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Originally from http://www.theherd.com/articles/dex_cool.html
DEX-COOL Extended Life Anti-Freeze/Coolant.
By Scott Mueller
A revolutionary new type of long life engine coolant is now being used in ALL '96 GM cars and trucks except for Geo and Saturn. It is called Dex-Cool, and can be distinguished by it's unique orange color. Dex-Cool is manufactured for GM by Texaco Havoline, and is rated to last 100,000 miles or 5 years, whichever comes first.
Dex-Cool is an Ethylene Glycol based high performance coolant that contains unique corrosion inhibitors, which are different from anything else on the market. Dex-Cool is vastly superior to conventional coolants, which use silicates, phosphates, borates, nitrites, nitrates, and amine additives to eliminate corrosion. These additives are abrasive to water pump seals, and silicates are especially unstable and drop out of solution and form a gel after time. All of these conventional inhibitors deplete after a short time, which is why conventional coolant must be changed every year.
The unique corrosion inhibitor technology in Dex-Cool is based on the use of two organic acids, which are synergistic and combine to form carboxylates. Texaco refers to this as Organic Acid Technology (OAT), or Carboxylate Technology. The corrosion inhibitors used in Dex-Cool deplete very slowly thus eliminating the need for traditional additives, or frequent change intervals.
Note that contrary to what some may say (or write), you can indeed mix Dex-Cool and conventional coolant with no ill effects. However, if there is more than 10% of conventional coolant in the system this will reduce the concentration of the Carboxylate such that conventional coolants change intervals must be followed. In other words, if you mix it, you can't leave it in for 100,000 miles or 6 years, but instead should treat a mix just like conventional coolant and change it every year until the concentration of Dex-Cool is over 90%.
You can purchase Dex-Cool in gallons two ways, either under the GM part number (#12346290) which lists for $15.95 (about $10 with a discount), or under the Texaco-Havoline brand name at your local parts store. In my area, Pep Boys has it for $7.49. Currently in my area they are about the only place that has it, as it is still fairly new on the market.
Dex-Cool is extremely impressive compared to anything else currently available. Personally I am converting ALL of my vehicles over to Dex-Cool. For the Impala, I even installed the '96 Dex-Cool labeled reservoir cap and Dex-Cool "Notice" sticker for the radiator cover, exactly as they come on the '96 Impala. The Dex-Cool reservoir cap is available under #10285918 and cost me $3.29. The cap is functionally the same as the cap used in the '94 and '95 cars except for the sticker on the top which says to use only Dex-Cool, and which also has an orange dot in the middle instead of the green one found on the earlier caps. The Dex-Cool "Notice" sticker, which goes on the radiator cover, is available under #10283878. I don't know what it cost as my dealer did not charge me for it.
Since Dex-Cool is an Ethylene Glycol based coolant, it has the same excellent anti-freeze and heat transfer capabilities of other standard Ethylene Glycol based coolants. As such, Dex-Cool will perform as follows, which is identical to any other Ethylene Glycol based anti-freeze/Coolant:
Mixture (coolant/water) Freeze Point Boil Point
50/50 -34 deg F 265 deg F
60/40 -62 deg F 270 deg F
70/30 -84 deg F 276 deg F
Mixtures of less than 50% coolant or more than 70% coolant are not recommended. Note that these temperatures are in degrees Fahrenheit, and the boiling point temperature is dependent on a sealed cooling system with a 15 psi rated pressure cap.
Note that Dex-Cool differs from conventional coolants only in the additive package, not in the Ethylene Glycol base, meaning it provides the same anti-freeze and boil over protection as conventional high performance coolants, but also provides superior corrosion protection to all cooling system metals.
This higher level of performance is unlike coolants based on Propylene Glycol (i.e. Sierra brand), which are advertised as being environmentally more friendly than standard coolants, however which are also inferior when it comes to thermal transfer, anti-freeze and boil over capabilities. For example, Propylene Glycol based coolants freeze at -26 degrees Fahrenheit in a 50/50 mixture, compared to -34 degrees for the same mixture of Ethylene Glycol coolant. Also, despite their "green" claims, Propylene Glycol based coolant is indeed poisonous to humans and animals. GM reluctantly agrees that Propylene Glycol based coolants can be used in pre-'96 vehicles, stating that it will perform "adequately", but other manufacturers such as Chrysler indicate that the use of Propylene Glycol coolants are prohibited, and may void the warranty.
Due to the reduced thermal performance and conventional corrosion inhibitor packages, I do not recommend Sierra or any other Propylene Glycol based coolants. Since Dex-Cool is based on a superior Ethylene Glycol base, and all auto manufacturers specify Ethylene Glycol based coolant as recommended for their cooling systems, Dex-Cool can be used without problems in any automotive cooling system.
It might be difficult for some people to get excited about something like engine coolant , but Dex-Cool is the first revolutionary new product in this area in quite some time. In the future, Texaco Havoline expects other manufacturers to follow GM's lead and also switch to Dex-Cool for new vehicle factory fill.
DEX-COOL Extended Life Anti-Freeze/Coolant.
By Scott Mueller
A revolutionary new type of long life engine coolant is now being used in ALL '96 GM cars and trucks except for Geo and Saturn. It is called Dex-Cool, and can be distinguished by it's unique orange color. Dex-Cool is manufactured for GM by Texaco Havoline, and is rated to last 100,000 miles or 5 years, whichever comes first.
Dex-Cool is an Ethylene Glycol based high performance coolant that contains unique corrosion inhibitors, which are different from anything else on the market. Dex-Cool is vastly superior to conventional coolants, which use silicates, phosphates, borates, nitrites, nitrates, and amine additives to eliminate corrosion. These additives are abrasive to water pump seals, and silicates are especially unstable and drop out of solution and form a gel after time. All of these conventional inhibitors deplete after a short time, which is why conventional coolant must be changed every year.
The unique corrosion inhibitor technology in Dex-Cool is based on the use of two organic acids, which are synergistic and combine to form carboxylates. Texaco refers to this as Organic Acid Technology (OAT), or Carboxylate Technology. The corrosion inhibitors used in Dex-Cool deplete very slowly thus eliminating the need for traditional additives, or frequent change intervals.
Note that contrary to what some may say (or write), you can indeed mix Dex-Cool and conventional coolant with no ill effects. However, if there is more than 10% of conventional coolant in the system this will reduce the concentration of the Carboxylate such that conventional coolants change intervals must be followed. In other words, if you mix it, you can't leave it in for 100,000 miles or 6 years, but instead should treat a mix just like conventional coolant and change it every year until the concentration of Dex-Cool is over 90%.
You can purchase Dex-Cool in gallons two ways, either under the GM part number (#12346290) which lists for $15.95 (about $10 with a discount), or under the Texaco-Havoline brand name at your local parts store. In my area, Pep Boys has it for $7.49. Currently in my area they are about the only place that has it, as it is still fairly new on the market.
Dex-Cool is extremely impressive compared to anything else currently available. Personally I am converting ALL of my vehicles over to Dex-Cool. For the Impala, I even installed the '96 Dex-Cool labeled reservoir cap and Dex-Cool "Notice" sticker for the radiator cover, exactly as they come on the '96 Impala. The Dex-Cool reservoir cap is available under #10285918 and cost me $3.29. The cap is functionally the same as the cap used in the '94 and '95 cars except for the sticker on the top which says to use only Dex-Cool, and which also has an orange dot in the middle instead of the green one found on the earlier caps. The Dex-Cool "Notice" sticker, which goes on the radiator cover, is available under #10283878. I don't know what it cost as my dealer did not charge me for it.
Since Dex-Cool is an Ethylene Glycol based coolant, it has the same excellent anti-freeze and heat transfer capabilities of other standard Ethylene Glycol based coolants. As such, Dex-Cool will perform as follows, which is identical to any other Ethylene Glycol based anti-freeze/Coolant:
Mixture (coolant/water) Freeze Point Boil Point
50/50 -34 deg F 265 deg F
60/40 -62 deg F 270 deg F
70/30 -84 deg F 276 deg F
Mixtures of less than 50% coolant or more than 70% coolant are not recommended. Note that these temperatures are in degrees Fahrenheit, and the boiling point temperature is dependent on a sealed cooling system with a 15 psi rated pressure cap.
Note that Dex-Cool differs from conventional coolants only in the additive package, not in the Ethylene Glycol base, meaning it provides the same anti-freeze and boil over protection as conventional high performance coolants, but also provides superior corrosion protection to all cooling system metals.
This higher level of performance is unlike coolants based on Propylene Glycol (i.e. Sierra brand), which are advertised as being environmentally more friendly than standard coolants, however which are also inferior when it comes to thermal transfer, anti-freeze and boil over capabilities. For example, Propylene Glycol based coolants freeze at -26 degrees Fahrenheit in a 50/50 mixture, compared to -34 degrees for the same mixture of Ethylene Glycol coolant. Also, despite their "green" claims, Propylene Glycol based coolant is indeed poisonous to humans and animals. GM reluctantly agrees that Propylene Glycol based coolants can be used in pre-'96 vehicles, stating that it will perform "adequately", but other manufacturers such as Chrysler indicate that the use of Propylene Glycol coolants are prohibited, and may void the warranty.
Due to the reduced thermal performance and conventional corrosion inhibitor packages, I do not recommend Sierra or any other Propylene Glycol based coolants. Since Dex-Cool is based on a superior Ethylene Glycol base, and all auto manufacturers specify Ethylene Glycol based coolant as recommended for their cooling systems, Dex-Cool can be used without problems in any automotive cooling system.
It might be difficult for some people to get excited about something like engine coolant , but Dex-Cool is the first revolutionary new product in this area in quite some time. In the future, Texaco Havoline expects other manufacturers to follow GM's lead and also switch to Dex-Cool for new vehicle factory fill.
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