I had it come on the first night I drove it home. I didn't have dexcool, got to some watching the temp the whole way, and there was enough showing in the bottom of the reservoir to add directly to it, thankfully, as I knew already about the need to bleed if coolant is added directly to the radiator. I never got another low coolant light, I continued to add until I convinced them that there was something wrong...they pressurized it and said I needed a new radiator. They gave me a break on it since I'd been reporting the issue from the moment I got the car, said if I paid in full they'd knock 100 bucks off. I had a hundred and I found a sponsor for 148 and that got me teh radiator. I'd just noticed in one of the videoss driver #3 posted that the sensor is to be replaced on the back of the radiator, and since I'd not had a low coolant light since they installed it, I thoought perhaps they didn't bother with that sensor. What is more likely is I've stayed on top of it...and I'll keep doing that because I don't trust that shop any farther than I could throw them.

 

Ohhh, the temp sensor. Yes I've worried about that quite a bit. It was reading on the cool side and that was what inspired me to check that reservoir...it had like a tablespoon in it cold. I added, and then lo and behold the temp gauge worked again. I had heard that when you're low on coolant it will give a false reading so checked. It never got as low on coolant as that first day.

I told the shop about it and they said the sending unit the first time, at the time they were going to R&R again, then when I picked it up last Friday and they hadn't replaced, I said "What about my temp reading on the low side? I was told it was probably the thermostat. That's where I screwed up and likely offended them because I said "You mean you were in there and didn't replace the thermostat?"

I'm so angry at them for letting it sit and idle for an hour to prove a point, that they saw no leaks...yet they went back to "put cardboard under it" again. If I didn't buy a car with a blown head gasket, and it's blown, it's because they let it sit and idle like that knowig full swell they'd already tried to tell me head gasket. I still have no milky oil or white exhaust.

On a brighter note, the plug wires were bad, not just the plugs, and cylinder 1 is right up from where they likely had to pull the plug wire...which explains why it started missing the second they replaced the radiator. I would go apologize for thinkng I had trapped air, but I"m too pissed off.

Another bonus is that I now have traction control and ABS! They'd gotten a code at Dyck's "engine circuit" and wanted me to pay them 70 dollars an hour wiht a half hour minimum to figure out what that meant. They said "broken wire, or ABS pump, we just don't know". I didn't have the money for that at the time so I didn't pursue it. Can you imagine how long they would have spent trying to figure out what the problem was, and if and when they did how much they'd have soaked me to replace the plugs and wires? OMG.

The tranny oil didn't look too bad to the guy, he said I could wait until Spring with it before droping the pan and replacing the filter. Only wants $130 for that. The flush is an additonal $130 and I think I'll hold off on that. Guy said I can do one and then do the other later. It buys me some time. I have tons more power now and already am getting higher gas mileage readings, too. It's AWESOME!

Not sure if it's the transmission fluid or the motor oil Dyck's said was leaking...they think motor oil because transmission fluid is pink. I'll just stay on top of the levels of both. I don't thik I want to go back in there. I'm not losing coolant like I was, though they did overfll it. I"m not putting cardboard under for a week as I said, but even then it's not going to get me another radiator. They've now decided that what I was seeng on the cardboard was oil all along. I've never known oil to drip out of the bottom right side of a radiator before, they think I'm stupid. Never have I seen orange oil, either.

 

IMO dont ever flush the trans. The failure rate on these transmissions is significant afterwards. All you want is new fluid and a new filter.

 

Cool! I'll stick with that, and wait until Spring since they said it's ok...I'm tapped out money wise
I haven't been losing coolant at all like I was. It's as if they tightened up some of hoses/lines while they were looking through it.
It's just weird. The temp gauge is reading strangely low much of the time, but that didn't start until after they replaced the radiator.
Neither did the miss...that I thought was air...and that got much worse after they went through it. Maybe they had to disconnect some plug wires to get the fans out.
I'd checked my level and learned it took orange before drivng it into town and back that first day. I remember calling aroudn on prices and thinking dexcool was a brand rahter than a type. I"m that daft. Coming home the low coolant light came on. I only had like 4 miles to go and didnt't overheat it.
The next morning I called to see if it was an issue as far as driving it to where the dexcool was, and was told it was ok...when I got there it had come up so there was a little in the reservoir, whichn was a blessing because not only did I know about having to bleed it...I couldn't get the cap off...why they insist on flipping it aroudn Dyck's is beyond me. I took it to them Monday and told them about the low coolant light and how I couldn't get the cap off so they swapped it and said I just didn't have the grip it was fine eitehr way...I'd thought that was causing the leak. It was a very short period of time before it started dumping under the radiator and a visit wherhe it "looked fine" to them, then another where they pressurized ti and foudn the leak.
I saw my gauge go up to the vertical once after the replacement and it dropped almost immediately to the normal operating temp. Then I started having trouble with it reading low and checked it out.
What on earth, I wonder, has made me stop losing coolant? Does correcting a misfire do that?
I sure hope i have't ruined my car. I took it to Sandpoint today and lost nothing, 50 miles round trip. It's weird.
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