Coolant and Storage

Seadweller

Greetings,

I was visiting a Ducati dealer the other day, speaking with one one of the guys regarding my '91 851. I informed him that it was "pickled" and sitting in my office, as riding a bike in my neck of the woods is a death-wish. One of these days I'm going to get it back on the road, and up in the mountains, but in the meantime, it's a piece of art.

He asked me if I drained the coolant, and I said no, but I change it once a year, along with the brake fluid. He said it's better to just drain it, as it can cause corrosion (possibly dissimilar metal) and destroy the water pump. Anyone heard of this? My concern is air getting into the coolant passages which could oxidize the aluminum, but I guess the system is sealed, so perhaps that shouldn't be a concern.

I ran fuel preservative through the engine, drained the tank and fogged the cylinders, but left the coolant intact. Should I drain it? I suspect it's going to be resting in my climate controlled office for at least 3-4 more years.

griff851

Really. The guy is a dick. What will happen it will dry and flake. Then when you do fill it up and run it the bits will clog the radiator. Go the good stuff like Ducati recommend, then you will have peace of mind.

https://www.liveabout.com/shelf-life-of-radiator-coolant-or-antifreeze-281696

Seadweller

Thanks Griff...What coolant do you recommend? It seems a lot of guys use Honda coolant since it's silicate free.

griff851

Is storage, won't matter as long as it's long life stuff, and that won't matter as it's storage not use. When you bring it out of storage after 4 years it will need new fluids and belts anyway. Just don't buy cheap stuff.

econti

Coolant has additives explicitly to prevent corrosion from dissimilar metals