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Buick Rendezvous Maintenance and Repair

2506 messages,  Last post on May 20, 2013 at 2:21 PM

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What is this discussion about? Buick Rendezvous, SUV

Messages Page 246 of 252

#2445 of 2506 Buick has lost its edge by 1wildpete

May 08, 2012 (6:40 pm)

I owned two buicks previous to my 2004 Rendevous and this car made up for all the problems I never had before. Next time I will not relie on the brand, will ck consumer report. Buicl has slipped on these cars.

#2446 of 2506 Re: Antifreeze leaks from bottom of engine just as fast as I pour into radiator [1wildpete] by tflanster

May 09, 2012 (10:44 am)

Replying to: 1wildpete (May 08, 2012 6:37 pm)
I just checked the fluid in my car. Its full. Last time I filled it was about 1 1/2 years ago. Before that I had to add fluid about every 6 - 8 months. I don't recall the brand I used but its orange, not green color. As I recall, I bought it at KMart or Walmart. Its a direct replacement for the OEM stuff. Perhaps the name is "Nu-Temp" or something like that. Zero problems since I put it in. Now the coolant is 100% the replacement fluid. No OEM stuff in the system.

#2447 of 2506 Re: Antifreeze leaks from bottom of engine just as fast as I pour into radiator [tflanster] by ealford

May 09, 2012 (11:58 am)

Replying to: tflanster (May 09, 2012 10:44 am)
Well, it sounds like you somehow solved your problem. You might want to check out all the various complaints about the GM antifreeze they put in the 02' RDZ. I don't know if they are still using it or not but after doing the research, I drained all of it out of mine and went to 5 year Prestone. I have an 05' which at the time had only 40,000 miles and the OEM antifreeze in it.

#2448 of 2506 Re: Antifreeze leaks from bottom of engine just as fast as I pour into radiator [ealford] by imidazol97

May 09, 2012 (12:34 pm)

Replying to: ealford (May 09, 2012 11:58 am)
Draining any antifreeze every couple of years is good, lifetime label or not.
 
As for taking out DexCool from 02 and replacing with Prestone Mixes with All Colors antifreeze: they are the same. Look at the label and look at the MDS info on the Prestone website. Other than a coloring, it appears to me they are the same.

#2449 of 2506 Re: 2003 Buick Rendezvous sluggish acceleration ECM/BCM codes [wes612] by jnawrocki

May 19, 2012 (10:24 am)

Replying to: wes612 (Jun 15, 2011 3:28 pm)
Might be bad wiring to the wheel speed sensor. Could be in the connector.

#2450 of 2506 Re: Antifreeze leaks from bottom of engine just as fast as I pour into radiator [kikiren] by danid73

May 19, 2012 (7:52 pm)

Replying to: kikiren (May 07, 2012 7:59 am)
I had this happen to an 98 Monte Carlo, and the only reason I say this is because the 3.8 and the 3.4 motors have been having the same issue for awhile now. And it does have to do with the Dexcool. There was a Class action lawsuit a few years ago, but I never heard anything about it. I honestly hope it isn't the same thing though. Intake manifolds leaked after getting to hot and well mine actually blew a big hole in mine cause it over heated too much and caused the antifreeze to run out as soon as it was put in. It cost me $688 to fix. I do know that This is happening on the 02 Rendezvous, as we just bought one the intake was already replaced, and we also own an 04 Impala that has had the same issue, but was fixed before we bought it.

#2451 of 2506 Re: 2003 Buick Rendezvous sluggish acceleration ECM/BCM codes [jnawrocki] by 1wildpete

May 20, 2012 (6:35 am)

Replying to: jnawrocki (May 19, 2012 10:24 am)
First place to start and cheapest is to get a fuel system cleaner, like LUcas and add to your gas or you may want to try so more expensive ones - any parts guy will help you. Some times its just a bad tank of gas.

#2452 of 2506 Update to my dealing with Buick by tflanster

May 20, 2012 (11:28 am)

You can read all my stuff regarding problems with my '03 RDV above. Buick's "regional expert" told me, in essence, too bad. We won't help you with the crank seal, oil pan, exhaust manifold leaks or the wiring problems in the mirror, but thanks for being a Buick customer.
 
So, I complained to just about every agency I could find. Two days ago I got a message on my cell phone (I told Buick to never call the cell, call the home phone.) It was from the "expert." I'm passing on your complaint to higher-ups for further review." Great! Now what? I very much doubt that Buick will respond. All I got was that short worded message - no follow-up call, nothing. And nothing from the dealer, either. So tell me about how great GM's customer relations are. I understand the car's 67K miles and 9 years along but in the days of 100 - 150K expectations, the problems with my car and others sure shouldn't be as rampant as they are.

#2453 of 2506 Re: Update to my dealing with Buick [tflanster] by tflanster

May 29, 2012 (5:19 pm)

Replying to: tflanster (May 20, 2012 11:28 am)
Well, some may find this interesting. I wrote of all the leaks - crank seal, oil pan gasket, etc., and the problems I had dealing with Buick about them. So rather than going ahead and spending a couple thousand bucks, I bought a bottle of "oil seal leak stop" by STP. I figured what the heck, for a couple bucks its worth a try. I dumped it in a couple weeks ago and checked under the car every couple days. Parked it over a metal pan too. Zero leaks - nothing yet.
 
Now, this makes me wonder about a few things. Was the oil filter and oil drain plug tightly closed? Did the Buick mechanic actually see oil leaks? Did the independent mechanic actually see leaks, or did he just see leaks from the filter and plug? Does that gasket seal stuff really work? I'm really confused now. Who to trust? Buick? The independent guy? STP? Fate?
 
It is a puzzlement . . .

#2454 of 2506 Re: Update to my dealing with Buick [tflanster] by bxd

May 30, 2012 (4:37 am)

Replying to: tflanster (May 29, 2012 5:19 pm)
It's probably the STP product. I have used Lucas Stop Leak before with similar results. It can rejuvenate old seals pretty well. What it does is, it gets absorbed by the gasket materials and makes them swell up. So anywhere they have cracked or shrunk from pressure/age, they swell again. I would run it according to the bottle for this oil change, then I would not add any at your next oil change and see what happens. If the leak slowly comes back, reintroduce the stop leak very gradually, about 2 oz at a time waiting a couple days of driving between additions till the leak stops. You want to find that sweet spot where the leak is stopped with the minimum additive because the stop leak additive isn't the greatest thing for your engine. I'm not saying that using it will destroy your engine in short order, but it can increase wear.
 
While using the stop leak, I would also make absolutely sure that you are getting 5W-30 motor oil when you get your change (and DOUBLY sure in winter months). The stop leak will raise the viscosity of the oil on startup. In fact if you find that you require a full bottle of stop leak with each oil change, then I would switch to 0W-30 motor oil to compensate. (But from the sound of it, your leaks aren't THAT bad, and I highly doubt it will take anywhere near a full bottle each change.)
 
As far as who was being honest with you.... we'll never know. Ideally you would have gotten underneath the car while it was leaking, liberally sprayed it down with simple green, hosed it off, and noted the leak points. If you are uncomfortable getting under the car or don't have the safety equipment to do so, then you'll have no choice but to find a mechanic you trust.
 
But, in closing, in my experience working on cars, my guess without being there to look at it: you did have a leak and the STP stopped it.

Messages Page 246 of 252

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