Just bought S-10 blazer, any advice?

[dirtracin'fan]

Hey guys,

I was able to get a '97 S-10 Blazer at a really great price. I am the 3rd owner of this machine. Anybody know what I can do to prevent transmission problems? Any special thing like changing the fluid more often or installing some part? BTW it has 140,000 miles on it, it still shifts smooth. The people I bought it off of say they've had no problems at all with the transmission, they weren't sure about the people that bought it new. Any advice would be greatly appreciated, from the way it sounds I really wanna avoid any tranny problems. Also another quick question, the Blazer still has the Orange/Red coolant. Is it safe to flush the system and put in regular green coolant?

Thanks for any advice!!

[smokey041369]

stay with the orange / red coolant and change the trans fluid and filter so you can keep track of the replacement time

[xtremeblazer01]

that orange/red coolant isn't dexi-cool is it? if it is..i recommend changing to the green coolant. i used to work at an oil/lube place and the dexi cool is expensive plus it's not that great of stuff....ruins the engine after a while. Even had a few complaints about it but none after they switched back to the green. don't know why GM put that stuff in their vehicles anyways.

[pernicev]

DO NOT switch to green. The orange coolant (Dexcool) that came in your blazer is phospate free, green coolant is not. Phosphates will corrode engine parts that are made of aluminum or aluminum alloy and can cause serious damage. The only drawback with orange is that it will start to sludge after about five years and plug things up, starting with the heater core unless the coolant system is flushed and refilled. If your not sure how old the coolant is, get it changed or do it yourself, its relatively easy.
Vince

[quaddriver]

your blazer is already 7 years old and the motor is likely already ruined from the acid, er I mean death cool. Of all the motors that are affected negatively by deathcool, the 4.3 is by far the worst.

change the tranny fluid every 20K, put in a darin plug if not equipped, add the largest tranny cooler money can buy.

drain the death cool and go green at the soonest opportunity.

then sit back and prepare for all the other crap that blazers break monthly.

[LukeBickers]

yeah, the dexcool has created nothing but seemingly endless problems for me and many other people. now that i got the problems fixed and switched to green, it's no problem. if it's not already, the dexcool will turn to mud.

[wilfie27]

I've seen several thousand engines torn down and the green coolant flows out like water and the orange crud usually has to be scraped out, or falls out in chunks.

[BlazerLT]

A properly maintained dexcool charged cooling system will not sludge.

Sludge is caused by people mixing the orange with the green or having a defective rad cap.

[chcknugget]

I agree with BlazerLT. My 96 Jimmy was recalled because of dexcool problems way back when I got it. This 96-97 factory dexcool is the stuff you have to worry about!

If you've put new goo in your vehicle and made sure the coolant level stays high through all the seasons, the heater core won't gurgle, you'll actually feel heat coming from the heater vents, you won't overheat your engine, etc. Usually just looking inside of your radiator cap every once and a while solves 99% of the problems.

p.s. At one point I was having all of the coolant loss problems everyone describes. Mechanics said it was my heater core leaking because I had no heat and I could smell coolant. NO!!! I opened the hood myself and saw that my radiator had a crack in it (easy replacement). Before anything else, inspect your radiator and cap. Don't convert to green!

[quaddriver]

Its not phosphate free, its silicate free. silicates = sand, really really fine sand particles.

the problem is, or so they tell us, is that the silicates over time cause wear on aluminum components. this was a classic example of 'preventative science' going bad. what they failed to consider is that the silicates kept the coolant passages scrubbed clean and the 'crap' that WILL form in suspension.

There has to my knowledge NEVER been a case of any component of a motor failing due to abrasive coolant.

the root problem with deathcool is that it is horribly high in sodium. when exposed to heat and air (hmmmmmmmmmmmm!) it forms caustic soda which eats at metal. This is a problem.

Does your engine run? If yes then the coolant experiences heat.

does your engine have a radiator cap and or recovery tank? If yes then the coolant encounters oxygen.

due to a problem with the seating of the intake manifold, 4.3v6s eat coolant a drop at a time with the factory gaskets. You can correct this with the proper felpro gaskets and proper usage of sealant(s). therefore all 4.3s have a steadily (but slowly) lowering coolant level, introducing more air thru the recovery system vent tube. every time you heat then cool the motor, coolant is energetically mixed with this fresh oxygen. Acerbating the problem.

THERE IS NOTHING YOU CAN DO TO PREVENT THIS PROBLEM.

switch to green. change it out every 2 years. change the oil as required. drive for a hundreds of thousands of miles and instead gripe about the bearings, balljoints and bushings the blazer will eat up on a regular basis.

[BlazerLT]

I still stand for Dexcool having no problems on a properly running vehicle.

I was loosing coolant and had minor sludging and it was due to a faulty rad cap drawing in air instead of coolant from the overflow tank when the rad is cooling and contracting.

IF ANYONE HAS NOT EVER REPLACED THEIR RAD CAP , DO SO NOW EVEN IF YOU ARE NOT HAVING PROBLEMS. THE STOCK CAPS ARE FLWAED AND A REPLACEMENT IS ONLY $3.

Here is a good article:

http://www.imcool.com/articles/antif...l-macs2001.htm

[quaddriver]

Originally Posted by BlazerLT

I still stand for Dexcool having no problems on a properly running vehicle.

I was loosing coolant and had minor sludging and it was due to a faulty rad cap drawing in air instead of coolant from the overflow tank when the rad is cooling and contracting.

IF ANYONE HAS NOT EVER REPLACED THEIR RAD CAP , DO SO NOW EVEN IF YOU ARE NOT HAVING PROBLEMS. THE STOCK CAPS ARE FLWAED AND A REPLACEMENT IS ONLY $3.

Here is a good article:

http://www.imcool.com/articles/antif...l-macs2001.htm

so as long as the radiator cap is new, you dont mind expensive acid in the motor when instead you can have cheaper glycol regardless of cap condition? okayyyyyyyyyyy......

[BlazerLT]

Our system is a 15lb system and with a bad rad cap on a dexcool or conventional fill, it will overheat either way. The pressure it to raise the boiling point. Without the proper seal, the boiling point drops.

I have had dexcool in my 1995 Blazer since it's birth in October 1995 and it has been changed and flushed once and that was 2 years ago and it is completely clear and fine.

I have never had a problem.

So stop with the bullshit "you use dexcool and it will screw up you cooling system" bullshit and quit being so narrow minded.

You are even arguing aginast trained professionals in that link I gave you. How do you know better than them.

Most problems were created by the faulty cap which happened to me also and in a lot of cases it was the actual culprit.

[Alexxn 00 Si]

So which cap should be used ? The Stand 10230 or 10231 ? What about a brand new cap from GM ??

[BlazerLT]

Don't buy the Ac Delco.

Go to the auto parts store and buy the model for your truck. They will have the model number cross reference there.

It cured my heater core gurgling noise and lowered my coolant temperatures by 30f