Thanks to Dex-Cool, the gaskets and intake manifold had been replaced 2 years ago now have to be done yet again. I had no knowledge there was a lawsuit going on and would love to know how they can continue to sell this product considering the amount of damage it causes. How can you settle a class action suit without notifying every single person out there driving a car that is using that coolant? I certainly was never notified. I am beyond pissed off. I cannot afford the cost of these repairs yet again. Totally ridiculous. The stuff needs to be pulled off the market.
Consumer Complaints & Reviews
I have had to change water pump in my 2002 Chevy Venture WB Edition and now the car overheats and the Dex-Cool is caking up in the inside of the rod. I am getting ready to flush out the system and put in the green coolant, because it seems to be all around better than the crap Dex-Cool.
I purchased DexCool antifreeze from the GM dealer this fall and now the vehicle has a seized engine and leaked from several gaskets. This was a very well maintained engine with no problems or no leaks until a couple of months ago. No question, it's a direct effect from using this product. Also, there was no consumer disclaimer that if you use this product, the damages to your engine are severe. I found online there was a class action suit that affected hundreds of thousands of consumers of this DexCool product, but I guess the case is closed and I will have accept the financial burden myself.
If we don't eat for the next 6 months, our family should be able to afford the repairs. It might make a great diet program for us. I just hope others that are financially strapped won't have to suffer from DexCool and the damages it will cause their vehicles. According to the litigation information, this product has affected hundreds of thousands of consumers. I, however, believe that since General Motors is one of the largest auto manufactures in the world, the more realistic numbers of those affected are more in the millions. Consumers must be warned of this horrible product if is still being sold on the shelves. Thanks.
Dex-Cool has ruined my radiator, water pump and I have a cracked belt. No heat and coolant leaking all over the place. Why is this still on the market and why is GM still getting away with plastering stickers on new cars requiring that they use Dex-Cool? I am absolutely appalled that they continue to get away with this!
There was a class action lawsuit but it is too late as 2008 was the last time you could get in on it. If there is a class action lawsuit and they know about this problem, why are they allowed to continue to do this? I am livid! I cannot afford the repairs to my vehicle and cannot afford to buy a new one. I am caught between a rock and a hard place and cannot begin to explain the rage I am feeling toward this company right now. You wonder why we don't want to buy American. Because of issues like this! It's your own fault that we don't want to buy American and you just guaranteed that I will never do it again. In fact, I did not purchase this car myself. It was my husband's old vehicle. I would never have "chosen" to purchase an American car because resale value sucks due to problems such as this one.
I'm having trouble with the '98 Chevy Malibu. Antifreeze/water in oil. Apparently the Dex-cool is too acidic and disintegrates the gaskets. It seems it also turns into sludge and plugs the heating core, etc. Now, the car is ruined and I am a single disabled parent of two teens who is trying to get/work part time and I have no car.
I had a 1995 Corsica. It needed a head gasket, which the dealership replaced at a cost of over $800.00. I also purchased a 2004 Grand Am that at 80000 miles, needed the head gasket replaced. They replaced it because I had an extended warranty that I purchased. The dealership did not buy the extended warranty so they fixed it because I had my proof that I had purchased the extended warranty. I told them that both sides of the heads were bad, but they said it was only the front. The car stranded me in a snow storm and it was because the head gasket was blown, the one they did not replace. I have only had my car worked on at that dealership. I have paperwork for both cars and all maintenance done at the dealership where I bought the car at.
I paid $800.00 to repair DexCool antifreeze that's leaking into the engine.
I bought my 2001 Buick Le Sabre (custom) from a dealer used in June of 2011 with 65,000 miles on it. I kept up with regular oil changes and even had a complete tune-up on the car shortly after purchasing it as a preventative measure. I got an oil change at Pep Boys and the mechanic told my husband and I that we should be using Dex Cool in our coolant system and that the reserve was a little low, so he filled it with the Dex Cool and recommended a new water pump as it was leaking and told us to buy Dex Cool and keep reserve full until we replace water pump. We went home that evening and my husband installed a new water pump.
The reserve was still declining slowly. So we had a diagnosis done at Pep Boys and they said we had to replace the intake manifold and gaskets. So we did but not by Pep Boys. A week, yes a week, later the car was acting like it was missing! It was in fact missing and it was diagnosed once again and now they said it was the coils, we then replaced the one that was misfiring. 9 days later (today), it was rattling and acting up once again. Took it to the shop once again only to find out the car needs a new engine and it's not worth fixing the valve that dropped or the possible piston blown. I want justice!
I have 3 Chevy Venture. One of them after regular flashing cause of the mud and sludge inside start with no rear heat. After that I changed the thermostat, heat sensor, cluster, water pump, and thermostat again causes of overheating, it improved to no front heat at all. Also I saw piece of what I believe it is a gasket kit in the reservoir, problems getting worst day after day. I think all this hipping cause of Dexcool thing. I paid $400 for these repairs for no heat and suspected blown head gasket.
Coolant temperature gauge went high but not to the top. Overflow reservoir was filled with heavy brown sludge. Cleaned out reservoir but now coolant is filling reservoir up again and lots of sludge buildup around radiator filler neck. Thermostat appears to be plugged. Will flush the cooling system and replace the thermostat and see if any permanent damage has been done.
In March 2011, my 2008 LaCrosse had no heat. I took it to the dealer where I purchased the car and an extended warranty, only to be told that something was plugging up my heating core and that it would have to be flushed out and coolant replaced for a total cost of $171.00. I agreed under protest, as I felt this should have been covered by my extended warranty. I only had 52,000 miles on my odometer. The warranty book states that Dex Cool (which is the coolant GM uses) is guaranteed for 100,000 to 150,000 miles or 5 years.
In early January 2012, I again noticed no heat; and again, I took the car to the dealer where I purchased it, only to find out again that my heating core is plugged and again needs to be flushed at a cost to me of $171.00. I now have 64,000 miles on my odometer. I asked if the dealer was aware of any problems or if there were any bulletins out regarding this problem, and I was told "no" they are not aware of these problems, only to find out when I went online that GM has been aware of these problems caused by the coolant (Dex Cool) which is GM's coolant.
I want my car repaired so that nothing else happens, because of this defective coolant being used in my car; and I want reimbursement of my original cost of $171.00. I think it's pretty lousy that GM is aware of this problem and turns a blind eye to it.
1999 Camaro V6 with 120k miles was losing water internally (intake gaskets leaking). All coolant hoses were soft, weak and about to burst. Heater barely worked. White sludge was present in the system from the Dexcool breakdown. It was apparent the radiator had been replaced before I purchased the car and it is possible the engine had been replaced as well.
DexCool jelled in the thermostat and it clogged it up! The engine light came on. Only turned over to 59,000 on a 2001 Buick Century. Always had the car in good running order. Consequences are new lower intake gasket set, thermostat and gasket, serpentine belt, labor 5.50 hrs.; new oil filter new oil, coolant flush, new antifreeze, "same Dex-cool". If this coolant jells, it should never be used ever.
I purchased a 2004 Buick LeSabre Limited, and the last three years, have also had the problem with overheating and spending money to try to fix it. Now, we've come to know that it is not fixable. My heat doesn't work. I was told by the dealer I needed a cluster for the heat, but was not told about the radiator, which I am sure they knew about. Last year, I had the radiator completely flushed, and was told about the dex-cool. I am now having to replace the radiator, thermostat, and hoses replaced to the tune of about $600. I am so upset, as I just don't have an extra $600 to spend, but it is my only form of transportation.
I am having to drive a borrowed car while mine is in the repair shop. Something should be done. Can I now get in the class action lawsuit. The federal government likes to get involved in telling us what to do. They should make GM replace every car that has been affected, since they knew what this stuff was doing to autos they were building, and selling them anyway. I am furious beyond words! I wonder if the dealer would like to have it back? The car is now in the shop, awaiting my being able to come up with money to fix it. What is the justification to fix it, if this is going to be an ongoing repair? I can't afford this car.
I bought my Ford from a GM dealership used a few years ago, I have had all my servicing done there as well. When I had a coolant hose crack I had them fix it and look over the coolant system. They flushed and replaced the coolant, within weeks I had no heat, my car was sounding funny, smoking a tiny bit. I looked into my coolant reservoir and it was low, it was also orange and I noticed the reservoir had a symbol on it with an orange liquid bottle and a slash mark through it, meaning don't use orange coolant.
I flushed and replaced it thinking this would fix the problem, I also looked into why the dealership put orange coolant a.k.a. dexcool in my car when the symbol obviously says don't. They gave me the runaround saying that shouldn't make a difference and I stuck to the fact that there's a symbol on my reservoir saying no. I took in today and they haven't told me anything yet and are taking quite awhile to get back to me. After seeing this page, I feel more confident in my actions set forth. Do I need to look into this class action lawsuit and if so how?
All hope is not lost my fellow GM owners. I am the unfortunate owner of a 2000 Pontiac Grand Am with the 3.4 liter V6 engine. It is important to understand that the problems exist mostly on the V6 motors. Now that's not to say that GM is not a schister, but you can save yourself a lot of time, money, and frustrations. I bought my vehicle used in 2006 with 26,000 miles. I had driven about 10,000 miles before I noticed the same problems as everyone else here: low coolant light, anti-freeze on ground and on block, and a slight hiss after turning car off. Having a basic knowledge of mechanics on cars (my brother has worked on cars his whole life and so has my father-in-law.) I knew what to look for.
On the drivers side or the passenger side you can view the valley of the intake manifold. Where you will look is where the cylinder head meets the intake manifold (there will be 1/16 black strip running down between the two). Where the leak is more prominent is in the middle. It may be a bit harder to see on the passenger side as the power steering pump may block it. If you are trying to replace it yourself make sure that you order the Fel-Pro gasket as the other type is an OEM part (original manufacter part) and will leak again. I first replaced it at 36,000 miles and since I used the OEM part it was leaking again by 50,000 miles. The second time I got the Fel-Pro gasket but this time I replaced the head gaskets as well (ounce of prevention).
It's now at 107,000 miles and guess what... Leaking again... Ugh!! No worries though. Having had it apart twice already, I know how to do it. The problem lies with two things. First, yes, it was the Dex-Cool. But secondly it has to do with the aluminum alloys they use. The cylinder heads use a denser alloy than the intake manifold. What ends up happening is called warping. It happens to the intake manifold because they use a less dense alloy mix. Certainly a shady practice, but fixable. I will say this though, GM's are pretty easy to fix and the parts are usually pretty cheap. I have never owned a foreign car and probably never will. Call me crazy, but I will always drive GM. I do not agree with how they treated you or me but it does not sway me to never buy GM again. Hope this helps ease your disdain for GM.
My 2003 Malibu started overheating so I took it to a service station and had the overflow container replaced and new thermostat installed. Two days later, there was no heat. I brought it back to service station, and was told the gaskets in the engine were covered with rust and sludge, and I would have to have the gasket replaced and they would try to flush the engine. I was told that they do think they can get it all out. This is a very costly repair for me and I do not know if I would ever feel safe driving it for some length of time
My 2002 Chevy Venture's engine blew up February 2009. This happened during a snowstorm. The van had less than 50,000 miles on it (and cost me over $4,500 for a new engine). I was told by my mechanic that the warranty states that, it doesn't need the radiator flush until 100,000 miles. That is so not true. I do all the proper maintenance on the vehicle (oil changes, tune-up, etc.). I didn't flush the radiator, per the suggestion of the mechanic and dealership (per the warranty). That was a big mistake.
The acidity of the DexCool ate away the gaskets, and everything else that the engine was not salvageable (it was smoking on the road, and had to be towed because it was overheating). I called and emailed someone in Texas that was listed as the lawyer for the class action suit, but never got a response. This is not right, and I should get some form of compensation. At least my new mechanic told me he refuses to use DexCool. He said if he gets a new GM vehicle from the dealership, he wants it in writing that if he changes the antifreeze, it will not void his warranty. The producer of DexCool should be held accountable, and this product should be pulled off the market. Shame on GM for allowing this product to be used in the first place.
My wife's Buick Century had the low coolant lights stay on all the time, so we had it replaced. But the problem continued. So we had the dealer flush out the coolant, thinking that would solve this problem. Then the tech advised me to replace the gasket (without mentioning anything about the class action or the known major problems) and it would cost us $1600 additional. Well, this car has only 51000 miles as my wife drives it only on rare occasions; to church, the doctors and the grocery store, as she has health issues and is getting older. We called up the local dealer and explained about the DexCool in this 3.1 engine. But he advised us to deal with GM directly. When we called their 800 number, it was all runaround explanations given. We are scared to drive this car as it could add on to the stress my wife is already under.
My 2002 Impala started leaking antifreeze. I was going through a gallon a week. I used stop leak, but I didn't quite fixed it completely. Now my car is blowing white smoke. I understand that there was a class action lawsuit back in 2008 regarding the use of DexCool that was kept mum from a lot of Chevy owners. Now we are all **. How do you go about starting a new class action lawsuit? I am afraid to take my car to the dealer. I do not trust them anymore nor my local garage. My husband will probably have to miss a day of work to figure out the problems!
I live in Arizona and have had my 2002 Aztec for 10 years. Just recently, my car started over-heating for no apparent reason. When I took it in the mechanic, he told me it was the Dex-cool that was eating away my radiator and manifold. He told me that there was a class action lawsuit, but apparently that is over with. So, now what? There is over 1,000 dollars of damages. I can't afford the repairs and I will be left with out a car if there is no recourse. Why didn't Pontiac make the consumers, or at least the dealerships, aware if this is an issue so that they could contact the customers they sold Aztecs to?
Dex Cool is awful! I have had to replace the intake manifold and some elbow hoses on more than one occasion and the problem persists. The Dex Cool was flushed out before the engine even hit 100,000 miles. It did permanent and costly damage to everything it ran through, costing me about $1,500, and the car still won't run right! I think there needs to be another class action suit because this ** has to be pulled from the shelves before it costs one more of us our hard earned money.
I have sank thousands of dollars into a car I cannot even enjoy and right now I can't drive the car or afford to fix it. ** a lot. I hate Dex Cool!
Dex-cool is the worse **. Why was it used and still being used? For the past three winters, my 2004 Pontiac Grand Prix is at the mechanic for the same issue: heat blowing cool air. One winter, he flushed the heater core. The second year, he replaced the thermostat. In March 2011, he replaced the heater core. Now, October 2011, it is back at the mechanic because the heat was blowing cold again! Poor customer care. Shame on GM. I will never, ever buy a GM car again!!! I am done and out of money and time!!!
I bought a 2004 Pontiac Grand Prix in October 2008. A year later, I found myself replacing the thermostat and some various codes showing up for transmission problems. I had the transmission fixed. In winter 2010, I discover my heat is not working or blowing out at all. It takes 20 minutes to kick on then it blows out cold. I brought my car to a dealer who told me I needed a coolant flush. I paid for the flush to be done. My heat worked for the rest of the winter.
Here it is in winter 2011 and what a surprise, my heat is blowing out cold. I brought it to the dealer again who told me my heater core is clogged up from the Dexcool coolant! I just had flushed and replaced the year before. So now, we need a new heater core and who know what is next. I really think GM needs to take some responsibility on the recommendations for their products. They need to fix these problems that should have been prevented to begin with. Even with knowing all the issues with Dexcool, they continue to put it in all of their new 2012/2013 vehicles. Why? Beware people! GM will not take responsibility for any of your issues with the Dexcool coolant. It is not right. Now, we have to pay for their mistakes.
I bought a 1999 GMC Sonoma with a V6 4.3 Vortec engine four years ago. I've been having problems. First, my water pump started leaking, so I replaced it. Then I had problems with the transmission, so I fixed it. Then the radiator started to leak, so I bought a new one. Now I notice a major leak from the intake manifold gasket - all of this thanks to Dex-Cool.
I just bought this car three days ago, and so far, the small elbow that goes from the belt tensioner assembly to the intake busted. So I took it off and replaced both of the small elbows because when it busted, the car almost overheated. I was sitting in my driveway with the car running when it happened, so I looked at the engine temperature gauge, and it was almost right at 260 degrees, which was way too hot! I turned the engine off to find that the elbow was spraying out steam, and I just got done replacing them tonight.
So I was on my way home and the car started getting hot again, around 200 degrees (still too hot), and then as I started driving, it started cooling down. When I got home, I just sat in it watching the temperature gauge, and no less or no more than five minutes later, it was running at about 220 degrees. I'm not sure why it's doing this. I checked the elbows to make sure it wasn't leaking, and there seems to be nothing wrong that's in the obvious. It is a Dex-Cool system; it has it written all over it, even on the engine coolant tank.
Also, when I fixed them, I put a whole thing of antifreeze in the radiator, and it's still getting way too hot, and I have no idea how to solve the problem since I just got the car three days ago. I used to drive a '93 Chevy K1500 with a 4.3 V6 in it, so I know absolutely nothing about this car, and I need a solution. But from what I have researched on this engine, it has a big problem with running hot and the intake leaking.
I purchased a 2004 Chevy Blazer in 2009 and it has DexCool in it and I had no clue of class action suit or that this problem known by the manufacture until this week, my service engine light came on and when I went to have it checked the coolant manifold intake gasket is bad and was hit with a estimate to fix which is not in my budget.
Now, I am left with the choice of doing this high $ repair and hope my engine is not damaged with money I have been saving to be at my soldiers son's homing coming from Iraq in December 2011. When I try to find a way to get this fixed by manufacture I see the class action settlement with a deadline date of October 2008. Hello! It is not fair to those just learning of this problem, we deserve to be compensated for the repairs just as others did. If anyone knows of how I can get help with this please let me know, right away. Thank you very much for any advice anyone can offer. I really want to take money I've saved to go see my son's homecoming since he's been in Iraq since Feb. 2011. Thank you!
I am complaining against GM and Dex-Cool's coolant or antifreeze. I had to replace the intake manifold and have the entire cooling system flushed three times in an attempt to clean out the corrosion and solve the problems on my 2004 Buick Regal. Class action lawsuit can't help me after 2008 and it isn't fair that Dex-Cool should not have to cover all vehicles repaired due to their product! So far, my out-of-pocket expense is already $1,250.00.
I have a 1998 Chevy K1500 with the Vortec 350 engine, and it too needed the intake gaskets replaced due to the DexCool eating the gaskets. What I did was I replaced the gaskets with top quality Fel-Pro brand gaskets and flushed the DexCool out. And I put in high-mile Prestone 50/50. There are no problems since. From now on, I will always flush out a GM car/truck that has DexCool in it!
We've owned our 2000 Olds Silhouette van, all for five weeks. It was spent three and a half of those weeks in the mechanics for overheating constantly. We've had to replace the thermostat, radiator, intake manifold gasket and have the entire system bled half a dozen times. Today, it overheated again, 2 days after picking it up from the mechanic. Now, we're told there's probably a crack in the engine and all we can do is replace it.
