Low Coolant Light

[jwengerd]

Hi i have a 2001 Silverado 1500 4x4 with the 4.8 v8 and today i had a load of gravel and cinder blocks in it , she was loaded pretty heavy and i used the tow/haul button which works very well. i dorve 20miles to my parents to dump the load and when i got back in the truck to pull out the low coolant light was on well i pulled up to my parents house and shut it off and let it set for 10 min then i drove home without the tow/haul on and the light never showed up also the temp was only 210 on the way up and the way home the temp was like 200 so any i have no clue was i just pushing the truck to hard? or is there something wrong the coolant level looks ok. any help would be apppreciated.

 

Justin

[wct]

Hi i have a 2001 Silverado 1500 4x4 with the 4.8 v8 and today i had a load of gravel and cinder blocks in it , she was loaded pretty heavy and i used the tow/haul button which works very well. i dorve 20miles to my parents to dump the load and when i got back in the truck to pull out the low coolant light was on well i pulled up to my parents house and shut it off and let it set for 10 min then i drove home without the tow/haul on and the light never showed up also the temp was only 210 on the way up and the way home the temp was like 200 so any i have no clue was i just pushing the truck to hard? or is there something wrong the coolant level looks ok. any help would be apppreciated.

 

Justin

 

I would check for a coolant leak if reservoir is full and no leaks are found then i would suspect that you have a faulty coolant level sensor located in the coolant reservoir. You may have to add coolant dye to the coolant. I think that the gauge was reading 210 because you were working the truck and sounds normal. The tow haul should have no effect on low coolant light on. NOTE: It may also be a possibility that you coolant level was slightly low and if the truck has a jag on it so the bumper is almost dragging, could of tilted the truck enough that the light set???? -WCT

[jhm]

Check the coolant when the engine is cold, like after sitting overnight. It should be at the full line. If not, add some to get it there. After driving for a week, check it cold again. If it is low there is a leak or leaks. I have the same engine and the coolant would drop over the course of a week or two, no signs of it in my garage. Took it to dealer for pressure test, they found water pump seal, not gasket, leaking and also the galley plug leaking. Lucky I had the free ext warranty, they told me it would cost $700 because the galley plug is buried so they would have to take lots of stuff off.

[Ryan11405]

your water pump might be going out. crank it up and check the coolant pressure in the hose above the fan shroud. My mom's Yukon and my dad's Silverado had bad water pumps. it might be something else like a seal or something like 'jhm' said too.

[jwengerd]

I was talking to a guy at work and i had my truck backed kinda down into a big ditch so i think that the coolant moved back in the resiovor away from the sensor it hasnt came on since that day. What you guys think?