INTAKE GASKET MAIN PAGE, PLEASE POST Q'S&A'S HERE! - Page 6

cdru · 10-14-2005, 12:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by denyp

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.

There is a stud that you have to remove to get to one of the valve cover bolts. But then it should just pop right off. There shouldn't be any clearance issues.

Quote:

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.

Doing one head without the other is a bad idea. By resurfacing the one side, you change the thickness of the head, and therefor the compression ratio. It is very small, but there is still a difference and isn't good for the engine to run "unbalanced". Also, the thinner head means that the distance between the intake manifold and the head increases. With a vehicle that is plagued with intake gasket leaks, you don't need to help the problem. Always do both heads that the same time, even if one side doesn't have a problem just to keep them balanced.

Quote:

Several hundred miles so far and it seems to have solved my problem.

Keep an eye on it. When I did mine the first time, the problem didn't reappear for several months so I too thought it was fixed.

cdru · 10-14-2005, 12:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jayeli

is it inevitable that it will eventually go?

No. There are literally millions of 3100 and 3400 engines on the road. It is definitely a major problem, but it is not inevitable. 02 or 03 was the cutoff year IIRC for where the problems seemed to start to stop so you might get lucky that way.

Keep an eye on your coolant levels as well as your oil cap. I haven't heard of any catastropic failures where the gasket failed all at once. There is usually symptoms that slowly start to appear early on and if caught early, doesn't cause damage.

albs770 · 10-27-2005, 01:54 PM

I have a 2000 venture. during a regular visit to the garage, the guy told me that the intake manifold gasket needed to be replaced and quote for over a thousand dollars. There's no sign of any trouble of the vehicle. I ignored it. Recently I found that the coolant level was low and the warning light came on. I top it up and need a lot of coolant. It seems that they are leaking into the engine. Should I replace the gasket now or can wait a bit longer. What other troubles will you get later?

denyp · 10-27-2005, 02:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by albs770

I have a 2000 venture. during a regular visit to the garage, the guy told me that the intake manifold gasket needed to be replaced and quote for over a thousand dollars. There's no sign of any trouble of the vehicle. I ignored it. Recently I found that the coolant level was low and the warning light came on. I top it up and need a lot of coolant. It seems that they are leaking into the engine. Should I replace the gasket now or can wait a bit longer. What other troubles will you get later?

It can cost you a great deal more if you put it off! Anti-freeze in the oil will ruin bearings and chances are better then even you will end up blowing a head gasket, warp or crack the heads ...!

Deny

billluk · 12-09-2005, 03:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by krbernier

anyone have instructions for replacing the intake gasket on my 2002 venture? i cant locate a manual for it thanks

If your Venture has less than 100,000 kilometers, take it to the dealer, chances are they will fix it under "secret" warranty.

cdru · 12-13-2005, 07:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by billluk

If your Venture has less than 100,000 kilometers, take it to the dealer, chances are they will fix it under "secret" warranty.

As mentioned many times in this and the other u-body forums, there is no actual "secret" warranty. It's a goodwill repair, purely at the option of the dealer. The more loyal your service history is at the dealership, the better your chances. But there is no guarantee that they will do anything for free or even a discount.

sbays14 · 12-16-2005, 03:05 PM

I,m a newbie to this site but like most in here i have the dreaded leaking intake gasket on my 1999 venture (83,000m). i have bought a haynes man. and am getting ready to tackle this beast. Is there anything i should know that is not in the man.(u cant always believe what u read) don,t want any hidden surprises!

dj1111 · 12-31-2005, 05:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sbays14

I have bought a haynes man. and am getting ready to tackle this beast.

I have no advice for you but I'd like to hear how it went. I don't think I know enough swear words to get me through that complex of a repair.

jayeli · 01-10-2006, 02:47 PM

ok i've looked and looked on this forum but haven't found a definate answer to this: what is the month/year that the new gaskets began to be used? my 02 venture, 53k was built 5/02.

this post ( http://www.automotiveforums.com/vbul...d.php?t=495805 )suggessts the new gaskets began to be installed in 7/02, but it's not certain or definate. so when exactly was it?

sometimes i can smell coolant/antifreeze after turning off the venture in the garage and the reservoir level seems to have moved slightly down but i don't have the brown or milky substance on the oil cap. i asked this question previously...is it inevitable???

cdru · 01-11-2006, 02:48 PM

No it's not inevitable. Some vehicles have it. Some vehicles don't. A little movement of the level up or down is normal.

If you are really paranoid about it, taking a sample to be looked at is the only sure way to tell you if you have an internal leak.

4432flying · 01-17-2006, 07:37 AM

Can high oil consumption be caused by a bad intake manifold gasket in a 2000 venture? High oil consumption started 6 months ago and now I am loosing a lot of coolant. I worked at a Ford dealership in the 60s and the small v/8 could really suck a lot of oil through a bad intake gasket. I have replaced many of them, but I am to old to tackle this project.

cdru · 01-18-2006, 08:22 AM

Not likely. The location of the intake gaskets really doesn't get a lot of oil splashed around it. It's a fairly "high and dry" type place; it's not submerged in a constant stream of oil.

4432flying · 01-18-2006, 08:58 AM

Thanks cdru. That is the info. I was looking for. Now I have two problems instead of one. I was hoping to solve both at one time with intake gasket replacement. This auto forum is great. Thanks again.

Huney1 · 01-21-2006, 06:20 AM

Old info

hufhouse · 02-07-2006, 09:26 AM

I am in the process of doing this repair now (I'm talking about it over at the Pontiac Montana forum) and I just wanted to repeat to everyone a resource that was mentioned earlier in this thread. Someone did a pretty complete job of explaining this repair. This link, along with a Haynes Manual, has made me (my most complex repair in the past was brakes) pretty confident that I can handle this. Here's the link:

http://aklr.free.fr/envrac/Intake_Ma...ket_How_To.doc

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