Vacuum Cooling System Refillers.

[Matt472]

Alright school me on these things. I'm tired of wasting time trying to burp the air out of stubborn cooling systems (Lincoln LS) for instance. Our shop coolant flush machine is a pos and isn't worth a damn and I know these work. Who's got what and which is better than the other. One of the guys I work with has the blue point/snap on version and it seems to work pretty well but its also the priciest.

I'm looking at these.

http://www.matcotools.com/catalog/product/MCR102U/COOLING-SYSTEM-REFILLER-UNIVERSAL/

http://www.mactools.com/ShopOnline/Product/tabid/120/productid/325646/variantid/316405/Default.aspx

http://buy1.snapon.com/catalog/item...roup_ID=681175&store=snapon-store&dir=catalog

http://www.tooltopia.com/uview-550000.aspx

 

[TheCarbideRat]

The UV Airlift is the one i have and should work fine, i've had mine for 12 years and no issues, used it on all types of vehicles. There are a few systems where the adapters won't quite fit and you will need to get creative if you are working on many types of vehicles.

 

[kacktus]

The UV Airlift is the one i have and should work fine, i've had mine for 12 years and no issues, used it on all types of vehicles. There are a few systems where the adapters won't quite fit and you will need to get creative if you are working on many types of vehicles.

I second this, had mine for a year, I love it.
May want to check tooltopia for a better price.

 

[bimmerZ5]

+1 on the UView AirLift as well. I've had mine for about 5-6 yrs now. The only issue I've had is that the vacuum gauge on mine failed. but it's not like you really need it in my case... when you get a good vacuum, you can see all the hoses collapse. i can get a replacement gauge for $18, but I haven't bothered as I don't use it that much and it's still usable. have to say I absolutely love it though... it has saved me sooo much time.

 

[metaleltr]

Just how do these things work?

 

[bimmerZ5]

Just how do these things work?

it ***** all the air out of the system. then you put the tube inside a bucket of anti-freeze, and the vacuum ***** in all the anti-freeze. the UView system uses a venturi pump operated by shop air... 90PSI, it takes about 1 minute to **** out all the air.

 

[TheCarbideRat]

Howdy bimmerz, would you say vacuum refill is essential on BMW?
Just wanted to know your opinion.

 

[TheCarbideRat]

+1 on the UView AirLift as well. I've had mine for about 5-6 yrs now. The only issue I've had is that the vacuum gauge on mine failed. but it's not like you really need it in my case... when you get a good vacuum, you can see all the hoses collapse. i can get a replacement gauge for $18, but I haven't bothered as I don't use it that much and it's still usable. have to say I absolutely love it though... it has saved me sooo much time.

I use mine alot and sometimes there is that slowly dropping needle that bugs me so i keep a spare gauge. It's peace of mind to see the vacuum holding.

 

[bimmerZ5]

Howdy bimmerz, would you say vacuum refill is essential on BMW?
Just wanted to know your opinion.

no, not essential.. i've done it the old fashion way. but it makes it sooo much easier... what would take 30min-1hr (depending on luck some times) becomes a 5 minute job.

 

[bimmerZ5]

I use mine alot and sometimes there is that slowly dropping needle that bugs me so i keep a spare gauge. It's peace of mind to see the vacuum holding.

yeah... the last time i used mine with the broken gauge, i just shut it off after I saw the hoses collapse completely. and then i let it sit there for 15 min while i worked on something else. when i came back, the hoses were still fully collapsed so i was pretty confident there was no leak. the vacuum test is ok, but it's not as good as a pressure test... the cooling system is going to be under pressure when in use, and what would leak under 2-bar pressure isn't going to show up under a vacuum test. things like old worn out O-rings on a sensor or something... hold vacuum fine, but under pressure you might get a tiny drip of coolant coming from it every 10 seconds.

 

[braol]

I have the UV also, works great. Have had it for several years, never had a problem with the gauge. I have a 5-gallon bucket that I cut a hole in the center of the lid and glued a pvc pipe to it and ran the pickup hose thru it, so the pick up hose stays at the bottom of the bucket and the hose stays full of coolant.

 

[TheCarbideRat]

@bimmerZ: I didnt realize that, thanks buddy. Good info.

 

[braincrater]

I have had this kit for 6 years or so and it has worked great, paid for itself over and over. With this kit you can pressurize the system, vac the system and directly check coolant temp with the probe thermometer. Great kit... http://www.tooltopia.com/mityvac-mv4525.aspx

 

[amlv20]

my shop has the uview airlft one, im the only one that uses it. mostly on the new 6.7 diesels.

 

[bustdknuckle]

Ive been looking into getting one but just cant bring myself to buy one when I can use the shops snap-on one. But have done some research and the matco, mac, cornwell, and snapon are all made by the same people (Marvac Scientific Mfg)

 

[transamfan]

I have the SO SVTSRAD262A http://buy1.snapon.com/catalog/item...roup_ID=681175&store=snapon-store&dir=catalog and I have had great results from it. use it almost daily. I find it rally speeds things up when refilling the system over the regular method.