is ur intake gasket leaking?!?!?!?!

[skuzz]

IF YOUR LOWER INTAKE GASKET IS LEAKING...

get it fixed!!!

i didnt and waited till my fluids started mixing together

signs of this failure:...
lost of engine coolant and no external leaking
oil level is higher then normal and a tanish color and possible jell like

if this is happening to ur grand am get it fixed

my car is now sitting at my mechanic waiting for new engine to be put in

[wiccanferret]

I smell coolant occassionally lately but it doesn't seem to be low. I can't find any either, though. Did you smell coolant?

[skuzz]

well ym engine was runnign like crap like lsot of power it seemed to nto have its usually nice jolt it gets if u floor it...

the exhasut smells bad to..

If ur car oveheats at all or runs hotter then normal and ur coolent level drops every day then get it checked out

[GrandAm95]

yep thats sound like what happend to me and then i had to get a newer motor. wont do that again

[L!m3]

My upper intake manifold gasket went and my coolant was leaking like hell. Took awhile to figure out wtf was going on but I did get it replaced. Just in time too, as the mechanic who was working on it said that small amounts of coolant were starting to get into the engine.

[chasm31]

Same happened to me but got lucky and ended mot messing any vital parts up. Main things to check for is the oil cap, dipstick, and coolant resevoir. It'll look milky and make sure when it starts overheating, to turn it off. Aluminum heads will crack easily under just a little overheating. That's the main things. And when you've blown the gasket, you'll know it because everybody will be swerving through your white smoke.

[Antalive[DM]]

What causes it too leak.

[99GrandAMSE]

Originally posted by Antalive[DM]
What causes it too leak.

Faulty gasket between the head and intake ... to me, it isn't a very indepth fix but it does take a little time and mechanical knowledge :)

[gt karl]

This is a very common problem on 3100s!!! I just had mine done! My daughter is parts manager at a large independent shop, and she stocks 3 sets of gaskets for these at all times, as all 3100 GM V6s are very susceptible to this!

[Riles]

hey.. i have that same problem...i just blew my intake manifold gasket...i was gana wait tll spring and do it with my uncle...but good thing i saw this im gana get to it....oh btw....how much is a new engine

[L!m3]

Originally posted by Riles
hey.. i have that same problem...i just blew my intake manifold gasket...i was gana wait tll spring and do it with my uncle...but good thing i saw this im gana get to it....oh btw....how much is a new engine

i found a new engine with 4,000 miles for $1157 after tax with 2 year warranty on parts and labor. about $1700 installed. I think my head gasket or lower intake may be going but it might just be worth getting a new engine since i have 117k miles.

[Antalive[DM]]

True... What exactly is the signs of when your gasket begins to leak.

[gt karl]

Originally posted by Antalive[DM]
True... What exactly is the signs of when your gasket begins to leak.

If you get a faint smell of anti-freeze coming in through your heater, or if you notice drippings under the front of the car that weren't there before, have it checked out. Also, check your dipstick; if there's any milky or discolored fluid on it that doesn't look like oil, check it out.

Mine appears to have gone rather suddenly. I had in the the shop on a Tuesday for rear shocks and an oil change. They topped up the rest of the fluids, including the anti-freeze. On the following Friday, I started it, to warm it up, and the low coolant light was on. I checked the level and there was none in the overflow bottle, so I topped it up, and noticed spots in my carport. I parked it in different spots at work each day thereafter, and when would get out of work, there would be fresh spots on the concrete. I had it fixed the next week, and they told me that there was coolant mixed in with the oil that had just been changed a week before, so it's good to pay attention to your fluid levels. As I stated in my post above, this is indeed a common problem on these engines.

[Antalive[DM]]

Alright thx man and buy the way my coolant light is on too i just wanted to know when you add a little coolant what was your mixture? :)

[MJE95GAGT]

The mixture in the coolant wont change its the oil, also if you check your oil it will be higher than full. If its leaking, take it in NOW to get fixed. I waited too long and put a little more coolant in and I ended up getting coolant on my cylinder heads and I ended up cracking one and had to have more whole engined flushed. Talk about big bucks :(

[Antalive[DM]]

I know that man :lol: What i mean is i need to add coolant to my overflow catch. What is the mixture i need to put in. :rofl:

[MJE95GAGT]

:doh: To quote Jeff Goldblum, "I can read or write"

[FU-Q]

i have all those problems.
it happend quit sudden, i started to lose coolent more and more averytime i checked it. so i kept putting more in but could never find a leak until i began having starting problems (when the engine heats up and you shut it off the coolant is sucked into one of the cylanders and you have to wait about 45 mins. or crank it until you push it out the exaust).

i checked the oil to conform my fears and it looks like sombody put mud in there (light brown mudd)

i just bought this car 2 months ago, does this count as a lemon? i need to replace the engine since its this bad right?

[FU-Q]

Originally posted by Antalive[DM]
I know that man :lol: What i mean is i need to add coolant to my overflow catch. What is the mixture i need to put in. :rofl:

allways put a 50/50 mixture at all times

[digital-d]

My coolent is still green and the reservoir is full. The only place I've had a coolent leak was in my radiator. I do have a slow oil leak comming from the lower manifold, but I don't really lose any oil. By the time I need to add a little, I need an oil change anyway and the problem doesn't seem to be getting any worse either.

[Gags]

Is there a difference between an upper and lower intake gasket?

Will they both leak coolant?

I've had a leak for several months now - they needed to replace a gallon of coolant (50 % dex-cool, 50% water) at my last oil change. Time between oil changes / coolant refills is almost 2 months.

I don't think I've smelled the coolant while the engine was running - does the leeking coolant always get into the oil? The garage didn't say they saw anything in the oil - not that they would really stare at it as it drained from the pan. I've been given an estimate by a local garage of 6 hours labor. Anyone have similar experience/estimates?

Another forum I checked mentioned it was the dex-cool that corroded the gasket - they switched to the green stuff (their terminology). I'm pretty hesitant to switch from a manuf. rec's for something like coolant. Anybody heard of this?

Sorry for all the questions - first time posting. And for all those cars out there that are 95- 97's with only 70K on them - you suck. I have a 97, bought 12/31/98 w/ 33K on it. Just turned 130K (6/03). I'll ***** about the warped rotors another time.

Thanks,

--Gags

97 GA SE w/ 3.1L
and the original owner didn't order it with intermittant wipers - WTF?!?!?!

[FU-Q]

i know that "GM" brown crap is just that, CRAP it leaves your radiator coated with mud. and is know to erode stuff so it is a possibility that it eroded the gasket.

[tankspring]

Yep, my upper is worn out, made the car run real rough when coolant got low, i dunno if it was sensors or computer or what, i topped it up with water til i can get it fixed.

Another trick my mechanic told me is to park your car on a slight inclilne and sit over night, and loosen your oil drain plug but not all the way out. You can let some of the water out of the oilpan until you get a chance to fix leak


I think the leaks are caused by the dissimilar metals all used together, never expands the same.

[gt karl]

Originally posted by tankspring
Yep, my upper is worn out, made the car run real rough when coolant got low, i dunno if it was sensors or computer or what, i topped it up with water til i can get it fixed.

Another trick my mechanic told me is to park your car on a slight inclilne and sit over night, and loosen your oil drain plug but not all the way out. You can let some of the water out of the oilpan until you get a chance to fix leak


I think the leaks are caused by the dissimilar metals all used together, never expands the same.

If you have coolant in your oil, and you let it go for more than a few days, it will be too late. If ANY of that coolant gets into a rod or main bearing, you can kiss your engine goodbye.

[striker_wvu]

I am losing coolant fairly rapidly and the is no external leaking. When I first start the car it runs rough for about 20 seconds. I would assume that is associated with the leaking. Question is which gasket do I need to replace?

[mikem220153]

I just finished changing the lower intake manifold gasket on my engine this week.

My symptoms were:

Low Coolant light on

No significant external coolant leak In hindsight, I did have a small external leak coming from the lower manifold. This is a really good warning that your about to have a significant problem.

No smoke or water from the tail pipe

Engine never did overheat

I was very lucky, I caught the problem before it could do damage to any engine components. As previously stated, if the problem is not taken care of right away, you can damage the main bearings on the crankshaft and piston rod bearings. Other parts that can be damaged are: cam shaft lobes, camshaft bearings, valve lifters, and the rings on your pistons.

If you get to the point that the engine is overheating and you are getting white smoke and water from the tail pipe, it is probably to late for the engine, and you have experienced significant damage. At this point you have to decide if it is financially better to replace the engine or have the existing engine rebuilt.

Most often the gasket failure occurs because of a design flaw by GM. GM has since redesigned the gasket to correct this problem. Fel Pro sells the improved gaskets for the 3.1 and 3100. Mine cost about $70.00 U.S.

A note about using Dex Cool: GM explicitly recommends that you NOT use Dex Cool in any of thier engines from 1995 or older. They do recommend Dex Cool in 1996 or newer engines.

If you elect to do this job yourself; I would like to offer some suggestions.

1. Drain the oil when you first start. Leave the oil drain plug out while your working on the engine to allow as much of the contaminated oil to drain out of the engine as possible.

2. When cleaning the gasket sealing surfaces DO NOT use a steel wire brush or scraper. This can gouge the softer surfaces of the aluminum manifolds and heads. Use brass brushes and scrapers to clean the surfaces.

3. Clean everything thoroughly!! If you have the time to spare take the manifolds and valve covers to a shop that can professionaly clean these parts for you. I didn't have that luxury. I used large amounts of engine degreaser and carb cleaner on the manifolds and valve covers. Then I let them dry for several hours.

4. While you have it torn down, pull the lifters from thier bores. Clean and inspect them closely. Also clean the bores in the engine before reinstalling the lifters. Also use a liberal coating of assembly lube on the lifters before putting them back into thier bores. It is very important that the lifters and thier associated pushrods be put back in same locations they were removed from.

5. Before reinstalling the fuel injectors, replace the o-rings on each injector where it fits into the lower intake manifold. Also replace the o-ring on the fuel inlet pipe where if connects to the fuel rail. Inspect and, if necessary, replace the o-ring seal on the bottom of the fuel pressure regulator where the fuel return line connects. Put a light coating of clean engine oil on the o-rings before you reinstall the fuel rail assembly. It is really frustrating to have one of these seals leak after you have reassembled everything, because you will just have to tear the intake plenum back off to fix it.

6. After you have everything reinstalled and are ready for the first startup; turn the ignition to the run postition and let the fuel system pressure build. Leave the ignition on and check check for any fuel leaks. If you have any, fix them before you try to start the engine.

7. When you first start the engine expect some valve train noise. This should go away quickly after the hydraulic pressure builds in the lifters. If it doesn't go away quickly, then you probably have 1 or more bad lifters and they must be replaced.

8. OK, your engine is running smoothly, no smoke or water from the tail pipe. Now let it run until it reaches normal operating temperature. Shut off the engine and change the oil and filter. You want to flush out as much contaminanted oil as possible!!

9. If everything has gone well up to this point, drive the car for a day and do another oil and filter change. I can't stress how important that you get the engines lubricating system as clean as possible.

[Marks95GAGT]

Do a search for Leaking Intake Pics or something like that. I did mine a few months ago and put up a bunch of pics what I did as I went along. I do suggest that you if you do it yourself, make sure if you have a couple days to do it if your don't have much experience working on cars. But check out the pics I took of all the stuff and I think you will find it informative. Mark:bow2:

[Antalive[DM]]

OK my car doesnt seem like it is loosing power but low coolant cam on pretty quick the other day. the exauhst does smell funny in the car when i get on it really bad. But it has done this for a long time but still no loss in power. And in one year i have put 30,000 miles on it and all hard as possible miles but still no difference. You think it is still possible for me to have one blown?:???: i have 123000 miles on my car got it at 97,000

[mikem220153]

It really doesn't matter, if 1 or both intake gaskets are blown, your going to get the same results. Water in the oil. Another thing to consider is a cracked tranny cooler in the radiator. With that you get water in the tranny. It doesn't happen often, but it is known to happen.