Not happy
 

Have just been informed that due to a undetectable failure in the radiator or the transmission cooling tank, that transmission fluid has now filled the radiator and coolant has filled the transmission. The dealership is $5300.00 to replace the transmission and flush the radiator.
How is this even possible?
How do those fluids transfer, shouldn't they be totally separated?
Is there a recall I should know about?
I'm pissed and ready to go to war with GM.

1) Please list, very specifically, what you are driving (08 Vue XR 3.6 V6 for example)

2) Yes, those fluids are cooled in separate "chambers" inside the radiator.
I'm guessing the metal dividing those two corroded, allowing mixing of the fluids.

How would they corrode?

08 saturn vue xe awd? ???

The trans cooler inside the radiator will corrode if the engine coolant is not flushed and replaced with new fresh coolant about every 50,000 miles, regardless of what the maintenance schedule calls for. Coolant does break down over time, not only loosing it's ability to cool and lubricate, but also to provide corrosion resistance.
It is also possible some other repair has been done in the past, like a water pump replacement, where the proper mixture was not observed, or the wrong type of coolant was mixed-in.
There may have also been a overheating problem at some point, where the severe temp differential between the coolant/eng temp, and the trans fluid temp may have damaged or cracked the internal trans cooler. This is not usually a common problem, but it does happen, especially when Dexcool degrades, or has been mixed with something else.
At my shop, we recommend flushing the cooling system every 50,000 miles. We also don't flush with Dexcool, because people usually leave it in too long, and will cause a host of other problems from head to intake gaskets. We use universal yellow Peak, mixed 50/50 with distilled water, not tap water. Tap water is too hard and can cause deposits and blockages to occur in the radiator inner tubing.

well, I guess I know what my next two maintenance tasks are.....

the OEM anti-freeze around 07' was having problems with eating things like the head gasket and such in the cooling system. A bulletin was released saying to flush it and refill with a new OEM replacement. Most likely this could be your culprit.

I flushed my system repeatedly to get all the (bad) anti-freeze out.

So I've gotten the same feedback from multiple people now about the trans cooler and a failure with a metal dividing wall. My question now......mostly to GM is ......If you are aware of the possibility of these fluids breaking down and possibly corroding the metal they are housed in ........then why build it that way?
I am not a car person. ...The vehicle gave no warnings no engine lights nothing to let me know this was happening. Now I've a car that doesn't work and possibly a $5k bill to fix a vehicle that is only worth $8k.
I am calling out GM on this one.....man up ...admit you're at fault and fix the issue.
My next step ......posting this story everywhere online so people can know how ****TY GM is.

not possible to have warning lights of this nature. I complained to GM bout the control rod ends I had to replace on my Saturn, but it fell on deaf ears. BTW, I have heard that there is a Cavalier (94'?) control rod end that will fit the Ion and is vulcanized construction for durability.

I turned to Saturn when the GM work horses started to fail and leave me on the side of the road. Seems the cost cutting burned me with Saturn as well, but have not left me on the side of the road.

Chawala.....well I am dead on the side of the road :(

you MAY be able to force their hand at least a little if you can find the TSB and ask why this was never corrected when you brought it in for service at the dealer.

I'm sure that the incidence was low enough and the safety factor was low enough for GM to NOT be required to do a recall for it.

If you were not taking it to the dealership for maintenance and were not sent a copy of the TSB, you're going to have very little bargaining power.

They will also question your cooling system maintenance records. If you have more miles on the coolant than the factory service interval, you have zero to bargain with.
If you have flushed it within the service interval, be prepared to show service records indicating as such.

One person vs GM -- the new GM -- is legally futile now that I think of it, because the new GM purchased only the assets of old GM -- NOT the liabilities. That's how they are slithering their way out of the ignition switch lawsuits where people died.

Talk about standing behind your product when people die in it.
Save your energy and try to talk down the repair price.

Alpha/02 LW300 -- is the tranny definitely a goner? It was a mix of fluids, not straight coolant. Would a super flush of the tranny n torque converter + the entire cooling system and replacement of the radiator and heater core have a chance of resurrecting this vehicle?

And I don't know where 5K is coming from. I would think you can buy a junkyard/used transmission and have it installed (prob new torque converter too) for much less than that. Radiators and heater cores are a few hundred at most.

Did they give you a written quote? If so, post it as a pic and we'll see what they are proposing to do.

Well, I was going to offer to sell you one of my extra transmissions, then I realized you have an awd. That I do not have.
Where are you located man? I can probably find you one cheap if you are close to me.

I would separate the systems, add an external tranny cooler. Clean the cooling system enough to run the car. Hook the tranny to a flush machine and run cheap fluid through it until you only get clean fluid back out. Jack it up, all four wheels off the ground and run it through all the gears to make sure you get all the coolant flushed out of the tranny and give it a try. It will cost a few hundred bucks to find out if it will live.
I hate to say it but you won't get anywhere with GM.

Derf, is it a 02 LW300, or 08 Vue with AWD?
Either way...Yes, the trans is toast. When water gets inside of an automatic transmission, the friction lining of the clutches absorbs it and dissolves the glue that attaches the clutch material to the clutch plates. Some amount of water will come out of suspension separation and form white gummy masses in various areas throughout the unit. This is why the trans cannot be flushed to remove all of the water. In addition, the presence of water will start rust forming on the ferrous metal parts throughout the unit, including the valves in the valve-body. The amount of water or coolant and the length of time it's in there will determine the extent of the damage. Once enough water gets into the transmission to affect operation, a rebuild is required. It doesn't take much...Less than an ounce of water can cause serious problems.

The cooling system can be flushed. The radiator should be replaced. The heater core will be okay, trans fluid will not hurt the cooling system per-say, but could swell any rubber components, including hoses and seals if left in there too long. So diffidently use a quality 2 part cooling system flush, like Peak, to remove any contamination. After about a month, I would flush it again just to make sure all the contamination is removed.

I stand corrected.

Alpha it's an 08 Vue AWD.
I was soliciting your and 02 LW300's advice, hence the mention of 02 LW300's username.

Now that we know that this is a Vue, I'm moving thread to the Vue section, as we try hard not to mix in tech discussions with new member intros.



Moved.

Good Idea! Still learning how to navigate all the posts...

That's right...Confuse the new guy and make him look stupid! LOL! (Kidding) Didn't catch the user name, I do good to keep up with my own! ;)

this thread makes me wonder, does the 5-speed manuals have an oil cooler in the radiator? I would go out and pop the hood but it's really kinda cold and damp again today ....... :-)

Hi there Chawala, to answer your question: No cooler for standard/manual trans. They don't contain an oil pump, so no way to get the fluid to a cooler. Also, there is no heat build up in a standard transmission, like an automatic that has internal clutches and a torque converter. Most of the heat from an automatic is generated by the torque converter, no need for one in a manual trans as the clutch and flywheel convert the torque from the engine to the trans. The clutch and flywheel are external from the inner workings of the trans, and although they do generate heat, it's dissipated quickly by air circulation inside the bell housing from the rotation of the clutch and flywheel assembly.