My radiator fluid turned red, and there is a build of up red flaky material at the radiator cap. Has anyone had this problem? I'm going to flush the system tomorrow and see if it comes back. Am I completed ****ed? Or maybe just need a new radiator?

Thanks in advance!

 

It means someone put non-distilled water in there. You should only use distilled water otherwise the whole system gets rusty and gross.

 

Sounds like rust. I would flush it ASAP! And find the rust spot if it is. Let us know.

 

I flushed it with a few gallons of distilled water and refilled it with coolant. When I poured the coolant, it turned brown again without starting the car. It isn't milky, its more if a sandy mist.

 

its gna do that unless you flush it a few more times... basically all the pipes have a rusty finish on the inside now. If you flush it again in a month it'll be cleaner, and more so the next time.