CHEVROLET MONTE CARLO 1997 5.G Owners Manual

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine If No Steam Is Coming From Your Engine
If you get the overheat warning but see or hear no
steam, the problem may not be too serious. Sometimes
the engine can get a little too hot when you:
Climb a long hill on a hot day.
0 Stop after high-speed driving.
Idle for long periods in traffic.
e Tow a trailer.
If you get the overheat warning with no sign of steam,
try this for a minute or
so:
1. Turn off your air conditioner.
2. Turn on your heater to full hot at the highest fan
speed and open the window as necessary.
3. If you’re in a traffic jam, shift to NEUTRAL (N);
otherwise, shift to the highest gear while driving
which is AUTOMATIC OVERDRIVE
(a).
If you no longer have the overheat warning, you can
drive. Just to be safe, drive slower for about
10 minutes.
If
the warning doesn’t come back on, you can
drive normally.
If the warning continues, pull over, stop, and park your
vehicle right away.
If there’s still no sign of steam, you can idle the engine
for two or three minutes while you’re parked, to see if
the warning stops. But then, if you still have the
warning,
turn ofthe engine and get everyone out
of the vehicle until it cools down.
You may decide not to lift the hood but to get service
help right away.
5-14

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Cooling System
When you decide it's safe to lift the hood, here's what
you'll see:
3100 (Code M) Engine
A. Coolant Recovery Tank
B. Radiator Pressure Cap
C. Electric Engine Fans
3.4L DOHC (Code X) Engine
A. Coolant Recovery Tank
B. Radiator Pressure Cap
C. Electric Engine Fans

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine An electric fan under the hood can start up even
when the engine is not running and can injure
you. Keep hands, clothing and tools away from
any underhood electric fan.
If the coolant inside the coolant recovery tank is boiling,
don't do anything else until it cools down.
The coolant level should be at or above the
COLD mark
on
a cold engine. The coolant level should be at or
above the
HOT mark on a hot engine.
If it isn't, you may have a leak in the radiator hoses,
heater hoses, radiator, water
pump or somewhere else in
the cooling system.

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Heater and radiator hoses, and other engine
parts, can be very hot. Don’t touch them.
If you
do, you can be burned.
Don’t run the engine
if there is a leak. If you run
the engine, it could lose all coolant. That could
cause an engine fire, and you could be burned.
Get any leak fixed before you drive the vehicle.
NOTICE:
Engine damage from running your engine
without coolant isn’t covered by your warranty.
If there seems to be no leak, with the engine on, check to
see
if the electric engine fans are running. If the engine
is overheating, both fans should be running.
If they
aren’t, your vehicle needs service.
How to Add Coolant to the Coolant
Recovery Tank
If you haven’t found a problem yet, but the coolant level
isn’t at
the COLD mark, add a 50/50 mixture of clean
water (preferably distilled) and DEX-COOL@
(silicate-fiee) antifreeze at the coolant recovery tank. (See
“Engine Coolant” in the Index for more information.)
’ Adding only plain water to your cooling system
can be dangerous. Plain water,
or some other
liquid like alcohol, can boil before the proper
coolant
mix will. Your vehicle’s coolant warning
system is set for the proper coolant mix. With
plain water or the wrong
mix, your engine could
get too hot but
you wouldn’t get the overheat
warning. Your engine could catch fire and you or
others could be burned. Use a
50/50 mix of clean
water and DEX-COOL%oolant.
5-17
--

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine NOTICE: I
In cold weather, water can freeze and crack the
engine, radiator, heater core and other parts.
Use the recommended coolant and the proper
coolant mix.
I A CAUTION:
- - I
You can be burned if you spill coolant OII not
engine parts. Coolant contains ethylene glycol
and it will burn if the engine parts are hot
enough. Don’t spill coolant on
a hot engine.
When the coolant in the coolant recovery tank is at the
COLD mark, start your vehicle.
If the overheat warning continues, there’s
one more
thing you can try. You can add the proper coolant
mix
directly to the radiator, but be sure the cooling system is
cool before you
do it.
5-18

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine I
Steam and scalding liquids from a hot cooling
system can blow out and burn you badly. They
are under pressure, and if you turn the radiator
pressure cap
-- even a little -- they can come out
at high speed. Never turn the cap when the
cooling system, including the radiator pressure
cap, is hot. Wait for the cooling system and
radiator pressure cap to cool if you ever have to
turn the pressure cap.

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine How to Add Coolant to the Radiator
INOTICE:
~~
Your engine has a specific radiator fill procedure.
Failure to follow this procedure could cause your
engine to overheat and be severely damaged.
1. You can remove the
radiator pressure cap
when the cooling
system, including the
radiator pressure cap and
upper radiator hose, is
no longer hot. Turn the
pressure cap slowly
counterclockwise until it
first stops. (Don’t press
down while turning the
pressure cap.)
If
you hear a hiss, wait for that to stop. A hiss means
there
is still some pressure left.
2. Then keep turning
the pressure cap, but
now push down
as you
turn it. Remove the
pressure cap.
You can be burned if you spill coolant on hot
engine parts. Coolant contains ethylene glycol
and it will burn if the engine parts are hot
enough. Don’t spill coolant on
a hot engine.

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine 3. After the engine cools, open the coolant air
bleed valve.
3 100 V6 (VIN Code M): There are two bleed valves.
One is located on the thermostat housing. The other is
located
on the thermostat bypass tube.
3.4L DOHC V6 (VTN Code X): There are two bleed
valves.
They are located on the thermostat housing and
heater outlet pipe.

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine 4. Fill the radiator with the
proper
DEX-COOL@
coolant mixture,
up to the base
of
the filler neck.
If
you see a stream of coolant coming from an air
bleed valve, close
the valve. Otherwise, close the
valves after the radiator is filled.
5. Rinse or wipe any spilled coolant from the engine
and the compartment.
6. Then fill the coolant recovery tank to the
COLD mark.
7. Put the cap back on the coolant recovery tank, but
leave the radiator pressure cap off.

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine 8. Start the engine and let it run until you can feel the
upper radiator hose getting hot. Watch out for the
engine fans.
9. By this time, the coolant level inside the radiator
filler neck may be lower. If the level is lower, add
more
of the proper DEX-COOL@ coolant mixture
through the filler neck until the level reaches the
base of the filler neck.
10. Then replace the
pressure cap. At
any
time during this
procedure if coolant
begins to
flow out of
the filler neck, reinstall
the pressure cap. Be
sure the arrows
on the
pressure cap line up
like this.
1 I. Check the coolant in the recovery tank. The level in
the coolant recovery tank should be at the HOT
mark when the engine
is hot or at the COLD mark
when the engine is cold.