changing radiator fluid

[G6GIRLNJ]

Re: changing radiator fluid

ok i HAVE replaced my coolant. around 55k i noticed it getting a little creamy. if you check your manual it says 100k to change it. honestly i changed mine around 65k. there is a drian plug for the radiator. in order to access it you have to pull off the weather guard under your car. there are a few hex nuts (i believe) and a bunch of clips holding it on. some of the clips are a little tricky to get.

let it completely drain. this took about 5-10 minutes to fully drain. once drained, be sure to plug it up (common sense i know but some people are clueless). be sure to have a funnel and an empty water jug on hand.


what you will need:
-you will need one bottle of dex-cool (despite what others may think i, nor anyone else i know with a gm car have used anything different and its worked fine.)
-1 gallon of distilled water
-funnel
-empty water jug (1 gallon works best)

fill up half way with distilled water and halfway with dexcool... put the remainder to the side. fill up via the reservoir under the hood and once it is filled (almost to the top ) start the car (but be sure to close the reservoir before doing this). let the car run for about 10-15 minutes or so to allow the coolant to circulate. you may notice the engine temp go higher than usual and this could be 2 reasons (1 because your car is jacked up in the front and 2 because it is new coolant circulating). after the 15 minutes you can turn the car off...wait like 10 minutes or so (in the meantime you could replace the weather guard underneath the car) and then reopen the reservoir under the hood...you will notice that the reservoir seems empty. feel free to fill it up again untill it reaches the fill line. you are not over filling it by doing so your just completing the fill process. the emptiness in the reservoir is due to the system circulating what was put in.


hope this helps. and if any of it is a repeat of anything in the thread, sorry but i didnt read all the posts.)

[Blue6851]

Re: changing radiator fluid

Great post! I'll have to do this sometime now that I'm almost to the 5 year mark.

[spyder83]

Re: changing radiator fluid

I'm suprised all you guys still use Dexcool....a lot of other GM guys have switched over to Prestone. Over time Dex turns to sludge, sticks in place, and eats away at stuff since part of it is acidic (often well before the 100k mark).

This causes a few problems (most famously the LIM problem on the 3800 series - http://www.girardgibbs.com/dexcool.html) explaining why the majority of the Grand Prix guys most have switched to Prestone. Also I would NEVER mix Prestone and Dexcool....if you're going to switch, pump the system with water to clean all the old stuff out first.

Refrences:
http://www.oqcgp.net/phpbb3/viewtopic.p ... xcool+pics
http://forums.corvetteforum.com/other-c ... ludge.html
http://www.s10forum.com/forum/f107/dex- ... ge-413018/

[ahuhn]

Re: changing radiator fluid

yeah but most of those problems were from improperly maintained vehicles. think of it this way if it was really that terrible y would it still be in use?????

[spyder83]

Re: changing radiator fluid

Some of these cases, yes possibly, but the links above are from car forums and most people who are active members on there (im assuming) would know to complete regular maintenance, etc. (not to mention the class action lawsuit). I'm just saying that you could be greatly reducing the risk of future problems by switching.

By typing Dexcool sludge into google you get a ton of results, but the same can't really be said for prestone sludge or any other prestone problems.

Just my $0.02 based off of the years of being on other GM forums

[Frosty1947]

Re: changing radiator fluid

Well folks, my 2006 3.5L has a drain plug. The manual says you need to remove the air dam molding from below which is correct. Even then it's a tight fit for the hand but it's there. It's on the lower left of the radiator. I just did a flush and refill.

Now for what the manual doesn't say

There is no upper radiator cap. It's a sealed system which is filled from the coolant tank. However, there is a brass bleed screw above the water pump that must be removed to expel the trapped air. Remove the bleed screw and fill the system until coolant runs from the bleed opening. Replace the screw and continur to top off. You're done.

Until I bled the system, I got the classic NO HEAT symptom. Lesson learned.

[Dextar]

Re: changing radiator fluid

I wish I had checked this out.. I did the same thing with removing the lower air dam only to find I was able to EASILY reach the drain plug just by removing the air intake.. talk about an easy process. The only thing I noticed, I drained the system really well (squeezing all the tubes, adding 1/4th a gallon of distilled water and watching it drain) but I was barely able to get the one gallon of just pure coolant in the system. I let it run and got the coolant temp up over 220 but still no dice on adding water. I bled the system but I'm not getting any issues and the temp is perfect so I'm not too worried about it, I'll just check the coolant in a week or so and add distilled water if needed.

[DIYer]

Re: changing radiator fluid

Not knowing if or when the coolant in my 2006 G6 had ever been changed by the previous owner (at 110,000 miles), AND seeing what my local shops wanted to charge for this service, I took on this DIY project this past weekend. A little more than I bargained for, but was successful in the end. A few helpful notes:
1. yes, the 2006 g6 does have a coolant drain valve. It's located driver's side on the back side of the radiator. This video helped me locate it: http://www.carcarekiosk.com/video/20.../flush_coolant. Be aware, it's tough to reach with your fingers or a tool even after you've located it.
2. Considered disconnecting the lower hose to drain coolant after having so much trouble reaching the drain valve, but that looked even more difficult to access.
3. Removing the fairing under the radiator was the toughest part. Darn little rivets!
4. According to Pontiac, there is no "burping valve" in the system. Just fill the reservoir to capacity, run the engine several minutes, then keep adding coolant/water mix until you hit the full level (still waiting to assure I did this right).
5. Used Dex Cool in accordance with all the strongly worded mandates. Hoping the previous poster's analysis is right. "If it was as bad a people said, why would they keep making it?"
6. I used tap water and not distilled water for the mix. Pontiac says tap water is fine, but curious to know why recommendations vary in the industry.
This whole project would have been simplified if I jacked up the front end.