I asked about my Malibu before but, my dad said not to get the coolant system flushed because if the muddy looking clumps are stop leak that I'd have problems. I am really bothered by this. It never overheats (but I guess that doesn't mean that it didn't overheat on the last owner) and I have owned it 9 months now. Is it safe to just drive it (monitoring the fluids and temp gauge, of course) until other problems arise? like overheating, loss of power, leaking, or excessive use of coolant or oil??? I CANNOT afford car repairs right now, but tomorrow start a new job and I was just going to put a nice chunk of money away "just incase"
2007-02-25 08:47:09 · 6 answers · asked by tara b 4 in Cars & Transportation ➔ Maintenance & Repairs
there are no grayish milky bubbles...it is mud colored brown. I was concerned about it clogging things. I just checked everything again (last time was 4 days ago or so) and I have not lost any coolant or oil. Oil still clean. also, I mistakenly had put the wrong coolant in (hey, I'm a 24 year old girl!) and while it should be orange, I put in green (maybe that is why it is brownish???)
2007-02-25 10:36:59 · update #1
If the clumps in your radiator are grayish milky bubbles it's probably oil leaking into the coolant probably through a head gasket.
I’d use the radiator flush, if it is stop leak and the flush clears it out, you should be able to find the leak that caused them to put that in. it could be something simple like needing to tighten a hose clamp or it could be a crack in the heater core. Either way at least you'd know what you need to fix (if anything) and if you can't afford the repairs right now you can just put more stop leak in to get you by 'til you can do the job right.
2007-02-25 09:08:06 · answer #1 · answered by Steven S 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Any "stop leak" that is offered on the market today should not be "clumped" at all. If you have chunks of something in there you can see, it is likely it will eventually clog up the cooling passages or thermostat.
The coolant should not look "muddy" colored either, that or an orangy brown look is rust just waiting to eat through somewhere...if you don't want to flush the system, at least drain it out, fill it with water "once". let it run for about ten minutes, or until the temp gage stabilizes at normal temp, then drain it all out. Fill it only with antifreeze, which will be a rather green color.
This is presuming you live in a fairly warm climate right now.
Leave the "clumps" in there, and you are taking a risk.
2007-02-25 17:04:21 · answer #2 · answered by Michael B 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Well it would be good to get it flushed as you can always put a block seal IF it were to flush away the lumps. I have heard of everything now. I guess your father is not a mechanic. In cars, you ALWAYS do maintenance on a car. Your dad has the male mentality of, "If I do not go to the hospital, then the Doctor will not tell me what is wrong with me and therefore I will not get sick." Hogwash.
Now, there are two types of flush. The small and big bottle. The small one is you just change water, put the flush in, run the engine like for 10 minutes and flush out, and then put in the antifreeze.
The second one, which would be better is to get the bigger heavy duty flush. You flush all the old water and antifreeze out. I do it twice as antifreeze is still in there as indicated by the second draining and flushing of water. Anyway, you put the flush in and then run your engine. I think you run it around for a day to really get it circulating. I do it for two days, expecially on any vehicle I have just bought. After you are thru, then you flush, and put the antifreeze in.
Another thing. Those clumps are what will clog the radiator pipes so water will not flow thru. Then you will REALLY pay to have the radiator cleaned out or buying another one.
Haynes Manual
What you do is get the Haynes Repair Manual for your Year and model of vehicle at Auto Zone, or another automotive repair shop. The manual will show you what and how to do the repairs.
2007-02-25 17:05:01 · answer #3 · answered by Big C 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I disagree with your Dad. Flush your coolant, if it leaks then get it fixed. Those muddy clumps are also plugging your heater core which will decrease the effectiveness of your heater and defrosters. Also they will build up on the coolant passages inside the block and will not transfer the heat away from the hot spots. If you are looking for dependable transportation then don't rely on temp fixes, that may hang you out to dry when you really need to get somewhere. Safety is also a factor. Fix it right and you'll never be sorry. If you know it's right then you have more confidence in the car and feel more confident with it.
2007-02-25 16:58:04 · answer #4 · answered by Fordman 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Dad sounds smart, I'd take it for a long ride to seee if anything happens. Let it get heated up and watch all the levels. Check your oil level now and see if it's cloudy. If cloudy you could have a blown head gasket. The other inexpensive thing you can do is have it pressure checked by a mechanic or do it yourself.
Do the cheap stuff first. After 9 months you should know if it overheats or not.
2007-02-25 16:58:14 · answer #5 · answered by zocko 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Drive it save some money.Maybe you can fix it before summer,when you don't want your radiator to get clogged.
2007-02-25 16:56:03 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋