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Old 09-08-2007, 11:37 AM
   Low Coolant
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My light came on yesterday on the way to the beach, didn't know what it was til I got home. I checked this morning and the coolant is a little low. I read where u have to use Dex-Cool or it'll mess up my warranty. Where can I get this at? I searched a couple auto parts stores online and can't seem to find it.
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Old 09-08-2007, 11:39 AM
  
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Old 09-08-2007, 04:09 PM
  
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I got some at the Autozone in Wesley Chapel on State Road 54 already pre mixed.
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Old 09-08-2007, 04:18 PM
  
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CarQuest has some. Just look for the GM symbol on the packages.
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Old 09-08-2007, 07:49 PM
  
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Keep an eye on the coolant level, I bought my sol used with 3000 mi on it.... Evey two weeks I added coolant and the dealer could not find a leak. After 4000mi the engine started knocking...after 5000mi I got a new engine. Dealer Never could prove it was coolant getting into the oil.

Engine Knocking
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Old 09-08-2007, 08:10 PM
  
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Originally Posted by soltice View Post
Keep an eye on the coolant level, I bought my sol used with 3000 mi on it.... Evey two weeks I added coolant and the dealer could not find a leak. After 4000mi the engine started knocking...after 5000mi I got a new engine. Dealer Never could prove it was coolant getting into the oil.

Engine Knocking

Have the dealer pressure check your radiator cap. If the spring goes bad, it won't hold pressure and your coolant boils away. Especially noticeable on long trips, where the temp gradually goes up.
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Old 09-08-2007, 10:58 PM
  
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any auto parts store will have a "dex cool" approved, compatible coolant.
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Old 09-09-2007, 08:16 AM
  
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I bought my Solstice used with about 10,000 miles on it in June. Immediately after purchasing it the low coolant light came on. I topped it off, took it to the dealer where the entire system was pressure checked. They couldn't find a leak.

The dealer thought the used car dealer must have added too little coolant after changing the fluids, which I understand is common practice at some places regardless of mileage or age. Maybe the same thing happened to the person above?

After reading the owners manual it does recommend checking the coolant level after filling and adding more coolant if necessary. I doubt any used car dealer is going to go back and check the coolant level an hour or two after having it changed. My guess is their mechanic has a lot of vehicles to prep and probably does it in an assembly line manner.

Has anyone had this type of problem with a brand new, one owner Solstice?

Well, now it's September and I've been checking the coolant every month. Sure enough, it's been dropping since June and I have the digital photographs to prove it. It hasn't dropped below the fill line, though.

I have two theories. When I topped the system off in June I put in a little too much coolant. Perhaps excess coolant will eventually vent. Any thoughts? It make sense, but I'm not sure if it's true. Does anyone know?

The other is a leak somewhere, but that seems unlikely since the dealer pressure tested the system. If it continues to have this issue, then I may just replace the top on my own.

I love this little car, but honestly it is very poorly built. I'm going to add this coolant issue to the "keep an eye on" list of things, which include:

- The differential (replaced clutch packs for binding. Gear whine actually seems to be getting worse)
- Coolant (see above)
- Suspension (it makes a creaking noise when going over speed bumps)
- AC noise (dealer says it's normal)
- Problems with the top

I hope to have the alignment problems with the top fixed this week. I'm also going to inquire about the ECU flash that will supposedly illuminate the gauge at all times. I have a hard time reading the gas gauge (not that it's accurate) during the day, thank goodness for the driver information center.

Last edited by sol79 : 09-09-2007 at 09:01 AM.
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Old 09-09-2007, 09:06 AM
  
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My low coolant light came on the other day also, glad I found this thread. I topped mine off thinking it was low from the factory. darn another thing to watch also. I didn't see any leaks either.
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Old 09-09-2007, 09:22 AM
  
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Originally Posted by Deepbluegxp View Post
My low coolant light came on the other day also, glad I found this thread. I topped mine off thinking it was low from the factory. darn another thing to watch also. I didn't see any leaks either.

You may want to have it pressure tested by the dealer just in case. I'm very happy that I had it done to mine, even if they didn't find a problem. That way, if there is an issue, then I can prove that it's happened before.

I've done a little reading this morning and I may not have an issue after all. I turns out that excess coolant would be normally vented anyway. If it drops below the fill line, though, then I'm certainly taking it back to the dealer. I'm going to keep an eye on it for the time being.
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Old 09-09-2007, 09:58 AM
   Me too
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I have been having the coolant light come on when I stop fast. It is only on for a second or two and then goes off. This has happened to me about a dozen times over the summer. I am going out to the garage now to check on it.
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Old 09-09-2007, 05:50 PM
  
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OK, I did some thinking today and I've decided that I might replace my radiator cap. Maybe it isn't the cap, but if so, it would be a cheap fix. Plus, that wouldn't necessarily show up on a pressure test right? Don't they take the cap off for that test?

Anyway, I decided to order the part, so I did some searching.

AC Delco's site lists "ACDelco Part # RC98" as the radiator cap. Guess what? It looks different than my cap! (There is a picture)

Well, I do a serach on a different site:

https://www.rockauto.com/catalog/raframecatalog.php

Has a photo of the cap and lists it as:

ACDELCO Part # RC98 (replaces RC100 #22671020)

What gives? It appears that GM has replaced the radiator cap for 2006 and 2007 Solstices with a different part. It has slightly different markings and a different part number.

Is it possible they've redesigned the cap?

Last edited by sol79 : 09-09-2007 at 06:23 PM.
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Old 09-09-2007, 10:28 PM
  
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Originally Posted by sol79 View Post
OK, I did some thinking today and I've decided that I might replace my radiator cap. Maybe it isn't the cap, but if so, it would be a cheap fix. Plus, that wouldn't necessarily show up on a pressure test right? Don't they take the cap off for that test?

Anyway, I decided to order the part, so I did some searching.

AC Delco's site lists "ACDelco Part # RC98" as the radiator cap. Guess what? It looks different than my cap! (There is a picture)

Well, I do a serach on a different site:

https://www.rockauto.com/catalog/raframecatalog.php

Has a photo of the cap and lists it as:

ACDELCO Part # RC98 (replaces RC100 #22671020)

What gives? It appears that GM has replaced the radiator cap for 2006 and 2007 Solstices with a different part. It has slightly different markings and a different part number.

Is it possible they've redesigned the cap?
It's possible. It may also be they're getting the replacements from a different supplier. I know on the 94-96 impalas, the original cap had a 16 psi spring. GM later recommended replacing it with the 18 psi cap off the LT1 camaros and firebirds.
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Old 09-10-2007, 12:30 AM
  
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Have the dealer look at it. Same thing happened to mine. There was a bad cap. Replaced the cap. If the coolant is leaking have it fixed.
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Old 09-10-2007, 03:57 PM
  
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Have the dealer look at it. Same thing happened to mine. There was a bad cap. Replaced the cap. If the coolant is leaking have it fixed.

That's what I thought. I have a new radiator cap coming today.

My uncle is a fleet mechanic and said he had problems in the past with leaky radiator caps on GM 4 cylinder engines. My dealer pressure tested the system and found no leaks, but for whatever reason didn't want to replace the cap and didn't test it, even after I mentioned it. Instead, they just blamed it on the used car dealer not topping of the coolant after prepping the car for sale.

It would have been nice to get a new cap for free, but on this issue I'm going to skip the hassle and just pay the $7.
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Old 09-10-2007, 06:00 PM