[Burgmanmaniac]

The Suzuki Burgman 400 manual says the scooter should gets its Antifreeze changed every 24 months or 12,000 miles.

Do most of you REALLY change your antifreeze every 2 years? For example, my scooter is a 2012 with under 600 miles on it. I plan on rising 3,000 miles per year. Yet, based on the manual my scooter needs an antifreeze change in about 12 months even though it will only have 3,000 miles (or less) on it.

I saw the video of the antifreeze change and it is time consuming. I imagine the dealer may charge 2 hours labor for changing the fluid.
So, I am looking at $210 for an antifreeze change.

Would it be so bad to go 3 or 4 years between antifreeze changes?

 

[Jim]

I changed mine once, in 10 years, No issues.

I would see no problems if you waited 4 years.

 

[Burgmanmaniac]

http://www.oneidasuzuki.com/store/p...uper-long-life-antifreeze-engine-coolant.html

This Antifreeze has DOUBLE the life of the stuff in my '400. We are talking about 4-5 years of NO WORRYING with this coolant.

 

[petersg_99]

I just watched the video below, I changed the coolant on Blue Belle when I was getting her running and didn't take off the top of the hose and blow in it, and I also didn't bleed the air out of the system. If I had known about the air bleed screw, I would probably have done that at least once, but que sera sera.

She's running fine and the temp is at mid-range. Without those steps, it's at most a half hour job (if you're good at taking off the Tupperware). It's a 5 minute job if you already have the panels off...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gtg3GN4W3h8

 

[Liamjs]

Embarrassed to say, but neither of my bikes have ever had the coolant changed. But they run fine, nice and cool. And I live in the desert.

 

[Quantum Mechanic]

Maniac, if yours is the 2012 like mine, then it should have Suzuki's Super Long Life Coolant in it (it's blue in colour). That lasts 4 years or 14,500 miles. As far as I know all Suzuki's in Europe have the super long life blue coolant with the 4 year life. I'm guessing it's the same for the States. The other coolant is Suzuki Long Life Coolant (it's green) and lasts 2 years or 7,500 miles.

It's important to know what you have for maintenance reasons. It's not good to go too much over the life period of the coolant. The coolant degrades over time irrespective of how much use the bike gets. Mileage covered is not quite so important but the time factor is. Don't forget the coolant is responsible for lubricating the water pump seals and preventing corrosion within the engine and rad, as well as stopping the bike for freezing up. It also raisies the boil point temp of the coolant to help prevent overheating. The older it gets the less effective it is at all those things. Some coolant actually cause serious corrosion if left in the engine for too long.

 

[Liamjs]

Okay quantum, I'll make a point to change the coolant in my bikes...

 

[Burgmanmaniac]

Maniac, if yours is the 2012 like mine, then it should have Suzuki's Super Long Life Coolant in it (it's blue in colour). That lasts 4 years or 14,500 miles. As far as I know all Suzuki's in Europe have the super long life blue coolant with the 4 year life. I'm guessing it's the same for the States. The other coolant is Suzuki Long Life Coolant (it's green) and lasts 2 years or 7,500 miles.

It's important to know what you have for maintenance reasons. It's not good to go too much over the life period of the coolant. The coolant degrades over time irrespective of how much use the bike gets. Mileage covered is not quite so important but the time factor is. Don't forget the coolant is responsible for lubricating the water pump seals and preventing corrosion within the engine and rad, as well as stopping the bike for freezing up. It also raisies the boil point temp of the coolant to help prevent overheating. The older it gets the less effective it is at all those things. Some coolant actually cause serious corrosion if left in the engine for too long.

My manual says change the coolant every 2 years or 12,000 miles. I'll plan on changing it at 4 years which will be around 2016.

 

[Burgmanmaniac]

Maniac, if yours is the 2012 like mine, then it should have Suzuki's Super Long Life Coolant in it (it's blue in colour). That lasts 4 years or 14,500 miles. As far as I know all Suzuki's in Europe have the super long life blue coolant with the 4 year life. I'm guessing it's the same for the States. The other coolant is Suzuki Long Life Coolant (it's green) and lasts 2 years or 7,500 miles.

It's important to know what you have for maintenance reasons. It's not good to go too much over the life period of the coolant. The coolant degrades over time irrespective of how much use the bike gets. Mileage covered is not quite so important but the time factor is. Don't forget the coolant is responsible for lubricating the water pump seals and preventing corrosion within the engine and rad, as well as stopping the bike for freezing up. It also raisies the boil point temp of the coolant to help prevent overheating. The older it gets the less effective it is at all those things. Some coolant actually cause serious corrosion if left in the engine for too long.

My coolant is Aqua Blue (Blue/Green) and NOT the same color as the lime green in the video. I assume that means I have the 4 year coolant which will easily last 5 years. For me, this means a coolant change in 2017.

I really appreciate the info. FYI, I took a white paper towel and placed just the tip of it in the reservoir container near my gas cap to find out the color.

 

[Burgmanmaniac]

 

[Burgmanmaniac]

Suzuki Vstrom Forum seems to think 2 year change interval for the Coolant is a good idea. I can see that Suzuki was being conservative in using 2 years instead of 4 years. Regular coolant would be less than 2 years for some Vstrom riders:

http://www.stromtrooper.com/maintenance-tech-farkles/65368-long-life-vs-regular-coolant.html

 

[Quantum Mechanic]

Depends what year bikes they are referring to. Its only later bikes that have the 4year blue Super Long life coolant. My vstrom 1000 '08' used the green 2 year life from new. The 4 year is better all round for the engine which is why manufactures are switching over to it. Would always advise using a genuine motorcycle coolant as opposed to a car coolant as some car coolants don't provide enough lube and heat protection for a bike. Avoid coolants with any silicates in them.

 

[Chappy]

Don't forget to add a splash of cooling system conditioner to your system. It's a good neutralizer of electrolysis which feeds off alloy radiators. I wouldn't add too much maybe 1 egg cup full... You can run a voltage test on your antifreeze with a volt meter. Dip one lead in the antifreeze and the other at ground, you want no more than 300mv or .3v. preferably zero!

 

[jenkins]

Correct me if I am wrong, but can you not test the effectiveness of your antifreeze with a simple old bulb and tube tester? If it reads down in the -30 degree range when new, couldn't a drop in the effectiveness, say 20 degrees, to -10 show it is time to change? That the antifreeze is deteriorating?
Jim

 

[Chappy]

That test dosen't cover anti corrosive inhibiters but it does test the strength of the glycol. They do make a paper 'test strip' you can get from auto-parts shop to test inhibiters etc. Dip and wait a few minutes, kind of like a pregnancy tester! wink...

 

[ChipDoc]

If it shows a + sign, is there a wee little Burgman 200 growing inside?