karrkrazzie Posted November 21, 2010 Report Share Posted November 21, 2010 Getting ready to do my upper and lower intake manifold gaskets tomorrow fr the first time on my 99 lumina 3.8. I got the steel reinforced set from napa. I am just wondering if there is anything special I need to know about the project before I get started, any pointers or special instructions, thanks a lot for anything. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AL Posted November 21, 2010 Report Share Posted November 21, 2010 Check out the FAQ section... There is a write up in there that should help you Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mfewtrail Posted November 21, 2010 Report Share Posted November 21, 2010 Check out the FAQ section... There is a write up in there that should help you http://www.w-body.com/showthread.php/44936-L36-upper-amp-lower-Intake-Gasket-Replacement-Factory-service-manual-scans Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karrkrazzie Posted November 23, 2010 Author Report Share Posted November 23, 2010 The car has 162000 miles on it, I was thinking that maybe it would be worth it to replace the head gaskets while im in there, mostly cause it would suk to have to do this all over... My car is not showing any signs of a bad head gasket. I guess I am just wondering if it is worth it if they arent bad yet? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ron350 Posted November 23, 2010 Report Share Posted November 23, 2010 You just don’t hear about 3800II head gaskets going bad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Addicted to eaton Posted November 23, 2010 Report Share Posted November 23, 2010 i have a motor with 274k miles on it. ran a smaller pully over 100k of the miles. And it had no head gaskets yet. Infact i have never blown one. and thats saying something. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xtremerevolution Posted November 23, 2010 Report Share Posted November 23, 2010 Right, my last 3800 went 214k miles before I pulled the head gaskets as I wanted to port the heads, and they were perfectly fine. This is not an issue on these engines. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karrkrazzie Posted November 23, 2010 Author Report Share Posted November 23, 2010 then i shall leave them alone, thanks guys. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slick Posted November 23, 2010 Report Share Posted November 23, 2010 I dunno, I've seen several 3800 with blown head gaskets. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Addicted to eaton Posted November 23, 2010 Report Share Posted November 23, 2010 weird. i can't remember one. Not question your word or anything thing chris. I just mean weird lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slick Posted November 23, 2010 Report Share Posted November 23, 2010 Ask Rob. He's had to do a couple. I've seen others with failed gaskets as well. Not quite as common as the 60*'s though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AL Posted November 24, 2010 Report Share Posted November 24, 2010 He cant really ask Rob, as Robs banned Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slick Posted November 24, 2010 Report Share Posted November 24, 2010 Facebook? Email? Phone? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew Posted November 24, 2010 Report Share Posted November 24, 2010 get new coolant elbows and the improved upper manifold. Forget the headgaskets. Drain some coolant so you dont make a mess. Oil in the LIM is normal. There are 2 blind bolts that will be hidden by the oil. Follow torque specs when puttin it all back together. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimmyfloyd Posted November 24, 2010 Report Share Posted November 24, 2010 Agreed. Get a new coolent elbow and make sure you remove the old one completely. Don't do headgaskets. About 3/4 of the time you hear about head gaskets going it is actually a leaking LIM/UIM gasket giving it the symptoms of head gaskets. Make sure you clean the mating surfaces and make sure to use some silicon around the side pieces for the LIM as there is a small space at the edges that might need to get filled. Replace your injector O rings if you have to remove them as a preventative measure. A lot if the engine fires have been attributed to leaking injector o rings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BXX Posted November 24, 2010 Report Share Posted November 24, 2010 Ask Rob. He's had to do a couple. I've seen others with failed gaskets as well. Not quite as common as the 60*'s though. Only way you will ever blow a headgasket on a 3800 is way way way too much boost, or it was overheated to all fuck too many times, or the coolant system got highly acidic and started eating away the gaskets. With iron head and iron block, its hard to blow them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alec_b Posted November 25, 2010 Report Share Posted November 25, 2010 Only way you will ever blow a headgasket on a 3800 is way way way too much boost, or it was overheated to all fuck too many times, or the coolant system got highly acidic and started eating away the gaskets. With iron head and iron block, its hard to blow them. Took the words right out of my mouth. Haha Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Addicted to eaton Posted November 25, 2010 Report Share Posted November 25, 2010 Facebook? Email? Phone? i have all lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karrkrazzie Posted November 27, 2010 Author Report Share Posted November 27, 2010 i have all lol Well it already has the better UIM and my brother, Nick1234, made sure to tell me to pick up new coolant elbows, he also said something about not byuing the ones from autozone because they suck, so I am going to the dealer in the morning to pick those up and we are doing all the work on sunday. I got new injector o rings, I got 2 kits from napa, and made sure to get the stell reinforced LIM gaskets, Were exactly do you need to put some extra silicone to help fill a gap? Thanks a lot guys for all the help, really appreciate it. Also any ideas on what to do with a stripped thermostat housing hole? A While ago i put in a 180 degree thermostat and one of the bolt holes is totally stripped. I got a little bit of a longer bolt and got it torqued but I am thinking just in case I need to take that off and it wont go back together as it is. I only got about 1.5 turns out of it when i tightened it last time soo. Any dieas would be great Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alec_b Posted November 28, 2010 Report Share Posted November 28, 2010 Once you have the LIM out you should be able to drill and tap the hole to the next size up. Otherwise before you start hit up a member here maybe someone has a replacement LIM lying around and is willing to let it go cheap. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AL Posted November 28, 2010 Report Share Posted November 28, 2010 I have a spare lower intake I could sell for 45 plus shipping... Has 44k miles on it but I won't be in Toledo to get till this weekend... If you can't wait I have one that has more miles on it (not exactly sure) for 30 plus shipping Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karrkrazzie Posted November 29, 2010 Author Report Share Posted November 29, 2010 Ill have to let you know... Got everything apart today, and was in the process of putting it back together, and just stopped because that hole is stripped and the bolt wont go back in, and it being sunday night there is nowhere open around here where I can get a tap and a new bolt. I am gonna try and take care of it tomorrow, otherwise I will be needing a new one. I wouldnt mind the one with more miles being that the engine in the car has a 162000 and that one is fine soo, dont see that being an issue. I will keep you posted, thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AL Posted November 29, 2010 Report Share Posted November 29, 2010 Not a problem... I can easily find a box for it and ship it out next day... Just shoot me a PM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karrkrazzie Posted November 29, 2010 Author Report Share Posted November 29, 2010 Got the hole tapped and the thermostat is torqued down. Thanks for the offer though, it was nice know I had an alternate option On to the next problem though... I am a moron and when I was trying to replace the injector o-rings i broke off a little piece of the lip that holds the o-ring on it is probably about 20-30 percent of the entire lip that is missing. Do i need to replace this injector now, or will it be okay? The nozzle itself is not damaged at all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xtremerevolution Posted November 29, 2010 Report Share Posted November 29, 2010 Got the hole tapped and the thermostat is torqued down. Thanks for the offer though, it was nice know I had an alternate option On to the next problem though... I am a moron and when I was trying to replace the injector o-rings i broke off a little piece of the lip that holds the o-ring on it is probably about 20-30 percent of the entire lip that is missing. Do i need to replace this injector now, or will it be okay? The nozzle itself is not damaged at all. I found a retaining clip that I used in place of that little plastic retainer. Worked perfectly fine for me for a while till I replaced them. I do have a set of L36 injectors for sale with no more than 20k miles on them. PM me if you're interested. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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