DEXCOOL & T-stat noises-ANYONE???

[dragnazz5.0]

its not necessarily the dexcool that is the problem its the recommended service intervals that gm had for that coolant. it was in the cars so long that i was causing electrolysis and was eating aluminum parts left and right. the biggest problems were in the cars that had the iron blocks with aluminum heads. the dexcool also doesnt mix with the green stuff. it causes horrible sludging and clogging. i would just take it out and run the regular green coolant or make sure you change the dexcool every year or so to keep it from eating stuff. you can use a digital multimeter to see if your coolant is bad if anyone didnt know. just turn it on to the ohms and ground one probe and drop the other into the radiator without it touching the sides. i think a good reading is anywhere up to .04 ohms is good and about .05 ohms is bad and needs to be replaced. i might be off with my voltage since its been a while since ive done it but its either .04 or .4...something in that area. maybe someone who has the definet readings will chime in

 

[Roland69]

^^^ that's interesting anyone else know about this.

 

[dragnazz5.0]

here you go. its .3 is good and .5 will destroy a cast iron block and .15 will destroy aluminum

http://www.rondavisradiators.com/tech.htm

 

[Strype]

Dude...


^%$# you should have never used that stuff- I've lost a car to Dexcool (97 Sonoma)...


LISTEN from experience. Don't just flush it, flush it over and over and over and take out the freeze plugs if you feel the need. If any bit of that crap is left over when you pour green in you'll have a sludge factory sticking to the walls of your block

 

[monte87]

Hey Thanks-guys,

For all your input, i truly wish i knew this crap before i put it in. believe it or not, Ive already replaced my Fluidyne rad due to this crap. it started leaking, or shall i say "crying/seeping" from the fins in a certain area. i htink it was because of this ****. But i dont know-for sure. But some weird crap has happened with it in that never happened before-Im yanking it out on saturday. And then see what happens.
Actually-Im gonna put a restrictor in to just make sure it want the thermostat-process of elimination-See what happens for awhile-then put it back.
Thanks Anthony

 

[jwcma]

The last time I flushed and refilled the coolant was with Dexcool - that was 10 years ago. I've had no problems whatsoever since then. I'm still on the factory radiator and water pump. If it wasn't for all the bad rap I've heard about it, I probably would have flushed and refilled with Dexcool again.

I finally got around to flushing out the 10 year old concoction last weekend (I know, long overdue). But because I was concerned about the claimed adverse effects of mixing the green and orange stuff, I opted to refill with just distilled water and some anti-corrosion additives. Oh, the empty radiator looked clean as a whistle inside - no rust, corrosion or sludge whatsoever in the driver side tank. Maybe I got lucky?

To the OP, I don't know what's causing your noise problem. It seems unlikely that it's due to the type of coolant you're using. My car ran trouble-free with Dexcool for a long time.

 

[monte87]

When the noise happens, It usually @ & between 180-200. That is the time the Thermal switch would turn on the electric fan (MKVIII). The the sound comes directly from the T-stat housing which is the chrome Ford motorsport version with the 3/8 threaded hole-which my temp sensor sender sits in, i switched the fan sender and the gauge sender-Just to see if any difference-Noise still happens.
It sounds like the Thermostat is flipping out inside, clicking and clacking, tink-tink-tink type **** noise. The will mysteriously go away... WTF?????????
I dont udnerstand, when my buddies and i did the AFR head swap & custom cam, we chnaged the timing chain, timing chain cover, lifters, pushrods, new FMS rockers, New thermostat and added DEXCOOL into the mix.... So i am truly lost.....

 

[monte87]

The engine is quiet,
Noise is never constant.
Until it happens, then you have to wait awhile, shut it down, make it coool off-and then restart it-noise is gone-Until heat cycles-then its there, sometimes its not.

 

[PonyBoy90]

Man, you didn't mention that you had an aftermarket chrome stat housing. Regardless that it's a Ford Racing part or not, sounds to me like the "seat" in the housing for the t-stat is a little too "recessed" and that Mr. Gasket t-stat is bouncing around inside there.

Did you install the Dexcool and all this other stuff in at the same time and then developed the problem, or has this problem only occured after you put in the Dexcool?

What was in your setup BEFORE when everything worked great?

Did you have a stock housing, a stock 195 stat, and green coolant and now you're switching over to a chrome housing, Mr. Gasket 180 stat, and Dexcool?

I'm starting to think the housings a bad fit with that Mr Gasket stat.

 

[monte87]

Hey ponyboy-

I had that FMS chrome T-stat housing before the heads/cam install for about 1 year w/Mr. gasket, never had a problem.
After the heads/cam swap and flushing the system from the green stuff and preparing it for the dexcool and putting a new Mr. gasket 180 T-stat in and putting it all together-Bammmmm-NOISES!
So we ripped everything out-thinking T-stat, went out and bought a STANT 180, and still had the noises. When i had the regular stock t-stat housing & 180 stat, i use to run a black magic fan, so i didnt have any sensor/thermal switch inserted in the housing. it ran off the probe in the rad fins. Never had noises, but the cra ran hot-that is why-i swapped in the MKVIII fan-problem solved.

 

[monte87]

"Did you install the Dexcool and all this other stuff in at the same time and then developed the problem, or has this problem only occured after you put in the Dexcool?"
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Dexcool was installed after the heads swap on the same day it was completed. That is when i started having the problem. im thinking on this saturday-Ripping the thermostat out completely and running a moroso restrictor temporarily-just to see if it gioes away. If that is the problem and the noises goes away-Then i will buy a T-stat housing and re-install the thermostat. i wont run the car for long without the stat. Dude-Im so sad and sick, andry and mad dealing witht his non sense bull****-i want a drive the dtang intot he wall and be done with it. i had enough already!

 

[rd]

I'd get rid of the Dexcool asap, or at least do all of the makeup adding of coolant with Prestone that fits all of them.

The Dexcool was a different base than the normal propylene glycol, and apparently did not pan out.

I had it in an Explorer and drained as much as I could.

I have not heard anything good about it.

 

[monte87]

I have been reading extensively on DEX-CRAP for the last week, and i have read nothing but HORROR stoires, with maybe 1 or 2 excpetions. it seems, GM blames the consumer for not keeping up maintenence or also blaming the consumer foir not keeping the overflow full-which leads to air pockets in the system.
Air pockets will build up sludge and cause electrolysis and ruin your cooling system. WTF-It sounds like a totalt sin that people are forced to keep it in therer cooling system-Otherwise they will void there GM warranty. never mind that-Im hoping and praying that it hasnt ruined my entire cooling system, because i already went for a new Fluidyne rad, i was thinking about my Edelbrock W/P and heater core. And this God forsaken Tink-Tink, click-click-Clack noise that only happens @ 200-180 degrees, when it feel like it.

 

[Strype]

I have been reading extensively on DEX-CRAP for the last week, and i have read nothing but HORROR stoires, with maybe 1 or 2 excpetions. it seems, GM blames the consumer for not keeping up maintenence or also blaming the consumer foir not keeping the overflow full-which leads to air pockets in the system.
Air pockets will build up sludge and cause electrolysis and ruin your cooling system. WTF-It sounds like a totalt sin that people are forced to keep it in therer cooling system-Otherwise they will void there GM warranty. never mind that-Im hoping and praying that it hasnt ruined my entire cooling system, because i already went for a new Fluidyne rad, i was thinking about my Edelbrock W/P and heater core. And this God forsaken Tink-Tink, click-click-Clack noise that only happens @ 200-180 degrees, when it feel like it.

One more for the road... reiterate it RUINED my sonoma and I know of at least 10-20 other people (I used to deliver parts to garages) who have seen my exact problem. My mechanic tried his best to save that truck and pulled the drain plugs and all and it still didn't help. He told me the same thing had happened to 3 others the year before and they ended up trading or junking their cars.

I'm glad to hear you're getting rid of it and get rid of that Chrome POS too... my buddy has had crap outta his and finally took it off his 92 GT

 

[monte87]

"I'm glad to hear you're getting rid of it and get rid of that Chrome POS too... my buddy has had crap outta his and finally took it off his 92 GT "

The only reason-i have the chrome T-stat housing is because it has a 3/8 NPT slot for my E-fan thermal switch. I have the automter gauge sender in the other 3/8 manifold opening. i wont put the anything in the rear of the manifold-becaus e you will get false readings, being its doesnt get as hot in the back as it does in the front. so im stuck with it. Im just taking the T-stat out and running a restrictor and see what happens for a while.

 

[monte87]

Has anyone ever had any noises come from?

Has anyone ever had any type of noises come from there T-stat housings before? or am i the only blessed mofo with this headache...

 

[monte87]

"I'm glad to hear you're getting rid of it and get rid of that Chrome POS too... my buddy has had crap outta his and finally took it off his 92 GT"
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What problems did your buddy have with the chrome FMS T-stat housing?

Thanks, Anthony

 

[Strype]

leaking every which way and so he sanded down the part that touches and sealed it with sealent and a new gasket and it still leaked

 

[monte87]

Greetings guys-

Wanted to give all an update on the outcome on saturday after flushing the system for 2 1/2 hours. All the Dexcool is completely gone, thank, God... Now-i have a leaky heater core, WTF!!!!!!!!!!!! Chaged the chrome Ford Motorsport T-stat housing for the stocker with e drilled/tapped 3/8 NPT for the thermal switch for the E-fan. Totally removed the Mr. gasket 180 T-stat, and the focker still makes that Tink-Tink, clink-clank noise throughout the T-stat housing???
Now, yesterday my buddy came over-and perfomred major surgery, Checked compression on each cylinder, that was fine 125lbs each cyl, checked to see while cranking it-If any antifreeze came out of spark plug holes, nothing. plugs looked normal. We were guessing a blown head gasket causing exhaust gases to get inside the coolant, but couldnt get the dam tool to check thriough the rad. it seems like the antifreeze inside the rad without the cap on-while burping the system is very explosve and not stable, blowing lots of bubble and puking..... I mean-We burped the focker for alomst 1/2 hour and the same damn noise..
Weird thing, We took the beklt off and ran the engine,. noise GONE. im staring to think maybe something is stuck in the water pump impeller, or the bypass hose, because it comes staright out the T-stat housing and you can literally feel it-on the upper rad hoise, which are chrome.
We also retorqued the heads as well, and intake manifold bolts to spec-which were all correct anyways, Noise is still present, only with belt attached. Oh and put a pressure tester on the radiator, and it loses pressure-i guess from the leaky heater core-now, probably thanks to DEXCOOL. Note-When the pressure is on the rad, noise goes away, like when we took the pressure tester and pumped the rad up-Its gone, take it off and its back-LOUD.
What the ****-Do you guys think, im tired, beatand mentally drained..... Please-help with any opinions-it would be greatly appreciated.

hansk much-in advance,
Anthony

 

[monte87]

Could it be a bad water pump????? i mean-no noise seems to be coming form the W/P itself, Just throughout the T-stat housing, and the only things connected to that is the small bypass hose???????? remember-there is no thermostat in the car now-So its a free flow...