I have the same matco filler and love it. Only have the 4 adapters that came with my pressure tester so I bought a universal one and I'm not a big fan of it but 90% of the time the ones that came with my pressure tester work.
Best tool ever, save some much time and like mentioned confirms your repairs. I have the airlift 2, it is universal fit but has a cone style adapter that fits 90% of vehicles pretty well. Used my original airlift so much I blew out the diaphragm inside, so upgraded instead of fixing. Anyway, check it out for a quick and easy tool for most coolant fills...I just leave it hanging on the wall and use a old 5 gallon jug of floor soap for coolant.
Love my Snap in filler, bought it after I see Joel (STR) use hit in his channel. I know it’s obscure but for those that may see them, we have round vacuum filling the RX7 FD3s to be hit and miss, it sometimes gets an air pocket in the thermostat housing where the coolant temp switch for the fans are located... hence overheating. If your doing an RX7 FD then vacuum full it, but before starting it add a spill free funnel to the filler kneck and fill with coolant, next remove the hose on the top (rear) of the throttle body and allow coolant and air be be pushed out the barn, once this is done it should have purged the air from the stat housing and you should be good.
I first had the AirLift system. Great way to check the coolant system with the vacuum. When someone in our shop used that yellow bowl/funnel it would resort at times to a comeback. I was then given the job and collected the job $$$. I sold the AirLift to a fellow tech and recently bought the Snap On and can’t wait to use it.
I have been using the UView for several years. The only caution is using it on cars with older water pumps. I have documented a couple of pump leaks after evacuating and filling the system where the pump was of unknown age.
The Snap on tool is kind of like a hybrid between the two shown here, has a vac side and a fill side, but the universal fitting with several rubber bushings for different sized openings.
Great tool. Wish I had it back in the days where the snap on brick was a viable tool. I own both of those and recently got the matco coolant barrier tool. Does everything those tools do, plus it pressure tests using shop air ( no repumping ) , and if you need to change a small hose , temperature sensor , maybe even an upper radiator hose, it will make it so you do not have to drain the system. Hopefully you’ll do a video on that one soon.
This tool makes it so easy to fill just about any cooling system out there. Blows my mind why I still see guys everyday filling a funnel up and revving the shit out of an engine for 20 min trying to get the thermostat to open. This is a must have if you work on cars today.
Can't speak for the Matco vacuum filler, but I do own the Snap-on filler & I love it. Have my own 5 gallon Home Depot buckets full of coolant ready to go. I do a lot of internal engine work so it gets used a ton. Thanks for another great video FRM.
I know this will seem ghetto, but I had to do this on a car recently and I didn't have one of those vacuum fillers. Went to Junk yard got an extra cap drilled hole down middle put in small piece of copper/brass tubing I found at hardware store, glued it in with some Harbor Freight epoxy and put piece of fuel line on it with a small hose clamp. Vacced it down with my cheap Harbor Freight Venturi vacuum pump, crimped hose off with vice grips and put it in the coolant bottle. Worked beautiful.
Awesome video as always.....the absolute only thing I would add, is I have seen when a seal won't leak with vacuum on it, but does leak w pressure on it....but of course ANY tech worth their salt will ALWAYS double check their work!
Also the MittyVac power steering vacuum bleeding kit is a must have. Especially with GM power steering systems. Takes the pain out of it. 5 minutes with the vaccum pulled on the system and it's good as opposed to an hour of trying to get them to bleed.
I recently purchased that same system, around $220 from my matco dealer but man it is worth every penny. I was able to upsell a freeze plug and intake job based off that. I put a radiator in a 93 Silverado, vaccumed down and it wasn’t holding. Listened to the whistling noise of where air was coming into the system and seen a freeze plug COMPLETELY rusted out and had a hole in it. (owner has been using straight tap water) and a leak from the heater core hose quick connect on the back of the intake. Very good system to verify that the cooling system is leak free, plus you’re filled up in about 2 minutes tops. Some tools you just have to pay for to make you more efficient.
The Snap-On Tool Review you cost me the best part of £500 for that filler and pressure tester after I see yours, my dealer had to special order them in from the USA as they only have the Bluepoint ones here in the UK normally, still thanks for the heads up dude I love them both, have solved a lot of customer issues with them
I bought mine 10 years ago from mac, one of the. Eat investment I have made. The time difference in time to vacuum fill versus letting th4 car or truck heat up, and then driving it to burp the system i huge. Also when you read the procedures for filling with out a vacuum filler, it is 2 to3 times as many steps per manufacturers inatructions.
Definitely need to get this, I'm a beginner lube tech and we are supposed to offer coolant system repairs and flushes but nobody has the tooling by me to do it. Need it done right though
Use mine on every car I open the cooling system on, if nothing else it keeps messes to a minimum. You also never have to question if you got all the air out of the system or not, like the FRM said "put the cap on, top off the reservoir, and drive"
Great video thanks brother. Really not a fan of the new system. I like the old school way but open to learning. Keep up the great work see you in the next video thanks again brother
I've got the Airlift II (universal) with a tapered cone, and agree, it's sometimes tough to get a good seal. I don't 100% trust it to indicate a sealed system, but it works OK as far as refilling goes. Not a glamorous tool, but a big timesaver. I'll have to look to an upgrade one of these days. Good information. Thanks!
I never considered his method of using the pressure test adapter to make a better connection. I've only used the cone once or twice. Mine has i believe 4 different sized rubber "plugs"? But have had to pinch off small hoses a time or 5.
Working in heavy equipment. That’s a needed tool with Diesel engines and egr cooler if you fill the cooling system without that you can have a problem.
I have one of these and it is a lifesaver, especially on some Nissans. Definitely worth the money. Didn't your airlift come with additional adapters? I use the cone adapter on everything.
Must have in the diesel world. I’m the one that doesn’t lift 2 or 3, 5 gallon buckets in the air. And sit there and rev the engine for 30m. And still have a gallon left. Thanks for the tip
I finally just texted my tool rep to get the Matco filler and a couple adapters on order. Tired of waiting for the system to burp. Got bailed out on a 3rd gen Prius that I did inverter coolant on and put a bubble in the system that wouldn’t come out. Shop foreman saved my ass with the vacuum bleeder. It’d been on my radar for a while but I pulled the trigger cause I’m tired of loosing money and time. Foreman’s had his for 6-7 years and says it’s probably made him at least 10k just in saved time.
Hey frm can you make a video on the different types of cars that need to be vaccuum filled and which ones you need to buy the adapters for. I currently have a universal adapter but would like to upgrade and for pressure testing I actually use a snap on pump with a quick connect for some air fittings attached to various sized reservoir tank hoses so that I am testing the cap at the same time
A guy at work showed me his Matco the other day, i'm not sure why he's one of the few people with one of these, everyone else manually bleeds with the no spill funnel. For me it seems like the cost is justified. I'm going to be getting one. Huge time saver.
I use the Uview Airlift 550000, which is made of solid brass and should not be confused with the Airlift II 50500, which is mostly plastic. RobinAir and others sell coolant system vacuum fillers which are re-brands of the plastic-bodied cone-based Airlift II 50500. I have been extremely happy with the brass-bodied Airlift 550000 (purchased new for under $100) and have used it on many domestic and import vehicles with total success. Couple things FRM failed to point out about the AirLift 550000 in this video: (1) It is not a simple "one-size-fits-all" universal tool, which FRM mentioned as a con of the AirLift (he stated "it really does not seal all that well and it is really easy to get some air in the system"). I disagree. Rather, it comes with four expanding rubber collars AND a "universal" cone adapter. This is one of the key reasons I prefer the 550000 over the AirLift II 50500 and other similar tools that rely only on a cone shaped rubber adapter.If you take the time to read the instruction manual for this product, you will find that it does not take rocket science to achieve a nice, leak free seal. For best fit, you should use one of the rubber collars that is the closest fit for your radiator neck. Then expand the collar using the tool to produce a vacuum tight seal. If none of the collars fit in your application, then and only then should you resort to the "universal" cone shaped adapter. The cone-shaped adapter often does require more fiddling, that is why you should always use the rubber collar approach FIRST. In any case, don't over-tighten the tool, and you should find that it's really not rocket science to get a nice, leak free seal. (2) If you have a vehicle with a overflow tube, you might have to pinch it off to get a good vacuum. This was mentioned as a con, but in my opinion is no big deal. Just use a pair of hose pinch-off pliers, a smooth-jaw plier or even two 1x1's and a clamp (main thing is not to damage the hose). I have found that it does not take much to pinch off the overflow tube. (3) FRM mentioned the inconvenience of having to remove the venturi hose and attach the fill hose to fill the system with coolant, as well as the risk of introducing air into the system. Swapping the hoses is no big deal as they are equipped with quick disconnects, it literally takes less than 10 seconds. In order to ensure that I purge all air from the fill hose, here is my routine: before attaching the fill hose to the AirLift, drop the screened end of the fill hose into a 5 gallon bucket of 50/50 coolant, and then open the valve on the fill hose. I then apply suction to the fill hose and watch the coolant travel up the hose until it enters the valve. At that point, I close the valve and remove the suction. Voila, the fill hose is now purged of air and can be connected to the AirLift once you are ready to fill the system. The tool truck vacuum refillers are nice systems as well, but with all due respect to the Flat Rate Master, in my opinion the AirLift 550000 is no slouch. It is a well built piece of kit that is widely available online and is a lot cheaper than the tool trucks. For the non-professional, it will likely outlive you. And I know several pros that have used it for years and continue to do so.
Where can i get the right adapter for a honda and a toyota, most coolant vacuum refillers have that cone adapter which is not reliable and tend to leak. Now you mentioned the smart fit radiator universal adapter kit, can that be used to fill the system with coolant or is that just for pressurizing and if so do they have a size for hondas and toyota radiators?
I use to say never ever use one Then i had some serious disasters take place Now every job every time Espically diesel with exhaust gas cooler Worth every penny
Depends on the vehicle really and the design of the cooling system. I most commonly use these on Ford Diesels but sometimes cars come through that need it too. I work on all makes and models at my shop, I'd say I use one of these less than 10% of the time.
Goplus 28PCS Radiator Pressure Tester Vacuum Type Cooling System Purge and Refill Kit W/Case Seen this one in the shop today, wondering if anyone else has used it. It seemed to work well.
Marvac Scientific Mfg. makes that tool. Unfortunately I believe you only can buy their tools through tool distributors. Seems Cornwell has it the cheapest.
mac tools has a system kinda like it but not as efficient.. i had one for the longest time but traded for snap on's radkit and so much more efficient...
I have that Matco one, but with a universal style tapered rubber cone and sometimes it is hard to seal. I have also cracked a couple of radiators during the vacuuming process. Has anyone else had this happen? Cracked along the very top of the radiator. A Toyota Sienna and Nissan Maxima, both old high mileage vehicles so they were probably brittle anyway, but something to think about on older cars.
Chris Popken do you know if there is any adapters for hondas and toyotas, cause i hate using those cone adapters they dont hold pressure and they leak air, or maybe you know of a vacuum coolant refiller that come with those adapters.
Is there a preferred way to drain the coolant if you are going to be filling using the vacuum tool, and i'm assuming you want the motor at temperature before you refill the engine so the thermostat is open? Or are you leaving the car on accessory mode (engine off) with the heater turned on while you fill? I'm just a bit confused, I have yet to use a vacuum tool on a coolant system, I usually drain the radiator, lower the car fill the radiator, start the car turn on the heater and fill as necessary and squeeze the hoses until I have the rest of the air out of the system.
You want the system as empty as you can, motor off, as you pull a vacuum on both sides of the thermostat it will almost completely fill the system, fast and easy, you will still need to double check that the system is full before shipping the car
on these type of fillers , does one use 100% straight coolant or 50/50 when filling? most vids that i have watched seem to use straight coolant. if they do,would this not mess up the coolant ratio?
My only issue is that if you find out you have an air pocket in your heater core after a traditional refill, you have to completely drain system to refill, simply cannot pull vacuum to remove air and top off.. I bought a full kit, hoping I could just pull vacuum and top off, seller says no, drain.. then says not to lube up o-rings, wanted to just use coolant, or an approved grease,they sure fit hard going in dry...
will this device pull the old coolant from the engine block? i have an 08 GM car that is difficult to drain the block. it has knock sensors attached to the drain plugs and very hard to remove
The only kits i can find are on the tool trucks all are the same manufacturer but they aren't available readily, you might fine the kit under the proto brand, other than that individual or small kits from AST or stant
I remember when I bought my new 01 celica and the thermostat needed replacement and was still covered under warranty and I got a call so I went in and talked to the mechanic and he wanted me to buy one of these for him to fill my car with it and told me it was going to be $200 I ripped him a new one and their service manager filled my own car and never let that dealer do any kind of warranty work ever again.
Toyota dealer tech here, the 2gr isn't a pain to bleed. There's a nipple between the 2 banks that you loosen while you fill up then you can use a spill free funnel and a hose going to the funnel and let it do its thing. Me personally I just fill the spill free funnel and let idle for a bit then rev it at about 2k till it get close to over flowing, once that happens I turn the engine off and let it go back down. Do that a few times and it should bleed just fine
@@flatratemaster question. I hear just draining petcock doesn't drain 100% of coolant from motor. Using this tool during the vacuum step, does it suck out any remaining coolant while collapsing the hoses?
Just because it holds vacuum doesn’t mean the cooling system will hold pressure. I blew off a radiator hose on a system I vacuum filled because the hose clamp wasn’t tightened. I ALWAYS pressure test when I open a cooling system.
No, it is for filling the system only. Still have to drain your coolant beforehand. You want the cooling system to be as EMPTY as possible before using this system.
