2001 Coolant fill procedure?

[MrBib2000]

There is a warning label on my coolant overflow tank warning me about a special coolant filling procedure. Failure to follow may cause damage, etc.
My Chilton's doesn't say anything, nor does the owner's manual.
Anyone know what the special procedure is?

[gunjes]

What this might be indicating is two fold. The use of identical coolant, (dexcool)If you are just adding to it, or the "purging of air" from the coolant system(during a coolant drainage,flush and refill). Generally you will only need to purge the air from the system if you are changing out your radiator fluid. I found the air purging procedure and directions in my haynes manual. But be careful! If you are draining your raditor fluid ,as the draincock( which is located on the driverside/base/engineside) is visually out of range and it operates by the : quarter turn and pull method i.e. it's plastic so be careful! The manual doesn't tell you that. hope this helps

[GMMerlin]

Originally Posted by MrBib2000

There is a warning label on my coolant overflow tank warning me about a special coolant filling procedure. Failure to follow may cause damage, etc.
My Chilton's doesn't say anything, nor does the owner's manual.
Anyone know what the special procedure is?

If the cooling system is low or has been drained, you need to purge the air out of the cooling system when refilling it. These vans are bad about air pockets in the cooling system and can cause the engine to overheat.
If you are just checking the overflow and adding some to top it off, you can remove the cap(with the engine cold!) and just add what is needed.
If you need to drain and refill, you will have to open the bleeders and fill the system, close the bleeders and allow the engine to warm up...watch the gauge and feel the air from the heater..if the coolant fan comes on and there is no heat from the heater, shut off the engine and allow it to cool (you have an air pocket)

I use a vacum cooling system extractor to vacum the cooling system down and fill it under a vacum...no air pockets

[MrBib2000]

Thanks for both replies. This is what I'd figured, but wanted to make sure I didn't need a special password or somethin'.
I have a small leak at or near the thermostat that I'll take to the dealer next week. I've been topping it off every few days.
The heater puts out cold air and the temp needle swings all over. After it cools I add about one cup of coolant to the radiator to fill it and then add some to the overflow tank.
Anyways, thanks again for the help.

[OzarkOutfitter]

Originally Posted by GMMerlin

If you need to drain and refill, you will have to open the bleeders and fill the system, close the bleeders and allow the engine to warm up...watch the gauge and feel the air from the heater..if the coolant fan comes on and there is no heat from the heater, shut off the engine and allow it to cool (you have an air pocket)

I use a vacum cooling system extractor to vacum the cooling system down and fill it under a vacum...no air pockets

- I have a 02 Venture and I am having a problem getting all of the air out of the cooling system. I have went through the steps that you have posted here and the engine is still getting hot

I will describe the exact scenerio here -

1. My wife noticed the engine temp was getting hotter than normal and the heater was blowing cold "intermittent heat".
2. checked the coolant level and it seemed to be down a bit maybe a quart +/-. we topped it off and engine still got hot and no heater.
3. well I figured it must be a thermostat problem, replaced it after a few hours of manual labor, still same situation. surely the new stat couldn't be bad, well I replaced it again with another thermostat and this time I went all out and replaced the waterpump thinking the coolant wasn't being circulated. LOL just more wasted money, Still same problem.
4. That is when I went to the web and found this site. Everything I found about the van overheating pointed to the intake manifold gasket, So yes that was next, After all of the hours I had already put in to this engine in the past few days I wasn't going to give up without a fight.
5. In went the new intake manifold gasket and another flush and fill of coolant and an oil change. It is now Day 5 of working on the van and this thing is driving me nuts.
6. This is where I will beg for guidance from the experts. HELP
I have no idea how to purge the air out of this system, I think I have followed your steps properly and it is still getting hot.

Can you please post detailed instructions on how to purge the air from the system. Also is there a chance that there is some other problem, if so what could it possibly be..

Thanks very much for your help.

Stressed out,
OzarkOutfitter

[ChoochCharlie]

I found it kind of easy.
There are two bleed valves. The Haines manual describes them well. I filled the system then started the engine. While it warmed up I went back and forth opening and closing the valves letting air out. Also topping off the radiator. Once the pressure was really coming up, capped the radiator and bled the valves a couple more times until no air came out any more. Done.
Change your radiator cap too for good measure. They always fail after a while.
Charlie