DEX-COOL in Turbo Buicks

[Nick Micale]

Just wondering why any turbo Buick owner would run ANY antifreeze unless the car is going to be subjected to freezing weather?

Two reasons that come to mind immediately, first it runs hotter than plain water, and second it will kill bearings upon contact.

Antifreeze does have a higher boiling point than water, as it's vaporization temp is at 265 deg. in a closed system like a radiator, and water will boil at 250 deg.

Seems like a moot point there, no one want to run even close to those numbers.

 

[6 to go]

LOL! Some of us live in the part of the country where our cars, trucks and Buicks see temps well below "0*, every winter. Even if it is 95 in the shad
today! Antfreeze is better than frozen blocks and heater cores!

 

[RIFF RAFF]

Ive

Got a few cracked blocks from so called stored cars over the years . You can have them nick as a reminder why us guys up north run antifreeze...

 

[gnray76]

Im w/ viper here it chunks up like curdled milk, leaks through the threads in the hoses, GO GREEN, I even went as far as taking it out of the wifes grand am and also my riviera, also seems to run cooler since especially the grand am. big gasket issue too w/ leaks...

ray

 

[TR Custom Parts]

I run RMI-25 and water year round in balmy CT.:smile: Heated garage helps. Biggest fear is a long term power outage but have been fine the past 3 years.

 

[Nick Micale]

LOL! Some of us live in the part of the country where our cars, trucks and Buicks see temps well below "0*, every winter. Even if it is 95 in the shad
today! Antfreeze is better than frozen blocks and heater cores!

Maybe you and Oil Man need to read ALL of what I posted - "unless the car is going to be subjected to freezing weather".

The additives in antifreeze go away very quick in warm/hot temps.

You guys were probably not around in the days when most car service was done at the corner gas station, and antifreeze was only used in the winter and drained in the summer?

If you were to follow that procedure, you would almost NEVER have a cooling system problem with your TR or regular vehicle.

Here in the desert we do not use antifreeze, but water and RMI-25 is used year around. If you were to drain and flush twice a year, Spring and Fall, use RMI even with the A/F, you would be free of cooling system issues for a very long time.

 

[t-topflyer]

Why on earth would you want to risk using such a questionable product after all the negatives?????

My personal experience from using it many years ago:
It started a mud pool in the bottom of my reservoir, and found out about a year after using it, that it had done the same thing to the bottom third of my radiator.

I would never personally use the stuff. I've come across a Turbo Buick that seems to be nice and have no real issues but has this stuff in it and probably has had it for the better part of a decade. The system is full but there appears to be some sludge in the recovery tank. I was asking the question mainly to see if it is something worth considering or something I should stay away from. I wanted to see if anyone knew the long term effects of this stuff on these cars.

 

[Rebel]

If you are in a region with freezing concerns, stay with green and distilled water. If you absolutely HAVE to experiment with Dexcool, make sure you get all the green out cause Dexcool doesn't mix well with it. You desert guys are lucky, distilled water and your favorite additive.

 

[speedskills]

I had an otherwise perfect 2000 Sierra with 80000 miles. Dexcool ate a pinhole in the head gasket. I asked a friend of mine who was a GM mechanic for 25 yrs about the Dexcool. He says that's what caused the leak bc Dexcool turns acidic as it breaks down and attacks gaskets. So after 2 bottles of stop leak was dumped in the engine, I was off to trade it in. My .02. Stick with green.

 

[mybuick]

i use the red toyota coolant. it has no silica in it, and if there is a leak it is easiely seen.

if you want to pass tech at the dragstrip faster use bmw or mercedes benz coolant as it has no silica either and it is clear like water. then you can tell the tech dude that it is water.

 

[Nick Micale]

...........if you want to pass tech at the dragstrip faster use bmw or mercedes benz coolant as it has no silica either and it is clear like water. then you can tell the tech dude that it is water.

I would hope you are kidding about telling a lie like that which could cause serious damage, and possibly someone being injured?

Why do you think antifreeze is banned at the track? It is because A/F is slippery like oil when between a tire and track surface, and this is no joke at 150+ MPH.

Hope I never have anyone with that thinking driving next to me, even for a time run.:frown:

 

[charlief1]

I had an otherwise perfect 2000 Sierra with 80000 miles. Dexcool ate a pinhole in the head gasket. I asked a friend of mine who was a GM mechanic for 25 yrs about the Dexcool. He says that's what caused the leak bc Dexcool turns acidic as it breaks down and attacks gaskets. So after 2 bottles of stop leak was dumped in the engine, I was off to trade it in. My .02. Stick with green.

All anti freeze turns acidic after a couple of years, not just dexcool. One of the biggest issues currently is electrolosis on newer vehicles. Loss of ground on the system somewhere and the electrical system will try and ground anywhere it can. The dog catchers truck in town here went through 3 radiators, 2 heater cores, and finally the head gaskets because of this exact problem. Look at the radiator and see if there's a black spot on it somewhere. That's electrolosis happening and it will eat through the aluminum and head gaskets. Very common issue now.

 

[SS/GN]

Nothing wrong with dexcool,just don"t leave it in for 5 years.I look after a fleet of trucks and change the dex every 3 years and test with strips,no acid and none of the problems like headgasskets etc.It is superior for water pump lubricant and protecting alum from pitting:biggrin:I change the antifreeze in my Buicks every 2 years and use distilled water,you guys in the south are spoiled

Kevin

 

[chops]

stay away

I've been working on cars 24yrs stay away from dex cool its garbage I see what it does day day out

 

[chopped39]

I love Dex Cool. Its made my mortage payments for the past 12 years:biggrin: All coolant turns acidic. The problem with Dex Cool was they used it with gaskets that were not compatible with it. I remember a gm tech engineer telling me about mixing oxygen with dex cool and polymer plastics back in 98. He stated it was not a good mix and the intake gaskets were made from a polymer type material, and oxygen thats a no brainer.

 

[groumoutis]

You guys should use the method I have set up. I flush the coolant/antifreeze in the spring and feed it to the stray cats in the neighborhood that like to crap and pee in my yard. The cat part is a joke for you cat lovers! I do flush it in the spring. I seem to get a silt that builds up in the overflow tank and if it is in there then it is probably in the radiator. I don't want it to clog the radiator and it is easier and cheaper to just flush it annually.