Pricing on replacing the coolant system

CHANCE FREITAS

MEMBER
1997 OLDSMOBILE CUTLASS
3.1L
V6
2WD
AUTOMATIC
219,000 MILES

We were going up a hill on the highway and the upper coolant tube burst, it was due to the fact that instead of being replaced when it had a whole they ran sealant through it. I believe that it was either the thermostat or the overflow reservoir hose being clogged and building presser. I'm not really sure because I've never worked on it, but I wanted to replace the coolant system and sell it.

1 Reply

STEVE W.

MECHANIC
13,452 POSTS

Sealer isn't a good thing. Normally it is only tried for things like a failing head gasket or similar as it can plug the radiator and heater cores. I would probably start by flushing the system with plain water. Then start the engine and watch the coolant for signs of bubbles. That may indicate a bad head gasket. There are a few tests you can do, this covers many of them and you can usually get the tools as loaner tools at parts stores.
https://www.2carpros.com/articles/head-gasket-blown-test

I'm a big fan of the pressure test myself, That is because the coolant in a cold engine will expand as it heats up, but a blown head gasket will drive the pressure up very fast from a cold start. So if you start the car with a pressure tester on the radiator and the pressure starts going up fast from the time the engine starts you have a bad head gasket that is letting compression pressure into the cooling system.
https://www.2carpros.com/articles/radiator-pressure-test