deadly dex cool mixed with green stuff.........
nycemsmedic67
07-12-2010, 05:15 PM
hello all, ill try to get this in 10 words or less. had unknown type of coolant leak( no visible signs) girlfriend took car and added green stuf to the sys. slowly had over heating prob.started to bouil over and now after top of motor is off(thinking it was the intake manafold gasket) after intensive inspection found brown sludge. is the motor shot? or does anyone know something i can flush it with? thanks Dave
gonesouth
07-13-2010, 11:17 AM
hello all, ill try to get this in 10 words or less. had unknown type of coolant leak( no visible signs) girlfriend took car and added green stuf to the sys. slowly had over heating prob.started to bouil over and now after top of motor is off(thinking it was the intake manafold gasket) after intensive inspection found brown sludge. is the motor shot? or does anyone know something i can flush it with? thanks Dave
Hi Dave, What year, engine and mileage? I'm sure you know not to start this car.
Intake manifold gaskets have been a problem on several engines. If they fail, coolant can leak into the oil.
If you plan on doing the work yourself, here's what I would do if it were my car.
Since you were not driving it when it overheated, you have no idea to what extent the overheating may have damaged the engine. It may just be intake manifold gaskets, but it may have ruined the head gaskets too. Drain the radiator. I would pull the spark plugs and remove the ignition fuse so it can't start. Crank the engine and watch for coolant that may have entered the cylinders.
Then do a compression test on all cylinders. If compression is good on all cylinders, your head gaskets are probably OK.
If one or more cylinder has low compression, you'll need head gaskets.
After replacing needed gaskets, flush the cooling system. Drain the engine oil and replace filter. Put in some cheap engine oil, like the Wal Mart brand and run it for maybe 100 miles. Change oil and filter again, but this time you can use whatever brand you normally use.
Good luck!
Hi Dave, What year, engine and mileage? I'm sure you know not to start this car.
Intake manifold gaskets have been a problem on several engines. If they fail, coolant can leak into the oil.
If you plan on doing the work yourself, here's what I would do if it were my car.
Since you were not driving it when it overheated, you have no idea to what extent the overheating may have damaged the engine. It may just be intake manifold gaskets, but it may have ruined the head gaskets too. Drain the radiator. I would pull the spark plugs and remove the ignition fuse so it can't start. Crank the engine and watch for coolant that may have entered the cylinders.
Then do a compression test on all cylinders. If compression is good on all cylinders, your head gaskets are probably OK.
If one or more cylinder has low compression, you'll need head gaskets.
After replacing needed gaskets, flush the cooling system. Drain the engine oil and replace filter. Put in some cheap engine oil, like the Wal Mart brand and run it for maybe 100 miles. Change oil and filter again, but this time you can use whatever brand you normally use.
Good luck!
j cAT
07-13-2010, 03:21 PM
hello all, ill try to get this in 10 words or less. had unknown type of coolant leak( no visible signs) girlfriend took car and added green stuf to the sys. slowly had over heating prob.started to bouil over and now after top of motor is off(thinking it was the intake manafold gasket) after intensive inspection found brown sludge. is the motor shot? or does anyone know something i can flush it with? thanks Dave
this is why dexcool is given a bad rap....
unless you put a lock on that fill cap some person will screw it up on you !
now to clean up this mess you must drain all coolant . then remove thermostat .. use the 15 min acid flush ...not the coolant system cleaner ...buy 2 or 3 to be sure you clean iT All out .....
fill with water and run for the 15-20 min then drain it all out ...find the engine drain plugs open to remove all coolant/water ..
repeat until the goo is gone...wash out the coolant res. with the acid cleaner also ....
when it looks good install water mixed with a 8OZ of baking soda disolved , then place into the coolant / water and run to neutralize any acid...then fill with the dexcool and distilled water...
whenever you have a coolant leak and it is not a major one , always use the acid flush then install the stop leak...cleaning the system works better with the stop leak...I use bars stop leak ...never use too much of any stop leak too much does not make it work better..
with overheating anything is possible it may be that this engine is junk ...
this is why dexcool is given a bad rap....
unless you put a lock on that fill cap some person will screw it up on you !
now to clean up this mess you must drain all coolant . then remove thermostat .. use the 15 min acid flush ...not the coolant system cleaner ...buy 2 or 3 to be sure you clean iT All out .....
fill with water and run for the 15-20 min then drain it all out ...find the engine drain plugs open to remove all coolant/water ..
repeat until the goo is gone...wash out the coolant res. with the acid cleaner also ....
when it looks good install water mixed with a 8OZ of baking soda disolved , then place into the coolant / water and run to neutralize any acid...then fill with the dexcool and distilled water...
whenever you have a coolant leak and it is not a major one , always use the acid flush then install the stop leak...cleaning the system works better with the stop leak...I use bars stop leak ...never use too much of any stop leak too much does not make it work better..
with overheating anything is possible it may be that this engine is junk ...
Automotive Network, Inc., Copyright ©2026