engine coolant GMC SAVANA 2003 User Guide

When to Add Engine Oil
If the oil is at or below the ADD mark, then you’ll need
to add at least one quart of oil. But you must use
the right kind. This part explains what kind of oil to use.
For engine oil crankcase capacity, seeCapacities
and Specifications on page 5-97.
Notice:Don’t add too much oil. If your engine has
so much oil that the oil level gets above the
upper mark that shows the proper operating range,
your engine could be damaged.
The engine oilfiller cap is
located between the
coolant recovery tank and
the engine air cleaner/filter.
SeeEngine Compartment
Overview on page 5-12
for more information
on location.
Be sure tofill it enough to put the level somewhere in
the proper operating range. Push the dipstick all the way
back in when you’re through.
What Kind of Engine Oil to Use
Oils recommended for your vehicle can be identified by
looking for the starburst symbol.
This symbol indicates that the oil has been certified by
the American Petroleum Institute (API). Do not use
any oil which does not carry this starburst symbol.
If you choose to perform
the engine oil change
service yourself, be sure
the oil you use has
the starburst symbol
on the front of the oil
container. If you have
your oil changed for you,
be sure the oil put into
your engine is American
Petroleum Institute certified
for gasoline engines.
You should also use the proper viscosity oil for your
vehicle, as shown in the viscosity chart.
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2003 - Savana OM

How to Add Fluid
Refer to the Maintenance Schedule to determine
what kind of transmissionfluid to use. SeePart D:
Recommended Fluids and Lubricants on page 6-18.
Using a funnel, addfluid down the transmission dipstick
tube only after checking the transmissionfluid while it
is hot. (A cold check is used only as a reference.)
If thefluid level is low, add only enough of the proper
fluid to bring the level up to the HOT area for a hot
check. It doesn’t take muchfluid, generally less than
one pint (0.5 L).Don’t overfill.
Notice:We recommend you use onlyfluid labeled
DEXRON
®-III, becausefluid with that label is
made especially for your automatic transmission.
Damage caused byfluid other than DEXRON
®-III
is not covered by your new vehicle warranty.
•After addingfluid, recheck thefluid level as
described under″How to Check.″
•When the correctfluid level is obtained, push the
dipstick back in all the way; thenflip the handle
down to lock the dipstick in place.
Engine Coolant
The cooling system in your vehicle isfilled with
DEX-COOL®engine coolant. This coolant is designed
to remain in your vehicle for 5 years or 150,000 miles
(240 000 km), whichever occursfirst, if you add
only DEX-COOL
®extended life coolant.
The following explains your cooling system and how to
add coolant when it is low. If you have a problem
with engine overheating, seeEngine Overheating on
page 5-26.
A 50/50 mixture of clean, drinkable water and
DEX-COOL
®coolant will:
•Give freezing protection down to−34°F(−37°C).
•Give boiling protection up to 265°F (129°C).
•Protect against rust and corrosion.
•Help keep the proper engine temperature.
•Let the warning lights and gages work as they
should.
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2003 - Savana OM

Notice:When adding coolant, it is important that
you use only DEX-COOL®(silicate-free) coolant.
If coolant other than DEX-COOL®is added to the
system, premature engine, heater core or radiator
corrosion may result. In addition, the engine coolant
will require change sooner -- at 30,000 miles
(50,000 km) or 24 months, whichever occursfirst.
Damage caused by the use of coolant other than
DEX-COOL
®is not covered by your new vehicle
warranty.
What to Use
Use a mixture of one-halfclean, drinkable waterand
one-half DEX-COOL®coolant which won’t damage
aluminum parts. If you use this coolant mixture,
you don’t need to add anything else.
{CAUTION:
Adding only plain water to your cooling
system can be dangerous. Plain water, or
some other liquid such as alcohol, can boil
before the proper coolant mixture will.
CAUTION: (Continued)
CAUTION: (Continued)
You vehicle’s coolant warning system is set for
the proper coolant mixture. With plain water or
the wrong mixture, your engine could get too
hot but you wouldn’t get the overheat warning.
Your engine could catchfire and you or others
could be burned. Use a 50/50 mixture of clean,
drinkable water and the proper coolant.
Notice:If you use an improper coolant mixture,
your engine could overheat and be badly damaged.
The repair cost wouldn’t be covered by your
warranty. Too much water in the mixture can freeze
and crack the engine, radiator, heater core and
other parts.
If you have to add coolant more than four times a year,
have your dealer check your cooling system.
Notice:If you use the proper coolant, you don’t
have to add extra inhibitors or additives which claim
to improve the system. These can be harmful.
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2003 - Savana OM

Checking Coolant
The coolant recovery tank
is located near the center of
the engine compartment.
SeeEngine Compartment
Overview on page 5-12
for more information
on location.
The vehicle must be on a level surface. When your
engine is cold, the coolant level should be at COLD
FILL, or a little higher.
Adding Coolant
If you need more coolant, add the proper DEX-COOL®
coolant mixtureat the coolant recovery tank.
{CAUTION:
Turning the radiator pressure cap when the
engine and radiator are hot can allow steam
and scalding liquids to blow out and burn
you badly. With the coolant recovery tank,
you will almost never have to add coolant at
the radiator. Never turn the radiator pressure
cap–even a little–when the engine and
radiator are hot.
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2003 - Savana OM

Add coolant mixture at the recovery tank, but be careful
not to spill it.
{CAUTION:
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.
Occasionally check the coolant level in the radiator.
For information on how to add coolant to the radiator,
seeCooling System on page 5-28.
Radiator Pressure Cap
The radiator pressure cap is located near the center of
the engine compartment.
Notice:Your radiator cap is a pressure-type cap
and must be tightly installed to prevent coolant loss
and possible engine damage from overheating.
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2003 - Savana OM

Engine Overheating
You willfind a coolant temperature gage on your
vehicle’s instrument panel.
If Steam Is Coming From Your Engine
{CAUTION:
Steam from an overheated engine can burn
you badly, even if you just open the hood.
Stay away from the engine if you see or hear
steam coming from it. Just turn it off and get
everyone away from the vehicle until it cools
down. Wait until there is no sign of steam or
coolant before you open the hood.
If you keep driving when your engine is
overheated, the liquids in it can catchfire.
You or others could be badly burned. Stop
your engine if it overheats, and get out of the
vehicle until the engine is cool.
See“Overheated Engine Protection Operating
Mode”in the Index for information on driving
to a safe place in an emergency.
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2003 - Savana OM

Notice:If your engine catchesfire because you keep
driving with no coolant, your vehicle can be badly
damaged. The costly repairs would not be covered by
your warranty. See“Overheated Engine Protection
Operating Mode”in the Index for information on
driving to a safe place in an emergency.
If No Steam Is Coming From Your
Engine
If you get an engine 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.
•Stop after high-speed driving.
•Idle for long periods in traffic.
•Tow a trailer. See“Driving on Grades”inTowing a
Trailer on page 4-31.If you get the overheat warning with no sign of steam,
try this for a minute or so:
1. In heavy traffic, let the engine idle in NEUTRAL(N)
while stopped. If it is safe to do so, pull off the road,
shift to PARK (P) or NEUTRAL(N) and let the
engine idle.
2. Turn on your heater to full hot at the highest fan
speed and open the window as necessary.
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, and you have not stopped,
pull over, stop, and park your vehicle right away.
If there’s still no sign of steam, push down the
accelerator until the engine speed is about twice as fast
as normal idle speed for at least three minutes while
you’re parked. If you still have the warning,turn off the
engine and get everyone out of the vehicleuntil it
cools down.
You may decide not to lift the hood but to get service
help right away.
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2003 - Savana OM

Cooling System
When you decide it’s safe to lift the hood, here’s what
you’ll see:
A. Radiator Pressure Cap
B. Coolant Recovery Tank
C. Engine Cooling Fan(s)
If the coolant inside the coolant recovery tank is boiling,
don’t do anything else until it cools down.When the engine is cold,
the coolant level should be
at or above the COLD
FILL mark. If it isn’t, you
may have a leak at
the pressure cap or in the
radiator hoses, heater
hoses, radiator, water
pump or somewhere else
in the cooling system.
{CAUTION:
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 enginefire, and you could be
burned. Get any leakfixed before you drive
the vehicle.
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2003 - Savana OM

If there seems to be no leak, start the engine again.
See if the engine cooling fan speed increases when idle
speed is doubled by pushing the accelerator pedal
down. If it doesn’t, your vehicle needs service. Turn off
the engine.
Notice:Engine damage from running your engine
without coolant isn’t covered by your warranty.
See“Overheated Engine Protection Operating
Mode”in the Index for information on driving to
a safe place in an emergency.
Notice:When adding coolant, it is important that
you use only DEX-COOL
®(silicate-free) coolant.
If coolant other than DEX-COOL®is added to the
system, premature engine, heater core or radiator
corrosion may result. In addition, the engine coolant
will require change sooner—at 30,000 miles
(50 000 km) or 24 months, whichever occursfirst.
Damage caused by the use of coolant other than
DEX-COOL
®is not covered by your new vehicle
warranty.
If there seems to be no leak, start the engine again.
See if the engine cooling fan speed increases when
idle speed is doubled by pushing the accelerator
pedal down. If it doesn’t, your vehicle needs service.
Turn off the engine.
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 FILL mark, add a 50/50 mixture of
clean, drinkable waterand DEX-COOL
®engine coolant
at the coolant recovery tank. SeeEngine Coolant on
page 5-22for more information.
{CAUTION:
Adding only plain water to your cooling
system can be dangerous. Plain water, or
some other liquid such as alcohol, can boil
before the proper coolant mixture will. Your
vehicle’s coolant warning system is set for the
proper coolant mixture. With plain water or the
wrong mixture, your engine could get too hot
but you wouldn’t get the overheat warning.
Your engine could catchfire and you or others
could be burned. Use a 50/50 mixture of clean,
drinkable water and DEX-COOL
®coolant.
Notice:In cold weather, water can freeze and crack
the engine, radiator, heater core and other parts.
Use the recommended coolant and the proper
coolant mixture.
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2003 - Savana OM

{CAUTION:
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.When the coolant in the coolant recovery tank is at the
COLD FILL mark, start your vehicle.
If the overheat warning continues, there’s one more
thing you can try. You can add the proper coolant
mixture directly to the radiator, but be sure the cooling
system is cool before you do it.
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2003 - Savana OM