first post... 98 S10 4cyl coolant flush

[dsonyay]

I am sooooo glad I found this forum!

I bought my dad's 98 S10 pickup. It has 47000 miles and runs really well.
He was good with maintenance. Only thing was I was worried about
the dexcool he was using. He changed the coolant three times from what I could tell reading his maint book. Since it had been about 3 yrs since the last flush
I decided to do that today at 47300 miles.

I installed a Prestone flush T, ran a cycle of Prestone coolant flush,
and then did a good backflush with hose. I let it all drain
out again and then filled up with Walmart brand 50/50.

I was glad I read a lot of posts here prior to this. The Walmart
brand is exactly the same as the Prestone AMAM AND the same
as Prestone's Dexcool equivalent- except for the orange color
I suppose.

I was surprised how clean the radiator and overflow tank was
I guess due to his low usage and his change intervals, he kept
it up well enough over the years.

I'm so glad I didn't find a brown goo when I opened it all up.

Have you guys noticed how Prestone Dexcool and
AMAM has the exact same formula?? Is it only the dye
that is different????

I saved a lot of money today AND peace of mind the coolant system
looked so good.

 

[tomcat27]

welcome! and congrats on the truck! It's a good thing your dad kept current on his coolant flush - certainly Dexcool, despite its benefits, has caused some grief for more than a few people.

 

[Donald]

Welcome to BITOG. We are all here to learn!!

How did you drain it? Radiator petcock? Engine drain? I assume the radiator petcock.

Two potential problems, you did not completely drain the system and now you have some tap water in the system, when you really want distilled, and since you used 50/50 your true ratio now is less than 50/50.

Even if you drained the radiator and engine, the heater core still had some tap water in it.

I would pour out a few ounces from the petcock into a Dixie cup and put it in the freezer overnight. Hopefully is does not freeze not turn to slush.

Properly cared for radiators stay pretty clean these days. I just drain the radiator and refill with 50/50 mix of pure coolant and distilled water. Pouring in the coolant first in case I cannot get it all 2 gallons.

The Amsoil website will tell you the total capacity of your system, then you will know how much was left in by how many gallons of coolant your poured in.

 

[dsonyay]

It must have nearly all drained out because I added nearly 2 gals
of the 50/50. I figure there was likely a little tap water in the core, but what I may do, since the Supertech is so cheap, is drain the radiator a few times
over the next couple weeks and just add fresh coolant. Plus I'll check the strength with a tester.

I usually drain my car's radiators every spring and top off with fresh coolant anyway.

Thanks for the advise... I live in south LA and winters are very mild

 

[JHZR2]

Welcome!

My 98 s-10 4.3 is clean inside too. Not all dex applications equal slime.

 

[dsonyay]

And yes, I drained from the petcock... which turned out well because there's a hose that goes down from the drain, and under the truck to drain the fluid into a container..
no mess!

Thank you!

 

[dsonyay]

Originally Posted By: JHZR2
Welcome!

My 98 s-10 4.3 is clean inside too. Not all dex applications equal slime.


Mine is the little 4 Cylinder with the 5 spd manual. Love it! It's a nice truck to go to work in.