INTAKE GASKET MAIN PAGE, PLEASE POST Q'S&A'S HERE!

[GMCritic]

Thanks for the input! The shop I took the van to said the lower intake manifold leak is very common, but the heads usually aren't a problem with these vans... but then again, neither is the transmission (mine went out at 37,000 miles). I'm looking seriously at purchasing a extended warranty before another big ticket repair comes my way.

[Wubs]

Originally Posted by olson96

I have step by step instructions, I can email you the attachment

I tried to email you, but you are set not to receive emails, can you please email me the instructions: wubs@korola.com

Thanks!

[cdru]

Olson96 hasn't been around for close to 8 months. I doubt you'll ever get a response from him. Your best bet would be to spend $15 and get a Haynes manual. The instructions are fairly detailed and should be all that you need.

[xjohnny_dangerx]

To anyone with experiance changing there intake gasket.

1. Did you change both the intake and head gaskets at the same time?

2. Did your vehicle burn coolent through the exhaust?

3. After you changed the gasket was the problem fixed?

4. Did your gasket look like this?

Any help would help me decide if i should change the headgaskets also.
I think i found the problem being the intake gasket, because of there crappy condition. If you've changed the gaskets and your old ones looked like this it would help me determine if i have the same problem.

[cdru]

1. No. The first time I did my intake, I did just the intake. I used an aftermarket FelPro gasket. The 2nd time, 6 months later, I did it right and used the redesigned OEM gasket as the FelPro was a POS and the problem came back (or more accurately, never fixed). A week later I had to tear everything back apart as my head gasket went. Generally speaking, the heads don't HAVE to be done but you are 3/4 the way there. It's an extra $150-200 for the parts that need replaced and the labor to resurface the heads.

When you take off the intake manifold, you will have a lot easier access to the spark plug holes. It's very easy at this time to preform a leakdown and/or compression check on the cylinders. This can give you a better idea about the heads.

2. Not when my intake when, but when my heads went yes. It 99.9% impossible for coolant to get into the combustion chamber with an intake manifold gasket leak. If coolant is getting into the combustion chamber, you almost defintely have a cracked head or cylinder wall. The only places where coolant goes through the intake manifold are on the ends, close to 2 inches from any air intake port. If the gasket is going to leak, its going to leak into your engine oil or externally.

3. Yes...to both head gasket and intake manifold gasket. The head gasket in my case was allowing exhaust gas to be injected into the coolant system, allowing the engine to overhead (air "embolism") as well as pushing out most of the coolant to the overflow tank.

4. Is that a new or old gasket? My gasket was black with an orange sealing rubber around holes. In places the orange rubber had been squashed down...yours looks pretty good still. That being said, if it is used, you still need to replace it. If it's new, take it back to where ever you got it and get the redesigned gasket. The redesigned gasket has two metal spacers at the ends, one on each side of the bolt hole. Yours doesn't have the spacers.

[xjohnny_dangerx]

Well, i did decide to take it down to the heads... got the heads off and my problem wasn't the intake it was the head gaskets...

That was the old gasket, it was craked in those darker spots and i thought it was bad, but it turns out it was still good.

I plan on buying a felpro gasket set from autozone, it's 152.00. Even though it's not the best it will have to do because i'm poor, and that's not too expensive.

I appriciate your info on gaskets, I didn't know the felpro set wasn't redesigned. I'm make sure to seal it up really good so i can atleast hasten any reoccuring failure.

[cdru]

Originally Posted by xjohnny_dangerx

I plan on buying a felpro gasket set from autozone, it's 152.00. Even though it's not the best it will have to do because i'm poor, and that's not too expensive.

I appriciate your info on gaskets, I didn't know the felpro set wasn't redesigned. I'm make sure to seal it up really good so i can atleast hasten any reoccuring failure.

You can't "seal it up really good". The gasket design is flawed. If you use the old gasket style, you WILL be doing it again. Maybe next month. Maybe 6 months. Maybe in a year. I hear ya on the money issue as I'm not made of money either, but you really should get at least the OEM intake manifold gasket. Is 12 hours of your time worth more or less then $46 (the cost of the intake gaskets)?

And you are going to check and possibly resurface the heads, right?

[Wubs]

Originally Posted by cdru

I hear ya on the money issue as I'm not made of money either, but you really should get at least the OEM intake manifold gasket. Is 12 hours of your time worth more or less then $46 (the cost of the intake gaskets)?

By "OEM intake manifold gasket" do you mean from a GM dealer (if so, do you have the part number) or do you mean aftermarket like at a parts store (if so, which Manufaturer & part number)?

Thanks for being a resident expert on Montana/Venture!

-Wubs

[cdru]

Originally Posted by Wubs

By "OEM intake manifold gasket" do you mean from a GM dealer (if so, do you have the part number) or do you mean aftermarket like at a parts store (if so, which Manufaturer & part number)?

OEM stands for Original Equipment Manufacturer aka dealer only part. Many parts non-OEM (aka aftermarket) works just as well if not better. However with the intake gasket, pay the extra and get the dealer part. Just tell the dealer what you are looking for and have them look up the part. They should have the latest revision of the part number. Even if I knew the part number (which I don't), it could have been superceeded for a revised design since I got it. Unfortunately any decent sized dealership likely would be able to recite the number off the tops of their head as soon as you mutter the words "3400 intake gasket".

And I'm not sure about resident expert...I've just done it 3 times in the past year so it's pretty much burned into my head.

[KJRich]

I got a gasket from NAPA, and they claim to update theirs to the current OEM standards. 10,000+ miles on my new gaskets, knock on wood.

[lead]

Originally Posted by olson96

I have step by step instructions, I can email you the attachment

hi lead here. can you email instructions. thank you!!!!! frist time user?

[cdru]

Originally Posted by lead

hi lead here. can you email instructions. thank you!!!!! frist time user?

You are replying to a 10 month old post by someone who hasn't posted since and made a grand total of 3 posts. Your chances of getting the e-mail are very slim to none.

If you want the instructions, you would be much better off by spending $15 and grabbing a Haynes manual from a autopart store. The process is actually pretty well spelled out with detailed pictures.

[Denali]

I tried to do this job last weekend but failed. I removed almost every part neccessary for this job, but I was not able to remove the coil pack. There are two retaing nuts on the front and two on the rear. I absolutely couldn´t loose the nut on the rear on the driver side. There is another part located above this bolt so it was impossible for me even with the engine rotated forward. For everyone who tries to do this job: make sure loosing this coilpack will be one of your first tasks, otherwise you should not go farther. I have canceled this job and start mounting everything back in place. The good thing was that the lower manifold bolts were very loose and I could tighten them a little bit with use of thread locker so I hope this will last for a period.

[denyp]

I've a 97 Venture. I did this over my vacation. My leak was in the front bank and was the head gasket as well as the intake. Local dealer wanted $1500.00 to do just the intake gasket!!! What a rip-off.

I do have a question for others who have done this. How did you get the rocker arm cover off on the back bank? I roatated the engine foward as far as it would go - into the fan and radiator. Still not enough clearance. I ended up doing just the front half - which was where it was leaking. I also pulled the front head and had it ground and had a valve job done on it as well. I couldn't get at the rockers on the back side so I coated the gasket liberally on the back bank with high temp silicone.

Several hundred miles so far and it seems to have solved my problem. I did have to pull the upper manifold again to replace an injector that apparently dried out while it was out.( Pulled it appart on a weekend - sent the head out for rework, and put it together the following week)

I wish I had found this forum at the beginning of my over-heating problems. We replaced a water pump, radiator, thermistat ( Dealer hit me $299.00 and change for the thermistat replacement) Obviously I didn't get out of town after the wonderous repair. My home is 150 miles from where I work. I ended up putting the van on a U-haul car hauler and trucked it to my home.

Nuff said - thanks for listening

Deny

[jayeli]

my 02 venture just turned over 50,000 miles. there's no sign yet of the intake manifold gasket leaking. i keep a close eye on it, but is it inevitable that it will eventually go?