SSNISTR

iTrader: (10)

I ask because I found a small orange Dexcool puddle under the car the other day. i let the car run for like 20 minutes hoping to find the cause of the leak. I really couldn't find much of anything. I did trace the Dexcool stains up to the water pump. I can see a small amount of Dexcool on the bottom of the water pump. It is a tiny amount, right by where it begins to go out for the T stat behind the pulley. Is the weep hole there? Is it that tiny of a hole? It just seems so minor, but I guess maybe I just cought it early.

Any advise would be great!

SSNISTR

iTrader: (10)

It's not leaking anymore? I started it, and let it get up to temp twice. Not a drop? Did I just catch it really early, or when the pump goes does it not always leak all the time????

ChocoTaco369

If it was dripping out of the water pump, it's probably only a matter of time until it gets worse. When mine started leaking, it did it very sporadically. Then one day, you'll start up the car and the belt will be squealing on startup, then go away after 5 minutes once the car heats up. Eventually, it just won't stop squealing. The whole time, the water pump can puke at any moment, leaving you stranded somewhere, so it's best to get it fixed ASAP if you're sure the water pump is going.

Putting Dexcool in your water pump is like filling it with nitroglycerin. It's only a matter of time until the thing blows up. Ask me how I know. Dexcool blew mine up at only 30k, all within the change interval. I switched to green and haven't looked back.

Jon5212

iTrader: (2)

Change it now, if its leaking thats a sure sign the seal is going bad.

SSNISTR

iTrader: (10)

I will, I'm just so surprised how little coolant stain I see around the pump....and like I said, it really hasn't leaked since...

I can trace the trail from the garage floor, to the sway bar, to the area behind the crank pulley, to what seems to be the bottom of the water pump.

Buit no actual liquid, just coolant stains. So I assume it was there.

So I guess it has to be that, the rad and hoses are all dry as a bone.

Z28LS1camaroguy

iTrader: (3)

yeah when mine went out it was all over the place, it wouldnt do it on start up but once i drove it for about ten minutes it was pouring out like a waterfall. Better get it fixed before it gets worse.

01Z28M6

You can't see the weep hole because of the way the pump is designed. It's hard to trace where the coolant is coming from too. It is possible but unlikely that you have one of the two gaskets leaking. Changing the water pump is a mediocre task. If you have average mechanical skills and tools, you can change out the pump in less than half a day.

If you change the pump, get new gaskets. Sometimes the gaskets can be re-used but for the $15 from the dealership, it won't be worth the risk. BTW, a new pump, coolant and gaskets will cost you $200 - $250 or so. Even from discounters the pump is close to $200. I bought a used one off ebay for under $30 and hope it doesn't come around to bite me; so far so good. I put less than a thou a year on the car so I thought I might take it on the cheap.

SSNISTR

iTrader: (10)

You can get a new one from GM Parts Direct for $175 including new gaskets. I have Dexcool in my garage....I'm gonna order it up this week. Thank god for daily drivers LOL.

ChocoTaco369

Your water pump just got destroyed because of the Dexcool in it. I STRONGLY recommend you learn from your mistake and convert over to green coolant. Dexcool eats seals and gaskets, which is why f-bodys eat water pumps more often than most cars. On top of that, Dexcool offers NO CORROSION PROTECTION FOR 5,000 MILES ON NEW COOLANT! Dexcool is pure garbage and is a total scam.

Now is the perfect time to switch over to green coolant. Plain jane ethylene glycol, unlike Dexcool, won't eat seals and starts protecting against corrosion the very second you put it in your motor. That's what I did and I don't regret it. Yea, you'll have to change it out a little sooner, but you don't have to worry about eating seals, you don't have to worry about going long periods without corrosion protection and you don't have to worry about getting a little air in the coolant system. Good ol' green is better for any motor out there, regardless what the Dexcool nutswingers tell you.

GM tells you you need to use Dexcool because they invested millions in R&D into the junk and they need to make some of their wasted money back. Don't believe me? Just look at the Pontiac Vibe/Toyota Matrix. Same motor - it was designed jointly by GM and Toyota. GM requires you to use Dexcool while Toyota will VOID YOUR WARRANTY if you put a drop if Dexcool into THE EXACT SAME MOTOR! Go give Honda a call and ask them if you can put Dexcool in their motors. They'll freak out on your butt over the phone.

Face it, Dexcool is a scam. Learn from your mistakes and keep that junk as far away from your engine as humanly possible. Fill your radiator with distilled water, drive it around town with the heat running (to drain the heater core), then drain the water out completely and fill up with good ol' green coolant.

If you don't believe me, check out this article. It's a good read:

https://ls1tech.com/forums/generation-iii-internal-engine/684333-here-s-coolant-article-master-technician-magazine.html

If you're still not convinced, ask any mechanic with half a brain and they'll tell you to get Dexcool out of your car ASAP.

SSNISTR

iTrader: (10)

So what do you use? Green Prestone? Does it have to say "Dexcool" safe? Can I just change the two types by empty and refilling?

ChocoTaco369

I'm using standard Advance Auto brand green coolant. To change the two types, you just drain all the Dexcool, fill the radiator up with water and run the car and heater for, say, 30 miles, to get all the coolant out of the block and the heater core (make sure you run the heater), then drain all the water off and switch to green. It doesn't have to be "Dexcool safe" because there is no Dexcool left in the engine block.