Excellent thread. I bought a used 2013 Cruze with 51,000 miles on it from a relative. Got it pretty cheap. It had not really been maintained properly (I change my oil every 3,000 miles and coolant every 2 years/24,000 miles) and it had sat for long periods of time. After changing what looked like black paint and replacing it with oil (I wound up having to do this every 500 miles 5 times and every 1000 miles 5 times to get all the dirty oil/sludge out of the engine) I immediately flushed the Dexcool out the cooling system (several times) and put in Prestone OAT coolant which says on the jug that it meets the factory warranty. I used the stuff in the yellow jug, NOT the Dexcool. When I first got the car and started changing the oil, I noticed a thick waxy coating on the oil filter cover. Why I didn't recognize it immediately I don't know. After changing the oil about 3 times it hit me. Dexcool!! Unlike ANY other coolant, Dexcool immediately solidifies on contact with air. There was a pinhole leak in the water outlet assembly, liquid Dexcool was dripping down on the oil filter housing and and turning into a solid. When I replaced the Dexcool with Prestone, and got to messing around with the water outlet assembly, scraping off the hardened Dexcool, it started leaking green Prestone. It didn't harden like Dexcool. I replaced the water outlet assembly, and everything was fine for about 15,000 miles.
Then the water pump started leaking. I drove it around town for almost a month that way, continuously topping it off until I had poured 2 more gallons of Prestone through it. So now I'm sure there is NO MORE DEXCOOL in it. The heater works fine. I am now in the process of replacing the water pump. I've gotten everything out of the way, and will pull the pump tomorrow. I'm still not sure whether to get a pump from the dealer, or from Advance, Autozone, O'Reillys, etc. I'm also not sure what kind of gasket sealer to use. I notice it has orange sealer on it from the factory. That means it is a high temp sealer. The 1.4 turbo runs extremely hot to begin with. Way too hot IMO. I'm wondering if this will ever be a reliable car, or if I should sell it as soon as I get it running right again.
As for using a jack and block of wood under the engine, I have done that many times and never had a problem. I do have an engine crane, but that is for removing/installing RWD engines. I have no idea where you would hook the chain, but it would likely be in the way, and dragging that 350 pound crane out of the shed in the back yard and putting it together just isn't worth it for such a small job.
As for Dexcool, or Dexkill as I call it, My issues with that started back in 2005. My sister had bought a new '99 S10 pickup 2.2 engine. In 2005 it begain to overheat badly. I pulled the radiator, and it was packed full of this brown gooey waxy mess. Water would not dissolve it. In fact I couldn't find anything that would dissolve it. I started to replace the radiator, but something seemed wrong. I pulled the thermostat, and it too was plugged up with this stuff. I pulled the water pump, same thing. I finally pulled the heads, and the water jackets in the block were almost completely plugged with this goo. The engine was ruined, with only 110,000 miles on it. I started doing research and found hundreds of people had experienced this problem with GM vehicles. My sister decided to sell the truck rather than put a new engine in it. Then in 2009, I stupidly bought a 2001 Mailbu. Same problem. Heater barely worked (plugged up core) Radiator was plugged up and had to be replaced, then the intake manifold gaskets started leaking, which I also replaced (not a fun job, took me 2 weeks in my spare time) I drove it for 4 years, it ran hot, I was unable to sit in a parking lot with the A/C on, like I can do all day with my Ford Crown Vic, because it would overheat. I'm sure the water jackets were partially plugged with that brown goo that Dexcool turns into.
I swore up and down I would never buy another GM vehicle as long as they were still using Dexkill. But my sister was involved in a serious accident, and is now in a wheelchair and can no longer drive. She needed a van, and to get it she needed to sell the Cruze. The heater worked, so I thought I could save it. And maybe I can. I think I got to it in time. But if this car is going to have to be worked on on a regular basis, it is definitely going on Craigslist.
