DEXCOOL

[montguy215]

I posted this topic originally. Just to let you know I never mixed green antifreeze with dexcool. I never ran the cooling system low. I take very good care of my car and I still say this stuff is crap and a way to ruin your cooling system and shorten the life of a car. When I flushed my system the radiator cap also had to be replaced because it was growing some kind of rusty scale on it and the overflow tank was full of sediment.I also wanted to mention that I also owned a 96 cavalier z24 (since sold it) that had the water pump go at 60,000 miles that was the first year for this stuff. Its not a good product and definatly should not be in there for 100,000 miles.

[doh]

197000kms on my truck and the originial Dex Cool with no leaks other than the typical GM intake gaskets and 1 water pump

[Bret]

Our business has an '02 Buick Lesabre as one of our company cars. It has just over 37k miles on it and was purchased in June of '02. Here is a sample of the "dex-cool" fluid that I took out of the reservoir:
http://gallery.s2ki.com/imagecatalog/imageview/124861
The facts in our case are that no fluid of any type has been added to the reservoir. The level of the fluid was right at the minimum mark. The local dealership that we purchased this vehicle from would not flush the radiator under warranty because the warranty only goes to 36k miles. They gave me a 1-800 number to call to see if Buick would make an exception for us. The guy that I spoke with was very professional and agreed that this should not have happened. He called the dealership and made an appointment for us. The next day we took the car in. The "service professional" at the dealership that I had spoken with the day before took it upon himself to yell at me because Buick had called him. I reminded him that he was the one that gave me the phone number to call, but he just insisted that the flush should not be covered because it was a maintenance item. He said that the 5 years or 150k miles claim is just a guideline and it should really be changed out every two years. I pointed out to him that that's not what the maintenance guide says and they certainly didn't point that out to us when we purchases the car. Eventually his boss came over and asked him to leave. He finally did after three requests. His boss, the service manager, told me that the dex-cool doesn't last and should be flushed out every two years at the most. He claimed that the rust buildup is due to air getting in to the cooling system. He said that it mostly effects V-6 engines and does not happen on vehicles with closed cooling systems. He said that the guy that was yelling at me is really gung-ho GM and took the situation personally. We left and then picked the car up about four hours later.

From my reading about the problem at several sites on the internet and reading a GM TSB, I have found that GM wants to point the finger of blame at consumers for operating the car with a low coolant level for an extended period of time. This, they say, allows air in to the system which causes the corrosion. Well, in our case, the coolant level was not low. But, let's assume that it was for the sake of argument. Shouldn't the design of the cooling system and the chemistry of the coolant allow for the possibility that air might get in to the system? This is a common possibility, and shouldn't result in corrosion. Other than preventing freezing, isn't the purpose of the coolant to prevent corrosion?

GM's pathetic response to this problem, mostly blaming the consumer and denying that there is a problem with dex-cool, is completely unacceptable. Making consumers pay for repairs because their product does not perform as they claim it will is a sure way to create badwill. There is a class action lawsuit that has been filed. While I generally can't stand trial lawyers, I hope that in this case they take GM to task and get them to pay for every repair that is a result of this design defect.

BTW, we also have an '00 Lesabre that has 79k miles on it. The coolant in it is also brown, but not quite as bad. Our GMC truck and the president's Cadillac show no contamination.

[69nova]

Boy, I really didn't want to read this thread.
After having NO problems with Dodges for so long, I bought a Monte Carlo. Now, I am wondering if I face future issues. Even worse is GM's denial of a problem.
I guess that it was a good idea gone wrong. Not having to worry about the coolant for 100,000 miles but incurring some unforeseen problems now that the cars are on the road.

[Skuuter]

If you get your oil changed at one of the quick lube places (Jiffy Lube, etc.) remember they top off all your fluids. I'd bet this is where you folks are getting the coolant contaminated.

[thehemi]

102K on Dexcool in a 1996 Grand Am. No problems.

[Prix-mium]

Here's what I know about DexCool, I've used it with tap water, I've changed it twice. Once every 100,000 miles. My G Prix is a '97 and purrs like a kitten (because of the cold air intake, and staying on top of the oil changes) and she is currently at 257,000 miles right now. I drive the hell out of the car (I'm lead footed 24x7) I've gone though 2 transmissions, 2 alternators, and done two spark plug replacement jobs (the Platinum 4+ plugs by bosch are worth it, you'll see the difference when you go through one set, and go get your second replacements). The engine still acts like I'm going to be able to get another 200,000 miles also. As far as DexCool goes, I must've done something wrong last time, because this is the first time I've gotten sludge, so I'll be flushing it out a little better this time. Hope that helps calm some nerves. :-D

[F14CRAZY]

I just use the 5 year green stuff from Advance. I work on my engines too much so it tends to get drained a couple times a year

[big swede]

Originally Posted by 69nova

Boy, I really didn't want to read this thread.
After having NO problems with Dodges for so long, I bought a Monte Carlo. Now, I am wondering if I face future issues. Even worse is GM's denial of a problem.
I guess that it was a good idea gone wrong. Not having to worry about the coolant for 100,000 miles but incurring some unforeseen problems now that the cars are on the road.

If your worried about it, and you probably should, drain and flush the system and then put in whatever your favorite brand is and stick with it.

[NewYork Art]

Just use Distilled water to keep the resivoir filled. You can buy distilled water --or--get it from your dehumidifier,,(read about the dehumidifer water on the net)

[triadecho]

This is a good discussion. Rags and I have learned something since green and red have been mixed once in a while in my cars.

I flushed my cooling system this morning and went back and looked at the Peak Antifreeze and Coolant bottle in the trash. Fortunately it said Long Life - Mix With Any Color Antifreeze.

[member12]

Originally Posted by chev454ls

You also can't mix the Dexcool with the normal red stuff because it will basically gell up.

And tap water will give you a little meltdown.

Other than not mixing well with pretty much anything, I havn't had a problem with my coolant system on any GM truck so far....knock on wood. The owner's manual said 100000 miles before messing with it, so I am going with that.

[louda]

Should also be noted that when you buy Delco Dexcool (the OEM coolant), it is not pre-mixed, unlike the Prestone Dexcool, which is pre-mixed. So, if you top off or you flush and fill the system and use Delco Dexcool make sure you do half and half using preferably distilled water instead of tap water.

[chickenkicker]

Every time I have my car serviced where they have to add coolant they always add the green stuff to it. I've taken my car back to several shops and made them fully flush and refill the coolant with DEXCOOL because they mixed the 2. So far this has happened 3 times at 3 different shops. I even told them at the third place to remember it takes DEXCOOL, you know the orange stuff, and I got it back with green. And I always use distilled water when I add to it to prevent hard water deposits from building up which can also contribute to clogging issues.

Actually my car is being worked on again and they had to drain the coolant... here's hoping I don't get it back with green coolant in it, tho at least if I do the block and radiator was fully flushed so there won't be any mixing, just the wrong stuff...

Also check the underside of your radiator cap and if your cars overflow tank has a dipstick (like mine does) check it for any hints of slime or sludge. The sludge tends to be light colored, kind of whitish orange.

Also dexcool doesn't like air in the system so be sure to check the level frequently. It doesn't coat surfaces like the green stuff does so any surfaces exposed to air are more prone to rust.

[LAMRONH1]

Originally Posted by Bret

Our business has an '02 Buick Lesabre as one of our company cars. It has just over 37k miles on it and was purchased in June of '02. Here is a sample of the "dex-cool" fluid that I took out of the reservoir:
http://gallery.s2ki.com/imagecatalog/imageview/124861
From my reading about the problem at several sites on the internet and reading a GM TSB, I have found that GM wants to point the finger of blame at consumers for operating the car with a low coolant level for an extended period of time.

GM's pathetic response to this problem, mostly blaming the consumer and denying that there is a problem with dex-cool, is completely unacceptable. Making consumers pay for repairs because their product does not perform as they claim it will is a sure way to create badwill. There is a class action lawsuit that has been filed. While I generally can't stand trial lawyers, I hope that in this case they take GM to task and get them to pay for every repair that is a result of this design defect.

BTW, we also have an '00 Lesabre that has 79k miles on it. The coolant in it is also brown, but not quite as bad. Our GMC truck and the president's Cadillac show no contamination.

Wow, glad I read this. Just went to check my rad, the radiator cap has some brown crud on it and the downtube also has some rusty looking crap in it. I've been thinking of radiator maint, and I will be taking it in this week for the jobbie.
I have 27,000 miles, the car is probably about 3 years old, purchased Dec. 2004. Still under warranty.

For manufacturers to act this way after all their previous blame-the-customer disasters is just totally unacceptable. I guess GM learned nothing from its experience with Ralph Nader. Or should I say experiences.
I'll check with the Public Citizen site to see if Nader is part of this lawsuit. That would be justice, hahahaha.

It's like Chrysler's 2.7 junker that should have been put out to pasture years ago and replaced by the 3.2 as base V6 engine.

What in hell is the matter with these people? Think they're in Congress or something?

Link does not work, BTW.

Thanks for the heads up, Bret.