Jump to content

HOPE YOU FLUSHED YOUR DEXCOOL?

commanche1

Recommended Posts

commanche1 Enthusiast

commanche1

Posted
Posted

on the 4.3 liter engines in the years 1996 to 1998 the DEXCOOL is destroying your engine. we tore my radiator apart to see how bad in my 1998 chevy k1500 at 36,000 miles. unreal. i never in my life saw a radiator so badly plugged.i can imagine what is back in the block and heater core.gm has a tsb out on it ,takes them 8 hours to clean your system. why has gm not recalled our vehiciles on this?i am over warranty now by 3 years.you can read about this if you enter DEXCOOL PROBLEMS in the search.i hope my engine does not go because of this. i am having my truck flushed every year to try to get rid of it. my mechanic says the prestone flush WILL NOT get rid of it.you have to use a cleaner that chevy garage has. they will act like they know nothing about this but they do. take care :thumbs:

commanche1 Enthusiast

commanche1

Posted
  • Author
Posted

i think just the 4.3 liter engines for 1996 to 1998.you can do a search on the net not here. enter DEXCOOL PROBLEMS. believe me, i have seen radiators tore apart for 35 years but i never saw such a mess as i had in mine.i did not even no i had a problem until i read it on the interenet.why has gm not told us about this? :thumbs:

etex211 Enthusiast

etex211

Posted
Posted

A piece of advice that I received from my radiator man:

 

All antifreeze will maintain it's freeze protection indefinitely, but it loses it's corrosion protection over time. He recommends doing a drain and fill once per year, no matter what kind of coolant you use......don't pay any attention to those 5 year/100k miles claims.

commanche1 Enthusiast

commanche1

Posted
  • Author
Posted

mine was changed just a little over 3 years and i had 36,000 on it.dexcool says 5 years 150,000.could not believe the mess that i saw when we tore the radiator down.it filled a bucket half full with this yellow powder that came out of it. it was brown looking inside and i could not see anything.when i drys it turns bright yellow in the air.i also kept my radiator full. gm is saying we left our water down low that caused it. bulls234.if it was down i would have seen the mud in their sooner!!!!!!!!!!!!!!.i drained my radiator down so i could look at it. unreal what i saw.loaded with mud looking brown peanut butter.if my WATER was down i would have seen this.unreal how they are avoiding this. i agree, i am changing my dexcool every 2 years not 5 years as on the bottle and rec. by gm. :thumbs:

commanche1 Enthusiast

commanche1

Posted
  • Author
Posted

it seems that it is happening to years other than 1996 -1998,i did not know that. please read the dexcool info as their was some vehiciles 2002 with 15,000 miles who had major problems with dexcool. TSB i read was for years 1996 -1998.1 even showed the cap rustng from dexcool with only 15,000 on the vehicile, nasty.many are changing back to green stuff but you have to flush all the orange out.there is sites that explain this . :thumbs:

MCourson Senior Enthusiast

MCourson

Posted
Posted

We have ran dexcool in 7 GM vehicles and put on a total of ~250,000 miles and never have had a problem. We even run Dex Cool in the '57. If you keep it flushed (we do it every 2 years) it will be fine.

 

EDIT: This is what we have run it in:

57 5.7 (engine new in 99)

99 5.7

01 4.8

02 5.3 (2)

03 6.6

04 5.3

commanche1 Enthusiast

commanche1

Posted
  • Author
Posted

you may be right but a lot of people are having problems with it at 15,000 miles?why did gm say 5 years 150,000 miles? why are they not admitting or contacting us to get it out in 2 years?why is texaco putting 5 years 150,000 on the bottle?why are they not calling me or sending me a letter to warn me of this? why are they saying no problems but put out a TSB on it in 2001 to gm dealer on 8 hour repair to correct it only on the ones under warranty?why do dealers act like they no nothing about this problem?this is not funny. you notice i am very mad. :thumbs:

asepgrad98 Senior Enthusiast

asepgrad98

Posted
Posted

commanche1,

sounds like you have been taking the conspiracy web sites too seriously. The problems your truck has would have happened even if you changed it to green on day 1.

MCourson Senior Enthusiast

MCourson

Posted
Posted

Only related TSB I could find

 

00-06-02-006A FEB 04 Cooling System - Coolant Information

MS3DALE Senior Enthusiast

MS3DALE

Posted
Posted

We have only seen problems here at the dealership on 4.3 V6's in the S10 Blazers,we haven't seen any problems on S10 pickups or full-size trucks,yours is the first one other than a Blazer that I've heard of.

I don't agree with leaving coolant in for 5 years/150,000 miles however,I never ran my DEX-COOL longer than a few years or 60,000 miles in my other trucks that had it.

ness5575 Enthusiast

ness5575

Posted
Posted

i flushed out my coolant at 4.5 yrs/ 100k and it looked like new. I couldnt tell any difference between the old and the new - looked the same, smelled the same, etc.

sorry to hear that you are having problems, but i think that all this dexcool stuff is one of the most overblown issues on gm products (right above engine knock!)

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

Go to topic listing

  • Latest Articles

  • Posts

    • PhilB
      No 12v outlets in 2026 gmc Sierra

      By PhilB · Posted

      It is possible to add your own 12v outlet to your truck.  Check out this video:   I verified via GM Upfitters that pin 31 is the same on the 1500 trucks.  The wire is GM part number 84779405.   You can get the GM 12v outlet from Amazon  https://www.amazon.com/Genuine-Accessory-Receptacle-25774623-13549530/dp/B0F1H9YRGF EWAY 12 Volt Power Adapter for GM   https://www.amazon.com/EWAY-Chevrolet-Silverado-Cigarette-Ignition/dp/B0915RRW6Q/ref=sr_1_1?   I just haven't figured out a good place to put the 12v outlet in my truck.   Some people are getting USB-C to 12V adapters  https://www.amazon.com/WYMECT-Cigarette-Lighter-Socket-Adapter/dp/B0F87WNQKB/ref=sr_1_1_sspa? Not sure if they provide the correct amperage that a device like a tire inflator would need.  
    • Core-Lokt
      Wiring Help, Please

      By Core-Lokt · Posted

      Thanks; I looked there a few minutes, and I think I can find something. I really never looked there, as I thought it was stuff like PTO/aftermarket bodies/accessories like snow plows.
    • newdude
      2 speed transfer case optional now?

      By newdude · Posted

      This is a 1/2 ton thing ONLY.  All HDs 2020-2026 have the two speed transfer case, with Autotrac as an option.     1/2 tons 2019-2026, regular 4x4s come with a single speed case (no 4LO!), and trucks with Z71 ordered, or all Trail Boss trucks come with the 2 speed case.  2 speed case is also an option on WT, and is also standard on High Country.  
    • newdude
      Different requirements for oil filters?

      By newdude · Posted

      2013 5.3 still to this day calls for the PF48 filter.  Which as a 15psi bypass pressure.     There is a TSB, 17-NA-157 that talks about the PF-63 and PF-64 filters which have a higher bypass rating of 22psi.    TSB HERE - temp.xml   "Beginning in 2012, the oil pumps began to regulate main gallery feedback instead of pump out pressure. This means that the oil pump now does not begin to regulate until pressure is built up to the main gallery. This change reduces the amount of time it takes to provide oil to the engine bearing and lifters during extreme cold start conditions.  Main gallery feedback oil pump control systems are present on the following engine families which use Spin-on oil filters: Small Gas Engine (SGE), Large Gas Engine (LGE), High Feature (HFV6) Gen2 and Small Block Gen5 gasoline engines. These engines with the main gallery feedback oil pump control systems are factory built with an ACDelco® oil filters"   It also calls out what engines use those filters.  The gen 4 small blocks were not on that list (LMG, LC9, L9H, L92, L94, L20, L96).  Gen 5 small blocks use the higher pressure filter.          That all said...   Your 7045 Napa filter is the PF63 equivalent, with 22psi bypass.  You are already using the higher bypass pressure filter.  You CAN keep using it, you don't technically have to use it though.  
    • Grumpy Bear
      Different requirements for oil filters?

      By Grumpy Bear · Posted

      Do you know WHY the filter relief setting was increased to 22 psig?    When the new system goes into the second stage the pump volume ramps up considerably. It was found that the 15 psi filter bypass setting put the filter in bypass on a warm engine when the second stage was activated. Raising the filter bypass setting forced the filter to do what it designed to do. Filter. Preventing debris from circulating during high load, high rpm operation.    So next question is how did GM find this out? VLOM/lifter failures and a deep dive by Melling Corp.    Last question. Is it required? Look at it like this; a motor may be equipped with a rev limiter. But it only works if the set point in reached. That 22 psig setting only matters if the pressure differential across the filter media exceeds 15 psig during normal warm operation. Second stage kicks in around 3000-3500 rpm.    I can't answer your question because I don't know you and how you use the truck. But I think there is enough information here to let you decide for yourself. 😉

  • GM-Trucks.com Clubs

  • Popular Contributors

×
×
  • Create New...