Hey again. To those who have been following the summer from hell that me and my 2001 Cavalier have been through - you know it has been one disaster after another.

I (barely) got the new radiator and hoses put in myself 6 days ago - and then the water pump started leaking 2 days later. I didn't have the strength to deal with that so soon after the radiator so took it so a place yesterday - made sure to tell them to use DEXCOOL (the only thing this car has ever had in the system for 13+ years) and paid the $400 to get out of there.

Well I now have one, and possibly two new problems and questions.

First, ever since I got the radiator done, the car has had a problem starting - which it never has had before. Especially first thing in the morning. I took it to Advance this morning to have the battery and alternator checked and they both were fine but the dude with the meter said I had a parasitic drain that was causing the starting problem. Since this just started right after the radiator replacement - and other than disconnecting the battery, the only other things I dealt with which were electrical in nature during the radiator job were (1) removing the airbag fuse, (2) disconnecting the front harness connection inside the hood latch, and (3) disconnecting the cooling fan connection at the fan - what would you suggest is most likely causing the problem and how should I go about fixing it?

Second, after I got home last night, I washed the car to find a whole bunch of new marks, scratches, paint chips and dents - (which is why I try to do all the work on my car myself since this happens no matter where I take the car for anything) - I looked in the coolant reservoir to find they put some GREEN CRAP in there instead of the orange dexcool that I specifically told them and made sure they had. I went back this morning and the guy said it was chameleon and that it was fine.
True or BS? I've added so many bottles of Dexcool over the past 4 years with all the leaks I have had, I am concerned about this stuff, but if you guys know about it - then let me know one way or another.

thanks for any help or suggestions.

2001 Cavalier 2.2 manual 187K

Ive used green coolant in my ln2 without any issues for a few years now.

I also usually just mix in whatever is cheapest thats available (and usually thats the green) if its low (i have a slow leak im too lazy to deal with). I think the biggest thing is that coolant needs to be changed every so often (i dont know the interval because i change it annually anyway).


regarding the battery drain. its hard to say. Best advice there is to trace all the wires that go to that area and make sure none are chaffed or broken and all the connections are solid. Since its an older car, I would check the ground connections under/at the battery tray.

I also would only take what advance says with a grain of salt. Is the problem starting a "hard start" or is the motor turning over too slowly (lack of power). "trouble starting" isnt quite descriptive enough. Generally speaking the guys who work at parts stores arent the brightest in the industry -- SOME are -- but in generalties they will not be able to properly diagnose something.








"A car just isn't a car without a little blood, sweat, and beers." -- Shadowfire

The employees at Avance Auto usually are just employees not "mechanics". My advice is to check yourself to see if u actually have a parasitic drain problem. I believe that you can you tube "how to test for parasitic drain" & there will be a bunch of how to videos. Thats what I would start with.

Drain the green, and re-add the dex. Every ethylene/propylene glycol antifreeze has different purposes. They have different properties such as silicate free or not, water pump lubricants are different, corrosion inhibitors, etc. If the wrong coolant is added, some coolants will eat at the water pump seal, and will cause a leak sooner or later. For how fast yours started leaking after the coolant change, i don't think that's why yours is leaking. You may be able to get away with using the everything-green crap, but what the manufacture recommends is what i use on anything. Do not mix coolants. It will gum up, and you will have a hell of a time getting all the slime out of the coolant system.



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