Lower Intake Gaskets - Again!

[SSEBonne4evr]

Lower intake started puddling around the bolts, it been around 10 yrs since I did them
with felpro's as preventative maint.
Never thought they would go again with only 35k miles since I did them. Dang.
All makes coolant is no better than the Dex I guess.

Have the 89017816 set that I hope solves the problem.
I'll also install the reduced stove pipe / intake shield I had machined by a good friend.
The rest is being re-used. The coolant elbow has 35k on it.

Problem is its cold in CT this month and certainly not the time of yr to tear it down.

Remedy is to torque the bolts and install Bars leaks to hold it off.

[nos4blood70]

Make sure to check up on your oil to make sure it's free of coolant, don't wanna nuke the bottom end.

Even though your coolant elbows are low mileage, I'd still try and pick up a set of the aluminum ones. That way you will never have problems ever again.

[SSEBonne4evr]

Good point on the elbow, I see a 2 pack at Advance for $15, aluminum.

Not much I could do now, its 17 deg. out all week long.
I need a good 75 deg day to do this, Maybe April?

[SSEBonne4evr]

Just picked up the metal lower gaskets.
Can't remember, are the two sides the same part?
They look identical.

[GotBonneBWitMe]

I believe one has 2 near even sides , and one has one side longer if I can remember correctly. Use the one with the 2 even sides.

[toastedoats]

I am not convinced that Dex contributes to the LIM failure at all. I preventatively changed my LIMs at 120k, still had the 7 year old DEX and gaskets from the factory in it and they were the cleanest gaskets I have even seen on a 3800

[J Wikoff]

Dex as the cause or not, the plastic LIM gaskets still fail uber frequently. There are little expansion slots around the ports in the plastic ones that seem to be common points of initial crumbling. And old Dex is known to sludge if not flushed well before the advertised life is over. There are exceptions to everything, but replacing the plastic gaskets and the old Dex is relatively cheap insurance.

[SSEBonne4evr]

I looked up my records, did the lowers as preventative @ 76K miles 10 yrs ago.
All they had was plastic back then, so I tried Felpro's.
Flushed the Dex at that time and put in "All makes, models" coolant.
Now they are leaking again, thought I was good to go, but that's life.

[SSEBonne4evr]

I believe one has 2 near even sides , and one has one side longer if I can remember correctly. Use the one with the 2 even sides.

the two gaskets are identical with the same number on them. Must be interchangeable?

[Tim's Buick]

|Isn't the Toyota coolant the same as the dex? A different color though? Never see too many problems with Toyota gaskets or engines and they use the same stuff?

Had to replace the plastic gaskets on my brother's olds 3300 and it always had green.

I have a few corroded passages on my old 3800 that could leak into the engine if I did not have new gaskets on it. Seems when I tear into a newer car with newer type coolant it does not corrode the cooling system as bad. Mostly just the plastic gaskets failing.

[SSEBonne4evr]

|Isn't the Toyota coolant the same as the dex? A different color though? Never see too many problems with Toyota gaskets or engines and they use the same stuff?

Had to replace the plastic gaskets on my brother's olds 3300 and it always had green.

I have a few corroded passages on my old 3800 that could leak into the engine if I did not have new gaskets on it. Seems when I tear into a newer car with newer type coolant it does not corrode the cooling system as bad. Mostly just the plastic gaskets failing.

I think the Dex is orange and the Toyota is red.

Hey, need any citation parts?