Or should I ask is there a way to if see if the intercooler is functioning correctly on the lnf like the lsj?
Also when should one get there coolant flush?
thanks

 

coolant flush should be done roughly every 25-30k miles or every year, whichever comes first. At least that's what any PM service writer will tell you. As far as checking the intercooler, I'm not sure because it's a different kind of intercooler for the lsj (water-air, as oppose to the lnf's air-to-air).

 

Thanks guess ill try to get that serviced asap cause I'm at 49k. Could you recommenda shop that does that service for a reasonable price. Our is 225 ok

 

ask JT to do it.

 

I do the coolant service every 3 years along with brake fluid and clutch fluid. I rarely own a car that long, so it doesn't happen often.

 

how much does a coolant flush cost? can you do it yourself?

 

You can drain it and refill it yourself, but unless you have a coolant "flush" machine...a drain/refill is all you can do, which is still better than nothing for sure.

 

as long as the intercooler did not become clogged somehow. It's fine. There's no pump to go bad on an intercooler like there is in a heat exchanger. If you noticed your boost drop away from normal level, there could be something wrong, but I highly doubt it.

 

[QUOTE=quikdcride;5741483]how much does a coolant flush cost? can you do it yourself?[/QUOTE
Is a machine required to do a coolant flush? Idont even know what tools is needed. Like stated above I this is the longest I've kept a car so changing coolant and clutch fluid is all new to me. When should you changedor service clutch fluid?

 

Thanks for the heads up tom I have something to look for. F/I car are hard to keep up with. You have to worry bout ic getting clogged, ic pipes popping off...... Next car will not be f/i lol...... Unless I don't plan on modding lol

 

I've never actually heard of one getting clogged, I was just trying to come up with a way for one to stop working. Technically anything that goes into the intercooler would have to go through the turbo first, which would destroy any dibris which could clog it. FI cars really aren't that hard to take care of, as long as you don't mod it a bunch. Any modded car, FI or not, will break.

 

Oh ok maybe a noob like me shouldn't have modded the car. But I always wanted a intercooler, ic pipes, a bov, and a loud exhaust ever since I was getting into the car scene.

 

in terms of doing a coolant flush, the machine is not necessary, but it is optimal because it essentially like putting a vacuum cleaner to your coolant system: it will get everything. In a DIY flush, you will remove roughly 80% of the coolant (since you have to turn the car on to get the coolant out of the block). You could do it yourself on your next oil change...all you really need is a screwdriver and an empty drain pan.

 

yea cause last time i was either getting a low coolant light or my engine was running hot or something and i just put coolant straight into the thing not really knowing but then a couple months later the guy at the dealership knew i had just put some in said i couldnt do that and the whole thing needs to be flushed instead but didnt tell me that i needed it flushed so im kinda confused about the whole thing

 

By GM's service schedule they call for the coolant to be changed every five years or 150k miles. I personally would do it at about half those intervals. While Havoline's DEX-COOL (the OEM coolant) is capable of a much longer service life similar to most other modern OAT (organic acid technology) and HOAT (hybrid OAT) coolants and doesn't need changed every year or two and 24-36k miles like older "green" ethylene glycol, it still can have a nasty issue with sludging in some applications when pushed to the service limit or beyond. This is usually worse if you ever have to top off the system with any non-OAT coolant, which although compatible dramatically reduces the maximum service life. If you do flush the system make sure to fill it up with a mix of DEX-COOL and distilled (vice tap) water to minimize the mineral content the coolant has to neutralize.


As mentioned there really isn't anything to check on the intercooler. An air-to-air setup like on the LNF engines is about as simple as you can get and doesn't have any moving parts like pump and coolant moving between the Laminova intercooler cores in the intake manifold and the front mounted heat exchanger radiator like what is on the supercharged LSJ engine. Hosing down the core to clean out bugs and maybe a quick inspection for visual damage is about all you need to do. GM used some pretty nice constant-tension t-bolt clamps on the car so it doesn't have as much chance of boost leaks developing as you'll find in some other factory turbocharged vehicles.

If you do suspected there's any damage to the intercooler's core other than bent fins about the only thing you can do to tell for certain is pull the intercooler and have it pressure tested. If you're heavily modified and running much higher boost pressures than stock, unless you have collision damage such as hitting something on the roadway or heavily bottoming out the car on a steep incline, it would be much likelier that the stock plastic end tanks would crack than to have a problem with the metal core. And if the end tanks crack you'd know pretty quick as power and drivability would be severely impacted.

 

I would be more worried about where missing coolant went.