Changing your coolant EARLY!!!!!

[RJ MALIBU]

Hello every1 opened the coolant tank in my 2003 Mali and there it was ,''oxidized'' or ''sandy'' or ''rust colored substance''DEATH-COOL. So I decided to change the coolant before anything went wrong. Went with Prestone Extended Life. It doesn't matter how well you maintain your car , this shit will foul up! I dont care about all you people who swear by this shit but if I ever get a new car again the first thing I'm gonna do is rid my cooling system of the horrid DEX-COOL . My father inlaw's 2005 Cavi with 5k miles on it has a sandy muddy substance in its cooling system. How would that be a ''not maintaining your car corectly '' problem that so many dex-cool fans say is the problem.IT HAS 5K ON IT! This is the worst crap ever made and for GM to use it pisses me off It ate my radiator up in my Blazer and Im so glad I cought it before it ruined my gaskets. ANYONE HAVE AN OPONION ON THIS DEX-COOL? I KNOW IT HAS BEEN DISCUSSED BEFORE BUT IT HAS BEEN A WHILE

[wymi]

Change your radiator cap to anything but an ac delco cap, they don't seal well.

[slls]

I am running 2 with Dexcool, 1 with 50K, replaced Dexcool at 30K. The other one 20K, no brown coolant yet. Like you said some like it, some don't, I see no problem with it in my vehicles.

[gmtech79]

Before I make my comments on Dex-cool let me get some more info from you.
The coolant you put into your car was it orange? I am assuming so since you said extended life. second, was the vehicle low on coolant? Let me know and i will post the rest.

[ricebike]

So I decided to change the coolant before anything went wrong. Went with Prestone Extended Life.

prestone extended life coolant is yellow, but newly formulated to be just like DEXcool... 5 year or 150,000 mile change interval (if you flushed w/ distilled water & did the 50:50 mix w/ distilled water...)

i've noticed this sludge crap on my sis' 97 cavalier as well... flushed it out, but refilled w/ dexcool/distilled water mix... she's still having some problems, but that'll be discussed in another thread.

[RJ MALIBU]

The Prestone is yellow and the collant level was always full. Definatly gonna get a new cap as well.

[Speedy_1234]

mabye it your head gaskets that torn

[john20]

If I flush out my radiator, can I switch to the green antifreeze, or did GM build the motor to fall apart if anything but death-cool is added?

[RJ MALIBU]

Go ahead and switch to the green, I have green in my Blazer and nothing yet after a year. Some people say you need DEX-COOL because of the lower acidity and/or Ph level but since dex-cool reacts badly with air the easiest way to go is green which will save you ''green'' in the long run if you run clumpy,gasket eating ,sediment building dex-cool that has reacted with air. Not to piss dex-cool people off but you do have to check on the CONDITION of it at least every oil change to be safe. I'm not knocking dex-cool but I've had nothing but trouble. If you want to run it you HAVE TO BE SURE YOUR RAD CAP IS NOT DELCO.

[gw84]

I recently bought a '99 LUMINA LTZ, had the same sandy texture. I was going to switch to the green, but never did. I was told that if you do decide to switch, make sure you get EVERY DROP of dex-cool out before you do. Apparently the two don't react well together, which may cause more problems.

[johnholl]

Originally Posted by gw84

I recently bought a '99 LUMINA LTZ, had the same sandy texture. I was going to switch to the green, but never did. I was told that if you do decide to switch, make sure you get EVERY DROP of dex-cool out before you do. Apparently the two don't react well together, which may cause more problems.

GW 2 years ago my 3.1L developed the internal intake leak at 98K. At that time I had a salvage engine installed. My mechanic [former GM tech] said the 3.1 has an awfull track record. If I get this one back on the road [suspention woes] I'm going to put the yellow in. From what I've read Do NOT switch to the Green Mixture on these former Dexcool engines. But The Yellow is okay

[gw84]

Originally Posted by johnholl

GW 2 years ago my 3.1L developed the internal intake leak at 98K. At that time I had a salvage engine installed. My mechanic [former GM tech] said the 3.1 has an awfull track record. If I get this one back on the road [suspention woes] I'm going to put the yellow in. From what I've read Do NOT switch to the Green Mixture on these former Dexcool engines. But The Yellow is okay

Do you know what the potential problems in switching from dexcool to the green are? When I had mine flushed, I kept Dexcool in there just to be on the safe side. I wasn't sure about the benefits (if any) of losing the Dexcool were.

[RJ MALIBU]

Since there are some issues with the green stuff and dex-cool when it is mixed I just put in the YELLOW stuff in. Prestone makes a universal compatibility coolant and it says right on the bottle safe with dex-cool or green stuff. Thats what I am using in my Malibu now. Do what ever makes you feel safest and what ever you trust to put in your vehicle.

[Blue Bowtie]

OAT coolants actually protect better than silicated coolants in sealed, non-brass cooling systems. The problems start when the coolant is neglected - Just like any other automotive part or system. They need to be checked periodically, just like the Owner's Manual and service manuals suggest. Saying that the problems are caused by DexCool is like blaming Firestone for Ford Exploders rolling over because the operators didn't maintain proper air pressure, or blaming Pennzoil for your seized engine becuase you let the level go three quarts low.

I have six vehicles using DexCool with over an accumulated 550,000 + miles and no coolant problems. The '96 Lumina I recently acquired did have nasty sludge buildup, but was obviously neglected for the first 140,000 miles of its life. The rest of the fleet has been maintained normally and changed at the proper interval, and is trouble-free. That includes three vehicles with well over 100K each, and an '86 Trans Am which was switched to DexCool after "regular" coolant failed to protect against two heater core failures in less than 40,000 total miles on the vehicle. Five years later, it's still sealed on DexCool.

OAT coolants are "so bad" that Toyota, Honda, Nissan, and most premium European brand cars have switched to it. I guess GM was just ahead of the curve (again) on this one.

[johnholl]

Originally Posted by Blue Bowtie

OAT coolants actually protect better than silicated coolants in sealed, non-brass cooling systems. The problems start when the coolant is neglected - Just like any other automotive part or system. They need to be checked periodically, just like the Owner's Manual and service manuals suggest. Saying that the problems are caused by DexCool is like blaming Firestone for Ford Exploders rolling over because the operators didn't maintain proper air pressure, or blaming Pennzoil for your seized engine becuase you let the level go three quarts low.

I have six vehicles using DexCool with over an accumulated 550,000 + miles and no coolant problems. The '96 Lumina I recently acquired did have nasty sludge buildup, but was obviously neglected for the first 140,000 miles of its life. The rest of the fleet has been maintained normally and changed at the proper interval, and is trouble-free. That includes three vehicles with well over 100K each, and an '86 Trans Am which was switched to DexCool after "regular" coolant failed to protect against two heater core failures in less than 40,000 total miles on the vehicle. Five years later, it's still sealed on DexCool.

OAT coolants are "so bad" that Toyota, Honda, Nissan, and most premium European brand cars have switched to it. I guess GM was just ahead of the curve (again) on this one.

But are any of your engines the 3.1 L ? That's the junker that GM tried to blame its problem on Dexcool, or coolent recovery cap. Their solution coolent sealer pellets at the factory