1996 chevy lumina sludge in the coolent?

Question

i checked my coolent last night and found it full of black sludge i have only had this car two weeks %^&* i said to my self and got lookin around and seen it is to run on dex cool the orange stuff and it had green coolent in it or a mix of the two now i know it may cause a prob but what i want to know is has anyone had this prob turn out to be a cracked block blown head gasket of cracked head
the oil is not milky the coolent is dark and the exhaust does not smell sweet but the top rad hose is soft and oily plugs look ok the engine is a 3.1 v6 :( i hope its not a engine prob but if it is i will drive the **** box in to a tree

not over heating and the tranny level is up oil is down i asked if it could be a cracked block or head gasket or cracked head if it is not possable good if its is a intake gasket i will fix it i just want to know if any one has seen this prob be any of them three things and no i am not some incompent girl this is my wifes email

Answer 1

Flush the cooling system and use dexcool coolant part# 12346290

EC

Answer 2

I had the same problem. 3.1 love to eat head gaskets, even before all that multi colored coolant crap started. The first project i ever did was heads on an 89 gran prix 3.1. The back head always runs a little hotter. The factory doesn't even put on the fans till 218 i think. I drove it for years, but the same gasket eventually started to go bad again. It started to build up the black sludge on the rad cap and in the hose, but it was just a coating really. There was never any oil in the coolant, just exhaust fumes. It burned some coolant, but it still passed emissions tests. I put about 50k miles even while it was doing this. The engine was finally junked due to a rod knocking
My advice, drive it till it blows! Good luck, and keep an eye on the coolant. The temp might fluctuate a little if the level gets low. It is a pain in the *** to add coolant because you have to bleed the system every time.

Answer 3

If green was mixed with dexcool...... thats a big no no.... (especially on a 96, soon after that they realized the oat (organic acid technology) couldn't stand air in the system and went to pressurized overflows....
It sounds like its the coolants fault (and have seen it happen when the two were mixed!,course not right then but after a while)

the 3.1 and 3.4 of course had the intake manifold gasket problem.... but this isn't the problem.... when it leaks, it leaks into the oil...., if it gets bad enough and you don't hear a knock out of the engine... it'll actually appear wet (may pool) and smell like coolant heavily under the hood.
Btw, coolant doesn't lube well, eats at the bearings...

Answer 4

Another Dex-cool victim. Dex, the answer GM gave to everyone that didn't have a question, is notorious for sludging cooling systems. I have worked with several radiator repair specialists and they all agree that Dex CAN (contrary to popular belief) be flushed out and replaced with conventional (green) coolant without any adverse effects on a ten year old vehicle. The trick is getting the cooling system clear. Originally designed to replace green coolants, Dex was introduced as a coolant that only had to be replaced less than half as often as standard coolants/anti-freeze. After years of use it is now vilified by mechanics and car owners alike as 'yellow crap' that turns the engine cooling systems into brown sludge tanks. GM, bless their pea-picking hearts, still stands by this gorilla-snot product.
My advice: make sure your cooling system is intact and no gaskets or engine seals are blown; flush the cooling system (several times) and replace the coolant with a quality ethylene glycol coolant. I did this to my personal '96 Chev. truck with no ill effects whatsoever.

Answer 5

the most probable cause could be the transmission oil is leaking into the water since the radiator is use for both water and transmision oil cooling (every automatic car), my suggestion is to fush the radiator and use a radiator cleaniner, refill your rdiator and check your engine oil level periodically to see if you are using more oil than normal (remember that all cars have oil consuption to a point) If no dramatically engine consuption that will tell you that your transmission oil is leaking into your radiator. If you find out that the transmissin oil is the problem than you can just buy a transmission cooler that mounts in front of the radiator and will cool your oil without having to have your radiator replaced. That is the chepest way to go. Good Luck!

Answer 6

I know the 3.1L and 3.4L engines are famous for intake manifold gasket leaks. Go to any GM store and they will all have plenty of intake gasket sets in stock. Make sure you flush out the ENTIRE system (heater core, rad, engine block, all hoses etc.) and replace with the proper Dex-Cool red coolant.

Answer 7

first off put the pipe down second your main concern would be your vehicle over heating what you wanna do is do a flush for that want to jack up the car look under neith the radiator there should be a cap you can twist off twist that off with the engine cool allow it to drain remove top radiator cap grab water hose or large canister full of fresh water with the engine running start flushing your gonna wanna let that run for about 5 minutes next go to auto parts store get the correct fluid or buy the universal coolant it can be mixed with all of them add new fluid with vehicle and engine cool ps dont forget to replace cap at bottom prior to adding fluid

Answer 8

Get the cooling system flushed completely!!!!!!! If it had Dex cool in it and some dimwit put green antifreeze in on top of it it will cause you BIG problems.
Green coolant doesn't mix with Dex cool. It will Gum up and sludge up bad. and will cause blockage. Water pump failure,Sticking thermostats.... If you get it completely flushed then go with green. Dex cool sucks...Even if they claim it's supposed to last 150,00miles.
But get it flushed!!!! Not just drained and filled.

Answer 9

Jose is correct!!! It serves a dual purpose..good luck