Psych0matt Posted February 25, 2014 Report Share Posted February 25, 2014 1. how hard/what do I need to do to flush the radiator? I believe it has dexcool, and I'd also like to flush out the rest of the system and just go green. 2. are the stereo plugs the same on a 3g as a 1/2g? I'm assuming no 3. assuming the stock one is still on, is the original oilpan gasket reusable? The drain plug is stripped a bit from someone forcing too large of one on and it's leaking, so I want to just go to the yard and find a pan with a plug, unless anyone has a better idea. 4.with 165k on it, what other maintenance or things should I look for? I know the general stuff, but this is my first L36 5. Will any gm shift knob fit? I want to put my leather T in there this is my first plan of attack for it, and then I'm gonna get some new rubber on the 1st gen five spokes and throw those on, and then hopefully drive it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
l67ss Posted February 25, 2014 Report Share Posted February 25, 2014 Maintnence is usual stuff and the knob should fit Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nelliott Posted February 25, 2014 Report Share Posted February 25, 2014 I don't know your financial situation, but when I bought my Impala, I took it to my mechanic to have the coolant flushed. 10 year old Dexcool scares me but it was a hell of a lot easier to pay them $125 to flush the system than to do it myself, make a huge mess, and have to dispose of a bunch of used coolant. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rich17 Posted February 26, 2014 Report Share Posted February 26, 2014 I'd pull the radiator with that mileage so you can stand it up on end to get all the crap out from the dexcool. If its an aluminum pan than you just use rtv. If it is a steel pan than its a new gasket. But even a new gasket from GM will leak over time. I'd get a good RTV and put it on both sides of the new gasket. It wont ever leak. Do the tune up as said. No idea on the radio tho. But if it has the Monsoon system then I think you have to do something funky to make a new head unit work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
l67ss Posted February 26, 2014 Report Share Posted February 26, 2014 Theres some kind of chime module you have to get for the radio. Didnt get one for my brothers 04 grand am and a bunch o crap didnt work Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nas Escobar Posted February 26, 2014 Report Share Posted February 26, 2014 (edited) Any GM car after 2003 needs a chime module. Without it, you lose the door dings, the RAP function (Retained Accessory Power aka the radio stays on for 10 minutes) and any other dings and audible notifications about the car like the low fuel light. Also, you can't use a normal harness because the radio won't turn on. You would have to tap into the accessory wire on the ignition. Also, since you have the Monsoon amp, you also have Onstar if Im not mistaken. That stops working too. Here are 2 adapters that work for your set up. http://www.crutchfield.com/p_541RP5GM11/PAC-RP5-GM11-Factory-Integration-Adapter.html?tp=3486 http://www.crutchfield.com/p_120GMOS04/Metra-VT-GMOS-04-Factory-Integration-Adapter.html?tp=3486 My advice... google the 2 adapters and find them cheaper. Edited February 26, 2014 by Nas Escobar Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Night Fury Posted February 26, 2014 Report Share Posted February 26, 2014 Onstar no longer works on pre 06? vehicles anyways Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nas Escobar Posted February 26, 2014 Report Share Posted February 26, 2014 I completely forgot about that. I knew the 1st onstar cars stopped working, but I didn't know it went all the way to 2006. Well, regardless, the car might have steering wheel controls, and those would be the items needed to retain that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Psych0matt Posted February 26, 2014 Author Report Share Posted February 26, 2014 I'm not at all worried about losing on star, but everything else would be nice. Given this I may wait to try changing stereos, I mostly wanted an aux in. I may just pull the radiator when it gets warm, or pay for a flush. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
runt Posted February 26, 2014 Report Share Posted February 26, 2014 Does the car have Monsoon? If you don't have it there are lot of options for modules but if you do have it, it can get tricky to find things that work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nelliott Posted February 26, 2014 Report Share Posted February 26, 2014 I'm not at all worried about losing on star, but everything else would be nice. Given this I may wait to try changing stereos, I mostly wanted an aux in. I'm in the same boat. The front of my radio actually has an aux button so I pulled it out to check the back. Sometimes they have a stereo input that you can use. No luck on my radio which I assumed was going to be the case. I don't mind replacing the radio but it sucks that I need all of these adapters to retain steering wheel controls, chimes, etc. Oh well. I'll tackle that when I have some more money. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Night Fury Posted February 27, 2014 Report Share Posted February 27, 2014 I hate that about car radios. I wish they just came with aux inputs. I hate the look of aftermarket shit Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drummer Posted February 27, 2014 Report Share Posted February 27, 2014 Not sure what radio or if your wiring harness has it but on my 06 with the monsoon, I was able to plug an aux adapter in to where the satelite radio would have plugged in and just ran a 3.5mm jack to my center console storage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nelliott Posted February 27, 2014 Report Share Posted February 27, 2014 I hate that about car radios. I wish they just came with aux inputs. I hate the look of aftermarket shit Well, newer cars do come with an aux input by default. 2004 was just too old. I'm sure there's some of them out there with it but maybe just luxury cars. Not sure what radio or if your wiring harness has it but on my 06 with the monsoon, I was able to plug an aux adapter in to where the satelite radio would have plugged in and just ran a 3.5mm jack to my center console storage. That's what I did when we owned a 2006 Lincoln LS. Like $45 for an adapter and run the cable. I think my '04 doesn't have that option because I also have OnStar but I haven't fully researched it yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nas Escobar Posted March 2, 2014 Report Share Posted March 2, 2014 The GM radios that came with a CD changer can be converted to GM radios with AUX. There's an adapter that converts the cable from one that's for a CD changer to one where you can hook up your 3.5mm cord. The thing is that it's $50. If the radio can be used with a CD changer, it can be fitted with the 3.5 jack without having to solder it in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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