What is the best anti-freeze available in the U.S. for a 5.3L V12 engine?
Welcome, Carol, now that Winter is over! Basic green anti-freeze concentrate- diluted 50/50. Avoid the orange stuff, IMHO!
Welcome
Donât know what determines âbestâ but I switched to Evans waterless in my 6.0" liter V12 because it is supposedly non-corrosive, has a higher boiling point, and doesnât need changing every couple of years.
Just my 2 cents
Jim
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And use distilled water! I prefer Safeway. 
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jerry makes a good point. Plus it ainât cheap at $40+ per gallon. Couple of years in and no problems â excepting having to tighten down all the clamps really good and replace a radiator cap - - the Evans is low viscosity and will find an exit point
âŚand, itâs reportedly flammable.
I could give a ratâs patootie how non-corrosive it is, that will NEVER be in a highly pressurized cooling system I have anything to do with.
Good water, regular changes, of standard antifreeze still seems the better choice.
Actually, I understand the system doesnât build pressure when Evans is used. And your fuel system runs under twice the pressure the coolant circuit ever sees. And your oil is flammable, and itâs under high pressure as well. And your transmission fluid. And your power steering fluid.
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In my experience, cooling systems tend to develop catastrophic leaks a bit more frequently than fuel systems.
That said, regular, periodic maintenance of both lessens the chances of either going Code Red.
And, given the pretty damn good job a properly-maintained cooling system gives, why should I pay $40/gal, as opposed to $8?
Tweetyâs and Margaretâs cooling systems were pristine, after 48+ years, on good olâ Denver water and normal AF.
Not saying the Evans is junk⌠I am just highly suspicious of new snake oils, until they are proven, and/ or widely adopted by the manufacturers.
But, just soâs we dont get crosswiseâŚâŚ YMMV.
Evans has actually been around for a long time - at least 30 years. But only in the last few years do they appear to be attempting to reach the aftermarket/enthusiast audience.
IMHO it is really better suited for low pressure/unpressurized cooling systems like a Model T. It doesnât seem to have enough benefits for a modern high-pressure cooling system to make it worthwhile for me.
My rule of thumb for newfangled wonder technologies is - do any OEMâs use it? (like synthetic oil, ceramic brake pads, electronic ignition?) If OEMâs donât use it, thereâs probably a good reason why. And to my knowledge, no OEM uses Evans, not even McLaren or Ferrari. (GM did do a study on its usage in the 80âs or 90âs.)
Dave
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Ditto: if it was that whizbang good, itâs likely they would.
Iâm not entirely sure thatâs a good criteria. OEMâs only do whatâs cost-effective for them. It doesnât cost them a penny to instruct you to change your coolant every two years. And it doesnât cost them a penny when your Jaguar V12 overheats and drops a valve seat. Letâs face it, there are plenty of things that OEMâs donât do that weâd prefer that they do, and some that we undertake on our own with our cars.
Iâm not saying Evans is worth it. I havenât put it in either of my Japanese appliances, which are 15 and 17 years old now, still goinâ just fine on plain olâ 50/50. But if I still owned a Jaguar V12, Iâd probably be considering it. Especially after I got the engine pretty well buttoned up for good, not planning on it coming apart again any time soon.
If it really has an significant advantage, at least some high-OEM will use it. Like McLaren and their gold-foil engine bay insulation in the original F1.
Dave
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If itâs flammable itâll be a hydrocarbon material. Hydrocarbons have half the heat capacity of water and about 60% that of 50/50 antifreeze. To me Jags have a hard enough time staying cool without using a material that has poorer effectiveness of removing/rejecting heat in the first place. Just my 2 cents
Interesting: I knew Etylene glycol was flammable, but certainly never seen it burst into flame⌠perhaps the Evans is no more so.
I still am not convinced itâs worth the expense.
I shall remain open to its use, if âeventuallyâitâs shown to be better.
Iâd say 50/50 does the job, but a water-free solution should result in less corrosion/debris building up. It has less heat capacity, but it wonât pressurize the cooling system much and thus canât boil over. Also, I imagine it wonât have to be changed so it will become cost effective.
Dropping valve seat will cost the manufacturer, but apart from that I can agree. The V12 wonât stop running just because the green coolant you fill in there wasnât the most expensive, as long as itâs renewed frequently cheaper stuff will do perfectly.
Refilling with water instead of diesel in emergencies is a big plus.
Itâs the heat and cool cycles that wears anti freeze out. Changing it out every couple years is a waste of time and money for cars that get few miles put on them. Monitor the corrosion factor with PH test strips.
Just recently I had to disassemble one of my cars that had 12 year old antifreeze with about 200 miles on it. PH and freeze tested as new, I put it in my daily driver. I use distilled water and Peak antifreeze, probably a 60-40 mix in everything, 60 AF. Supposedly Peak is compatible with everything, seems to be true, never seen a gelling problem even with Dex-Cool. Never had a rusted out freeze plug or anything else for that matter that I went through or bought new in my life. If anti freeze doesnât go bad sitting on a shelf, it doesnât, then it wonât go bad sitting in a radiator. I suspect most problems arise because of poor previous maintenance, flushing does little to get rust deposits out in the corners and crevices of the cooling system.
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Is there a story, there? 
There is one, but it is old and also not mine! (It works, but the rubber wonât like it I bet!)
I bet it is mostly the heat that aids in corrosion. Once the electrolyte really starts to conduct a little the aluminium must slowly corrode⌠the colder the betterâŚ
There a lots of reasons why. I doubt that any of them are very important. 
As car enthusiasts we often develop a relationship with our cars. Thatâs normal. And part of the fun. But sometimes relationships become lopsided with one side being hyper-caring and fussing over every detail⌠while the other side is aloof and nonchalant.
There was a time when I used to fuss over these things. After all, the Jag was âmy babyâ and I wanted âthe bestâ for her, right?
Eventually I realized that all the extra money and effort was making ME feel goodâŚbut the car didnât give a ratâs ass one way or the other.
I still bring the car flowers on a regular basisâŚbut not from the trendiest, most exotic boutique. I see no sign that my car loves me any less for doing so.
Cheers
DD
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Made my Saturday, mate!!!