If I were you I would go 20% dex 80% distilled water and buy a bottle of wetter water. Water displaces heat better then anything else but you will get rust and seal breakdown thus do as I say and you will run cooler and wont have a rust issue. If you want to just look for the better of the two coolants then dex is better only because it lasts longer.

 

i think dexcool came out in all GM cars in 98, not 95. mine had green in it from new.

im not putting 80% water in my car...that means my boiling point will be really low. its supposed to be a 50/50 mix, and im not gonna risk my fucking headgasket job on that either.

 

My Car never gets above 180 ever lol. That water wetter does its job. Id probably use 60 distilled/water wetter 40 green.

 

so whats good to clean the heads off when they come out? same for the valve covers

 

Well in our shop we always used brakeclean. It should do the job. That foam engine cleaner in a can, aint worth much really. My cousin bought it, used it excessively with a metal brush and didnt get much off. The main thing you got to worry about is getting it out of where the oil goes, more than getting it out of the water jackets. But Id get like a tub of brakeclean and get a container that is long enough for or 2 heads to sit in. Put them in it for like 6 hours. Id also probably use a part cleaning brush, if th oil is caked on the outside of the head(for appearance). You can probably hold the valve covers down for like ten seconds, than use the brush to get it clean for the most part.

 

If your car came with Dexcool then stay with Dexcool and yours didn't. Go with the green and 70/30 or 80/20 mix with water wetter(Redline or Royal Purple) like stated above.

Buy a few cans of spray carb cleaner/braker cleaner to clean things up (OR) take the heads to CNC in Clearwater on Ulmerton and get them to dip, deck, 3 angle valve job, and pressure check for $185. While you are at it, get it ported for $400 more. LT1 heads need it.

Have fun taking the heads off in the parking lot. FYI - There are 2 bolts that go thru the alternator bracket that go into the pass head and vent tubes bolted to the back of the heads.

 

I think I came across like an a**hole with the Dexcool comment. It was unintended. I just mixed the Dexcool and the green previously and when I took my heads off there was a thick orange coating on everything. Maybe that's how it prevents rust, haha.

 

thanks. now to get the fucking thing on the back of the heads off....

can i just have 2 people pull the heads out, then remove that thing on the back when its out?

 

I dont think so. Its very fragile, I think people often break off the bolt, and have to drill it tap it later.

 

two things you can do

remove both the heads at the same time or hacksaw the line in the middle and slide a rubber sleeve over it

can you guess which one I did? lol