Just replaced the heater core, and now the radiator is leaking. Should the radiator be replaced too?, anyone seen this issue ?

 

By nature, leaks only get worse in time, so yes you should replace it.

 

These are just 10 year old car problems on cars that probably had coolant in them too long. Get your cooling system working properly, it is the achilles heal of the Northstar if neglected.

 

That worries me actually. My 97 STS starts to creap up on the heat factor when you are sitting in one place for too long. Not sure if that's normal for these cars or what but I'm pretty sure that it didn't use to do that whenever I first bought it.

Of course you can't really expect a vehicle (Any vehicle) to make it 10 years without having SOME kind of problem. Unless you have it sitting in a garage under a tarp for that long.

What sort of preventative measures should one take for the cooling system in this type of vehicle? I'm really curious now, and how much would these procedures cost? Just wondering.

Sorry to take up your post whjordan18...

 

Just change the Dexcool at least once in every five years and add the GM coolant supplement tablets or BarsLeak Golden Seal powder (two tubes) to the fresh liquid. Yes, temps climb even higher when you turn off the ignition, which is called a heat soak, and is normal. Start worrying when you get temps consistantly higher than, say 225F while on the freeway.

 

That's good to know, I'm probably just being paranoid actually. it drops down significantly when you begin to drive for a distance. Unfortunately I have other problems on the car to worry about right now.