1995 Buick Skylark Coolant Flush?

JREIF

MEMBER
1995 BUICK SKYLARK
4 CYL
2WD
AUTOMATIC
93,250 MILES

My '95 Skylark, which I inherited from my grandmother, is suddenly running hotter than normal. I'm wondering if a coolant flush could help with this sudden increase in engine temperature. There doesn't seem to be any leaks, but the coolant is a dark brownish color and the walls of the visible portion of the coolant reservoir are sludgy. Would a coolant flush help this?

Also, I don't think that the gauge is merely broken: the needle rises while I'm idling then lowers when I pick up speed. I'm no expert, but that seems like normal behavior. Would appreciate any comments or advice you might have.

Thanks.

1 Reply

RACEFAN966

MECHANIC
5,029 POSTS

With what you have said yes a coolant flush and fresh anti freeze 70% with 30% water to get best mix. After that watch the guage to see if it reacts the same if so there might be more that needs to be done like a new radiator. After you are done with the flush when it is warmed up the upper hose should me hot like the engine and the lower hose should be about 30 deg cooler. If the upper hose is hot and the lower is just cold then the radiator is pluged and needs to be replaced. Make sure to clean out the resevior bottle too ok. Thanks and let me know how it goes.