T444E recommended coolant.

[mrlupr]

I have a 2003 T444E engine 170,000+ miles. It currently has a red or maybe pink coolant. Yes I'm colorblind.

I am assuming this is an ELC coolant.

Does brand really matter with coolant?
Has anyone used the Walmart Supertech ELC? It's less than half the price of a leading brand.
Or should I just bite the bullet and spend $25 a gallon?

How many gallons should I expect to have to buy?

[Booyah45828]

Topping off or flush and refill?

You want to try and use the correct stuff, but If you're low, and in a pickle, topping off less then a gallon with the walmart elc will be fine.

Anything more then that, or doing a drain and refill, use a diesel rated coolant, such as final charge, that has the correct additive package for your engine.

Truthfully, the difference between the cheap stuff and final charge isn't all that great, so I'd go with what final charge unless it's not available.

[mrlupr]

I was planning a full flush and refill.

You're right, the final charge stuff isn't that expensive at all.

Any idea how many gallons I should pick up?

[Booyah45828]

Depends on the heaters and such, size of the radiator, how good you are at flushing, etc.

Start with 5 gallons of concentrate, and 5 gallons of distilled water. If you need more, walmart has the 50/50 on the shelf the last time I was browsing the place. Them being open 24/7 makes it pretty convenient if you're a little low.

Not sure if covid has yours shut down to different hours

[s2mikon]

Also check your local o'reile store in Lubbock. The DC is in Lubbock and service my store here. They do run specials now and then on coolant.

[roach711]

If you know your cooling system capacity the easy way to refill is to (1) do your flushes then drain down one last time then (2) pour in concentrate equal to half of your capacity then (3) top off with distilled water for a 50/50 mix. Knowing your capacity is the trick, of course.

The Ford 7.3L diesels (basically, a T444E) have an 8 gallon capacity. Coolant capacity in the engine will be the same but radiator and heating system capacities will almost certainly be different.

You may have to waste a bit of coolant to get to the 50/50 mix. Maybe add 3 gallons of concentrate, top off with water then use coolant test strips to check the mix. If it's low or high some coolant would need to be drained and replaced with more concentrate or water to dial it in.

Then again, maybe another T444E owner will chime in and save the day.

[ISAF2009]

Capacity is between 8.5 and 11 gallons I use the cheapest green stuff and drain the radiator every 30k miles.