GenVibe - Community for Pontiac Vibe Enthusiasts

I was surprised to see that the Vibe comes with the old type anitfreeze trhat needs to be changed at 24 months instead of that new stuff that is good for 5 years. My 2001 PT cruiser had the 5 year stuff as does my 2004 T&C Van.

Quote, originally posted by jake75 »I was surprised to see that the Vibe comes with the old type anitfreeze trhat needs to be changed at 24 months instead of that new stuff that is good for 5 years. My 2001 PT cruiser had the 5 year stuff as does my 2004 T&C Van. Even my '99 GMC has the 5 year stuff.

The Vibe is the only GM vehicule with standard coolant.It is pink but it is not DexCool.

Quote, originally posted by Sub-Vibe-R »The Vibe is the only GM vehicule with standard coolant.It is pink but it is not DexCool. We have Toyota to thank for that!

I prefer changing coolant twice often then having trouble with seal and gasket like GM has with his vehicule with DexCool coolant.Changing coolant: $15Changing head motor engine gasket: $500So what would you change???My father has a Montana with DexCool and his gasket already been changed twice, and it has only 40 000km.

Quote, originally posted by Sunny »We have Toyota to thank for that! Beginning with the 2005 Vibe/Matrix, they will be filling with Toyota's Long Life (red) 5yr/100,000 mile coolant.

Can you replace the current coolant with Dexcool, or is that uncompatable.......?

Good question!!!

Quote, originally posted by robdog »Can you replace the current coolant with Dexcool, or is that uncompatable.......?It depends on who you ask. Ask GM and they will say YES. Ask anyone else, and you may get a big...fat...NO. I think mixing dexcool in our cars is a bad idea. Our cars have standard ethylene glycol coolant. Not extended life. Mixing the 2 can lead to deposits and corrosion over time. My opinions may be a bit skewed, because I dislike Dex-Cool due to problems with my families GM vehicles. Information on our cars coolant, and dex-cool can be found here.http://forums.genvibe.com/zero...age=1

Quote, originally posted by robdog »Can you replace the current coolant with Dexcool, or is that uncompatable.......?Yes you can, as long as you do not mix both together.If you go wqith 5 years coolant, be sure you completly flush the old coolant, cause the 5 year and the regular coolant does not ahve the same composition and they absolutly cannot be mixed together, it can be very bad for your engine.

nick toyota started the super long life stuff with the 04 model, i'm sure the vibe is the same. the coolant LOOK the same but the SLL stuff is more pinker???is that even a word???LOL

So, if I have a complete coolant flush, can I replenish it with the longer life stuff.?????

Quote, originally posted by robdog »So, if I have a complete coolant flush, can I replenish it with the longer life stuff.?????YES.You can put either, long life or regular, but you have to make a complete flush and drain all the old stuff before adding long life coolant. Never mix long life with regular.

Quote, originally posted by NSimkins »Beginning with the 2005 Vibe/Matrix, they will be filling with Toyota's Long Life (red) 5yr/100,000 mile coolant.can you confirm this happened, or did they start using dexcool?

This is not so good. Jiffy lube has been topping off my coolant with the Dex stuff!!!!! So uh, what can the side effect be of mixing the two!? Think if I mention it I will get a free flush and fill?

Both are fine but I wouldn't mix. I prefer to get new fluid, flushout the crap and replenish the corrosion and wear additives every 2 years anyway. If you have the long life stuff, don't add Water Wetter etc. as it can also precipitate. GMs small block V6 have a known problem with the head gasket that isn't fluid related. They just won't redesign it and hope you don't have a problem before the warranty is up. If you have one, it is good to check your coolant level and get a used oil analysis before it's out of warranty.

I don't know about mixing Dexcool with traditional coolant, but this week I went to Kmart to buy some Dexcool for my Olds Intrigue. Guess what? They didn't have any, but the new Prestone says on both front and back labels that it is compatible with "all colors" of coolant/antifreeze, even the extended-life, 150,000 types. That means Dexcool, even though they don't (and probably can't) use the word.

What do you do with your old coolant? Do you capture and recycle it, or let it run down the driveway (illegal, I believe).

I recycle it. I take it to the county recyclig center. They have a tank for spent engine coolant.

Geesh! I had no idea about all this antifreeze stuff.. I'm glad I ran across this cause I was about ready to get my car all ready for winter. Thanks for the info guys!