appear to prevent corrosion. I've read on the web that Fiat recommend a coolant called 'Paraflu', does anyone know anything about this? I believe it comes in either green/blue or orange colours and I read that there is quite a difference between these different colour coolants. As I've completely drained the system because of removing the head I was wondering if I should try one of the other colour coolants. Does anyone know which is the correct colour to use in Fiats?
Thanks in advance for any advice.

 

[koden]

Hi,
I've owned my Uno 1100 (FIRE motor), for eight years. Over that time I've had to replace the head gasket three times! Not because it overheats but due to corrosion of the head. I'm actually doing it again today. The last time I replaced the head gasket I also bought a fully reconditioned head and fitted that. It didn't have a sign of corrosion on it but attached are photos taken of that same head that I took off today, notice how badly corroded the water passages are? I'm having the head repaired but I just don't know what to do to stop this corrosion happening. I've always used a 50/50 mix of green coolant and water but it doesn't appear to prevent corrosion. I've read on the web that Fiat recommend a coolant called 'Paraflu', does anyone know anything about this? I believe it comes in either green/blue or orange colours and I read that there is quite a difference between these different colour coolants. As I've completely drained the system because of removing the head I was wondering if I should try one of the other colour coolants. Does anyone know which is the correct colour to use in Fiats?
Thanks in advance for any advice.

What mileage has the engine as a whole? Do you have to fill up the coolant often? Which brand or kind of coolant have you been using over the years?

Paraflu is the recommended one indeed. I've been using the green kind one on mine, the pink one seems to be the Paraflu Up kind.

https://www.fiatforum.com/ducato/251039-paraflu.html

P.s. plenty of carbon deposits, how long has been that head fitted on the engine? (i'm guessing it was clean when you fitted it cause you said it was reconditioned).

 

[UnoMia]

Hi,thanks for your reply. The engine has done 220000km, quite a lot - but then distances are huge in this country! The engine performance is fine, it pulls very well and when I had the head off there were no ridges at the top of the cylinder bores that would signify wear.
The carbon in the combustion chambers that can be seen in the photos is from the engine running rich for quite some time, plus the timing was out by a few degrees; all problems that have now been fixed.
After refitting the repaired and skimmed head I found that she was running a little warm. I took the car into a radiator specialist and they checked for leaks in the radiator and found four small, pin size holes. I bought a new radiator and since then the engine temperature has been dead on the centre of the gauge when fully warmed up. The specialist said that I have been using the correct colour coolant, (green).
It will be interesting to see how long this new repair lasts for!