DEXCOOL, AM I DUE FOR A CHANGE??

[sorbet02]

I was reading my manual and on page 7-12 it says drain,flush,refill cooling system at 150,000 or 60 months.my garage queen is a 2002 a4 with 13k miles on it.the coolant is factory fill and looks almost new.should i change now or can i get more time out of it? thanks

 

[Lethal Tendencies]

I did the samething with my vette.the coolant looked good.but I decided to change it .I didn't flush the system,I just change the coolant every 2 years.

 

[Vanity Plate Bob]

42,000 Had mine changed per my cousin da mechanic.

 

[napacruzerC5]

About 31k miles but over 5-years old. Mine didn't look too bad either but changed it anyway.

 

[muddywaters]

I have about 7800mi. on my 1999 Coupe, the original owner babied the car, but I could not find out if the coolant was changed since he passed away. I changed/flushed it anyway. What I drained looked like what I put back in, crystal clean Dex-Cool. GM Dex-Cool, cost me about $30 and now I have peace of mind that it was done since you hear so many horror stories about Dex-Cool...........Have Fun

 

[jrose7004]

I don't know. I flushed the radiator on a van I owned once, then it seems the radiator problems began.

 

[Vanity Plate Bob]

A radiator guy said years ago that the rads were made from really thin material and the winter road chemicals done a job on them.

I understood when changing it, it was the idea to get rid of the dex cool?

 

[muddywaters]

I don't use a chemical flush, I drain, refill w/ clean water, run it for a bit, drain, refill w/clean water, run it for a bit ,drain refill w/50-50 Dex-Cool because that's what it came with. I heard Dex-Cool is trouble and I talk to people w/100,000mi. plus and they had no trouble w/using Dex-Cool. I think that just like the Green stuff, Dex-cool must changed when it is supposed to be changed............

 

[Hib Halverson]

I was reading my manual and on page 7-12 it says drain,flush,refill cooling system at 150,000 or 60 months.my garage queen is a 2002 a4 with 13k miles on it.the coolant is factory fill and looks almost new.should i change now or can i get more time out of it? thanks

There are some, myself included, that feel GM's marketing blather (the 150,000 life of Dexcool) is to be ignored.

I think, for best durability, Dexcool-based coolant of a 70/30 or better mix, needs to be changed every four years, regardless of mileage.

if you one of those who believes in reduced antifreeze in favor of better cooling and you run less than 70/30, then you need to change it every two years.

 

[LT4man]

I don't use a chemical flush, I drain, refill w/ clean water, run it for a bit, drain, refill w/clean water, run it for a bit ,drain refill w/50-50 Dex-Cool because that's what it came with. I heard Dex-Cool is trouble and I talk to people w/100,000mi. plus and they had no trouble w/using Dex-Cool. I think that just like the Green stuff, Dex-cool must changed when it is supposed to be changed............

You are absolutely correct! Dex-Cool should be changed every 5 years. Green antifreeze should be changed every 2 years.

The flushing chemical is OK to use. Just make sure you flush with clear water, as muddywaters says to do.

SAVE THE

 

[dooscoop32]

You can't go by the way antifreeze looks to decide if it needs to be changed. The additives in it break down over time even though the antifreeze may look new. So, change it every five years (if it's Dexcool) regardless of how it looks. I read once that if people would change their antifreeze when they are supposed to that a radiator would never wear out because it has no moving parts. It's just that worn-out antifreeze causes corrosion and blocked passages. I say it's cheap insurance to change it.

CRVETTE

 

[mrm1149]

I don't know. I flushed the radiator on a van I owned once, then it seems the radiator problems began.

Brings back bad memories for me also..........I recall the culprit was the act of "backwashing" the heater core

 

[XLR8]

This thread is a discussion about fluid changes brought up by CAC Administrator Yoda... General Automotive thread - "Fluids?"

in his reply member JohnZ states:

The clock runs on anti-freeze whether the car is running or not; the anti-freezing capability doesn't degrade, but the additive package will as it does its job (anti-corrosion, anti-foaming, etc.); good idea to drain, flush, and refill with a 50-50 mixture of fresh anti-freeze and distilled water every 2-3 years, especially if you have an aluminum radiator.

Jane Ann

 

[Billysc5]

I'v been told that the anti-freez will produce some thing like and acid because of electrolysis and chemical reaction thats produced when the fuild is flowing in the sysytem and thats what starts all the leaks and eats things up. So just looking good doesnt really tell you what may be going on with the anti freez.