Mr.ChevZ34 Posted March 28, 2008 Report Share Posted March 28, 2008 Here is one for yas......1994 Buick Regal limited with a 3.8L.We replaced the water pump and that nasty heater hose already and its sealed for sure.However, all of this work has been done well over a month ago and we can smell coolant often.It does drop about 1 litre a week which isnt terrible but still a pain.There doesnt seem to be any physical evidence of a leak though. Is there a spot on these motors that leak coolant and is hard to find or is just building up? I was thinking maybe something to do with an intake gasket because it will randomly stall every now and then when you come to a stop. The oil also looks clean.Any suggestions? Thanks Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chadz34 Posted March 28, 2008 Report Share Posted March 28, 2008 Here is one for yas......1994 Buick Regal limited with a 3.8L.We replaced the water pump and that nasty heater hose already and its sealed for sure.However, all of this work has been done well over a month ago and we can smell coolant often.It does drop about 1 litre a week which isnt terrible but still a pain.There doesnt seem to be any physical evidence of a leak though. Is there a spot on these motors that leak coolant and is hard to find or is just building up? I was thinking maybe something to do with an intake gasket because it will randomly stall every now and then when you come to a stop. The oil also looks clean.Any suggestions? Thanks Mark The engine could be burning the coolant as it runs, in most cases the culprit is intake gaskets or headgaskets. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIGBULS Posted March 28, 2008 Report Share Posted March 28, 2008 in most cases the culprit is intake gaskets or headgaskets. Yep............Series I 3800's leak at the LIMG and (worst case) the cylinder head gaskets. Series II's do the upper intakes, and sometimes the lowers as well (but almost NEVER the headgaskets). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr.ChevZ34 Posted March 28, 2008 Author Report Share Posted March 28, 2008 alright i kinda figured thanks again guys you are all lifesavers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DOHCRagtopguy Posted March 28, 2008 Report Share Posted March 28, 2008 That may be the intake that is made up of composite material that melts at high temp. I know they had probs with the EGR passages. Perhaps it is warped, causing leakage. Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIGBULS Posted March 28, 2008 Report Share Posted March 28, 2008 That may be the intake that is made up of composite material that melts at high temp. I know they had probs with the EGR passages. Perhaps it is warped, causing leakage. Good luck! That's a problem limited to 95-00 Series II 3800's. Redesigned manifolds for all 01+ cars (and some 00's), and Series I's never had this issue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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