Interesting GM bulletin regarding Dexcool from 1995

[brianl703]

MIXING GM DEX COOL (TM) #95-I-20 - (09/18/1995)
SUBJECT: Mixing GM DEX-COOL Extended Life Engine Coolant with Saturn Engine Coolant

TO: Saturn Fixed Operations Managers

A new extended life engine coolant known as "DEX-COOL" will be used in General Motors vehicles for all 1996 production models and some late 1995 models. This new engine coolant is orange in color to distinguish it from conventional engine coolant.

Saturn vehicles will not be using the new extended life engine coolant. All Saturn vehicles produced from 1991-1996 will continue to use Saturn non-phosphate ethylene glycol based coolant (P/N 21030365) or equivalent. Mixing DEX-COOL engine coolant with Saturn engine coolant could result in damage to the engine and its cooling system components. If a Saturn vehicle's engine cooling system is contaminated with DEX-COOL engine coolant, the engine cooling system must be drained, flushed with clean water, and refilled with Saturn engine coolant. Refilling the engine cooling system with DEX-COOL" could result in damage to the engine cooling system components.

 

[Ray H]

If I recall correctly, the factory inadvertently filled a number of Saturns with DEX-COOL. When the error was discovered, the affected cars were recalled and new engines were installed. Apparently GM wanted to nip lawsuits in the bud with the newly intro'd Saturns before contingency sharks could come sniffing around.

 

[The_Jeff]

The only massive saturn recall IIRC was when they were introduced in 1991 for some sort of porous engine casting. Interestingly a lot of those cars became "cutaway cars" that wound up in dealer showrooms. By 95-96 the cars were established. Since the factory in tennessee only built saturns, I don't see how they could accidentally fill a bunch of cars with dexcool... wouldn't they have noticed the difference offloading it from the tanker?

Nowadays Saturns follow GM's practice of first-year consumer testing... ergo the CVT transmission fiasco.

 

[Virtuoso]

Funny. In Mid-'96, Saturn (at least my S-series) switched over to Dex-Cool anyway.

 

[Big Jim]

quote:

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Originally posted by Ray H:
If I recall correctly, the factory inadvertently filled a number of Saturns with DEX-COOL. When the error was discovered, the affected cars were recalled and new engines were installed. Apparently GM wanted to nip lawsuits in the bud with the newly intro'd Saturns before contingency sharks could come sniffing around.

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From what I remember, Saturn replaced several engines that had contaminated coolant very early in Saturn's history, long before DexCool was introduced. I think they were seperate issues.

 

[MN Driver]

quote:

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Originally posted by eljefino:
Nowadays Saturns follow GM's practice of first-year consumer testing... ergo the CVT transmission fiasco.

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The GM CVT is a failure?
Subaru failed, probably others too.

Seems like Toyota got it right and the Mini's CVT seems okay too.