2.4 coolant flush

My son's 96 Grand AM is due for a coolant flush. With no radiator cap and not knowing which heater hose is which, I need some advice on the easiest way to to do this. Please help. Thanks.

The pressure cap is located on the overflow bottle on the right side of the car. Splicing into the heater hoses to flush is not recommended as coolant comes from the water outlet through the heater core then to the thermostat. Running cold water through there will cause the thermostat not to open, leaving the radiator untouched in the process. I took mine in to have it done, they went in at the upper hose junction with the water outlet, seemed to work pretty good.

The pressure cap is located on the overflow bottle on the right side of the car. Splicing into the heater hoses to flush is not recommended as coolant comes from the water outlet through the heater core then to the thermostat. Running cold water through there will cause the thermostat not to open, leaving the radiator untouched in the process. I took mine in to have it done, they went in at the upper hose junction with the water outlet, seemed to work pretty good.

I appreciate your answer and comments but I'm confused. Both heater hoses don't go to the thermostat housing on the radiator side do they?

Which upper hose junction are you referring to; at the radiator? and what do you mean when you write that they went "in" with the "water outlet"? Does "water outlet" mean the water supply from the shop?

Exactly which hose did they force water into, what direction was the water flowing and where did the flushed coolant finally come out? thanks.

Your heater hoses run from the water outlet on the left side of the motor to the heater core then from the heater core to the thermostat housing on the right side. When I had mine flushed they took the upper hose off at the water outlet and attached the machine to the radiator hose and used the water outlet as the outlet for the old coolant. To drain the radiator, remove the cooling fan unless your arms are really skinny, reach down below the upper hose, there is a drain valve on the bottom corner of the radiator, put your catch pan there and you should get most of it.

Okay thanks, I understand now. I guess my final question is how did they refill the system and remove all the tap water and air; particularly from the closed system radiator? or was this a specialized function of the flush machine?

I'm sure I can open the radiator petcock from beneath the car rather than removing the cooling fan and reaching down from the top. I will have to remove the air intake to get to the heater core outlet on the engine though. I mention this just in case I'm missing something else and you can correct me.

I have flushed my "reverse cooling system" camaros; not an easy task, but they had a radiator cap and two air bleeders in the system to erradicate the air pockets. I filled the engine block from the thermostat opening. Other than bleeding the air out, refilling the rest of the system, basically the radiator, was about as easy as pouring antifreeze into a bucket.

Regards