intake manifold coolant leak

[releko]

hi, i'm new here and have some issues with my car that i need help with. i have a 97 gt and tonight while driving, my car died. upon my boyfriend's arrival, we noticed a lot of dexcool leaking from somewhere around the intake manifold.

i took my car to a dealership about a month ago for a recall and they told me that i had an intake manifold leak, but i refused to pay the bastards 800$ to fix it. so now it's sitting in a today's man parking lot.

my boyfriend does a lot of mechanical work to cars and is willing to help me fix this problem. if any of you have dealt with this, please HELP! is there a factory service manual or a haynes manual online anywhere?

Thanks for your help in advance!

[enforcer]

Your local Advance Auto or Auto should have a manual. Its very easy to take it apart -clean it and put it bach together. Just go to your local shop and get the torque specs and the gaskets you need. And get that Dex-cool crap out of your car just use anti-freeze.

[releko]

thanks for your advice, but how much time does it take to replace the gaskets? has anyone done this?

where does the coolant enter the intake manifold? my boyfriend is very familiar with Saabs of all variations and RX-7s. but knows next to nothing about my GT. he has changed my spark plugs and my alternator, and with a lot of cursing b/c the engine is in sideways & it's very difficult to get to most of the components.

[enforcer]

First off what motor do you have? I'm a Grand Prix(GTP) guy so most of what I know is from that.
In a 3.8 it would take the average mechanic a few hours to change out the intake and clean it up. then an hour or 2 to put it back together.
If RX-7s are his thing -then yeah you'll definately need a manual-lol. Go to autozone they'll have a manual. If you have a V6 (3.1,3.4,3.8) you can do it all with everyday handtools (13-15mm sockets and wrenches) and done within a day.
If you have a four cylinder -sorry I'm done helpin.

[releko]

yup...it's a v6 does anybody know the part numbers for the gaskets that need to be replaced due to the fact that pep boys and the like has a lot of trouble getting the right parts when you ask for them ("ya i thank that thar's the one you be needin")

[enforcer]

Wow your just full of questions.
You'll prolly pay a little more -but going to the dealership is your best bet for the gaskets. Which V6 do you have-it should say on top of the motor? I would assume a 3.1 in that case -if memory seves me- you should need 2 gaskets. 1 of those will be in a set of 3 gaskets the other is for the throttle body. as for the 3.4 -get the book I really don't know but should be pretty similar to a 3.1. If by some slim chance you have a 3.8 ask me all the questions you want. 3 gaskets/1 of those in a pack of three

[lrymal]

Originally posted by enforcer
....And get that Dex-cool crap out of your car just use anti-freeze.

Curious..., what's wrong with Dex-cool anti-freeze? We've used it on our vehicles for years and one (1985 Olds Calais) has over 240,000 miles on it. First changed the Dex-cool out at about 90,000 on it. Been doing it at about 80,000 mile intervals since.

[enforcer]

Dex-cool is proven to eat gaskets. If you notice some of the new cars no longer have it. I know its not just the dex-cool- crappy gaskets have something to do with it-but anti-freeze never ate up gaskets(even crappy ones). Some cars are lucky enough to have descent gaskets. Pontiacs weren't blessed.

[lrymal]

Originally posted by enforcer
Dex-cool is proven to eat gaskets.
I don't mean to push on this, but could you give a URL or some reference on this? It is a fairly important statement for those of us who like to hold on to cars for a long time.
Some cars are lucky enough to have descent gaskets. Pontiacs weren't blessed.
Likewise, a URL or reference on this one, also. Thanks!!!! :)

[enforcer]

I didn't get any of my info from the internet. I had a leak through my intake. With about 50 techs signatures GM fixed the leak for free (98 Pontiac fixed in 02-not under warranty). GM knows the Dex-cool turns to jelly in very extreme temps.
Maybe I made to much of a general statement. Go to clubgp and search for intake leaks. Mainly 3.8 pontiacs. You do the math. I know there were over 100 write-ups in there at one time.
Take it as you want-but have you ever had a problem with antifreeze. If so-then your biased just like me and dex-cool.

[lrymal]

50 automotive technicians? Goodness!!!
These URLs might help:

http://autotoystore.com/caretips.html
http://www.penray.com/bulletins/dexcool.htm
http://www.in-motion.net/~adaniel/maint/dexcool.htm
http://www.startribune.com/stories/435/21199.html
http://www.theherd.com/articles/dex_cool.html

Basically, here is what I get from all of these. Low coolant level will mix air into the anti-freeze. That's BAD. You'll get sludge which can cause chronic clogging, and then you have failure, electrolysis, which can also cause gasket problems.

Your water pump is now aluminum. Dex-cool is superior in protecting it, but if Dex-cool has been compromised by low coolant level, or by mixing with the green stuff, then the protection offered to the pump is now at risk.

If mixed with the green stuff, treat it as regular anti-freeze with no more than two years of service.

Do NOT use tap water to create your 70:30 ratio mix. Tap water contains minerals and, if you live close to the coast, SALT. To NOT tap off your reservoir with TAP water. Distilled water is CHEAP. Build your 70:30 mix with that.

From a personal perspective, as mentioned before, we have serveral 100,000 mile plus vehicles and they are all tight. I have always hated using personal experience in an argument. It is ancedotal and suspect to personal bias. But, PERSONALLY, with all of our vehicles, we have never had a coolant-related problem using the manufacturers' recommendations. Dexcool has been awesome here, especially on the life of water pumps. And, we have never had a gasket leak with the manifolds.

Perhaps the only "negative" observation I have seen with Dexcool is that it is too sensitive to a non-perfect world. The green stuff is certainly more forgiving.