GM V6 intake manifold leak again- Help!

The problem with that is that DexCool is the only coolant approved by GM under warranty. Class action suits are probably not far away. This will turn into a very big problem for GM before long. I'm just glad I don't have vehicles with DexCool.

Les

Already starting I guess. I've had problems with coolant vapors in the cab, makes me cough and my lungs feel like they're congested. It also fogs the windows up with a greasy film that's hard to get off and if there's dew in the air it *really* fogs up the window.

I noticed in the second link someone had the same complaints but he mentioned having headaches.

John

Please note that my return address is wrong due to the amount of junk email I get. So please respond to this message through the newsgroup.

And apparantly this is a very common problem as is shown by the second link I listed in my other post.

I'm going to have to go and check out my coolant system now. They say the damage doesn't become evident until *after* the warranty runs out.

John

Please note that my return address is wrong due to the amount of junk email I get. So please respond to this message through the newsgroup.

Yes, at about 70 to 80K. When you mentioned the greasy film on the windows I remembered a Car Talk episode where they mentioned that GM cars had a number of heater coils in the dash rot out. No minor repair because the whole dash has to come out.

It seems that if any air gets into the radiator Dexcool quickly turns into an acid and eats trhough the thin aluminum tube. You should only fill through the coolant reservoir and never open the radiator cap. Tell that to somebody over 40 years old.

My neighbor is a GM mechanic. He claims Dexcool is fine, just not the

100,000 mile antifreeze it is/was advertised to be. He recommends changing it every two years, reguaardless of mileage. It is very impaortant to keep a Dexcool system full.

At work we have several vehicles with Dexcool, and very little trouble with it. My truck had the intake leak, typical with the 5.7 Vortech engine. Other than that, no problems. The trucks all have 75,000-100,000 miles on them. I do not worry about Dexcool, just service it like the green stuff!

With your 2000 van, you are past due for a change. GReg

Neither was the 100,000 mile spec on the wires. Mine pooped the bed at

52,000. S10 pickup started running lousy and had no idea what it was. $ 300 later it ran fine after the dealership put on new wires and did a fancy fuel system cleanup.

-- change .combo to .com for correct email

*************************************************** "We ought always to know precisely why a given job is done in a particular way, and why it is done at all, and why it can't be done more efficiently, if it must be done at all."-- T.J.Watson

***************************************************

Same on my '97 S10. Around 53,000 Mi. I was zipping around Raleigh, NC on Interstate 540 just at dark (rush hour, average traffic speed around 75, moderately dense) and the engine just stopped with absolutely no warning. I was lucky enough to be within coasting distance of an exit. Walked about a mile to Sam's Warehouse and called a tow. $450 later I had a new set of spark distribution bars, etc. and the thing was running again. The following summer the wipers became eratic. Cost several hundred dollars. Last year GM Finally admitted to defective solder joints, but will only pay if repair is/was done in one of their dealerships Can't keep it full of coolant; if I put more tham just enough to wet the bottom of the expansion tank it blows the "excess" out. 8o((. The '86 Celica I had before ran

208,000 until some overage bimbo ran over it in a grocery store parking lot and never left me walking a single time. Last GM product I buy!! GM seems to have lost it. My '62 Chevy 6-cylinder pickup still runs file , but at 10 MGP of Amaco Gold and no AC I don't drive it much 8o((.

The problem can be the intake gasket. The gasket failure can leak water into the oil by way of the lifter valley. Doing a "co gas test" of the radiator will confirm according to my mechanic.

My intake gasket failed on the 5.7 vortek but allowed the coolant to run down the back of the engine. It took a long time for the leak to get bad enough to be detectable. At the first, I could smell coolant and had to add a pint about once a month. After about 3 months the stain was visible on the back of the engine (when you used a light and a mirror).

Jim

Glenn Ashmore wrote:

the back of the engine. It took a long time for the leak to get bad enough to be detectable. At the first, I could smell coolant and had to add a pint about once a month. After about 3 months the stain was visible on the back of the engine (when you used a light and a mirror).

It probably would have shown up faster if UV dye had been put into the coolant and the track of the drips traced back with a UV lamp. I found a pinhole in my water pump gasket that way, my coolant consumption was more like a gallon a week, but I still couldn't find the hole. Made a believer in the method out of me. Wouldn't help the O.P., though, only works well with exterior leaks. The dye kits are fairly cheap. Used it on the power steering, too, found a seeping O-ring in a fitting.

Stan

Just to let you know it is not the antifreeze problem. Serious design problem with the V6 intake. Gaskets failing after out of warranty, maybe 40,000 plus. New intake and gaskets required. Currently class action lawsuit against GM. If yours fail ask for new motor. Mainbearings will go out soon after coolant was in oil. That is why dealer said you needed a motor. Argue and ask for area rep to settle out of court.

Fu

the oil by way of

according to my mechanic.

the back of the engine. It took a long time for the leak to get bad enough to be detectable. At the first, I could smell coolant and had to add a pint about once a month. After about 3 months the stain was visible on the back of the engine (when you used a light and a mirror).