Looks like a gasket went

[therapyreject]

Was driving the other day, and noticed the car was running hotter than usual, with a fluctuating temp. Never went near the red, but still noticeably higher than normal. Then the low coolant light comes on, so I figure the coolant is low. I get home and the expansion tank is empty so I fill it. Next day I top off the radiator directly, and it takes about 3/4 of a gallon. Now I know its something I have to keep an eye on.

Today, I drive for maybe 20 minutes, temp fluctuates again and runs a little hot. I get home, and the expansion tank is empty again. Fill it up, let the car cool and fill up the radiator directly. Takes a half gallon. No puddles under the car. Now I know something is wrong

I take off the oil cap, and very light smoke is coming out. I look at the cap and I'm sure you can guess what I find. Milky gunk.Same thing on the dipstick. Oh boy.

I searched through the forums and saw its more likely to be the intake gasket than the head gasket, which I guess is good. So I'm looking at around $750 or $1200, respectively? I'm going to have it pressure tested to make sure, I just want to get an idea of what I'm in for.

2000 with the 3.1L. 161000 miles.

[maxwedge]

No quick answer here. there is a test for head gasket leaks that can be done also.

[therapyreject]

Took it in, and they said the head gasket is toast. Quoted a price of 1700. I know thats a little high, but I live in a rural-ish area so I dont have a lot of options for mechanics.

I'm going to make a drive and get a second opinion, because I dont know if its even worth fixing for that cost. The car only blue books for 1700 in good, 1200 in fair.

[ptcfast2]

Originally Posted by therapyreject

Took it in, and they said the head gasket is toast. Quoted a price of 1700. I know thats a little high, but I live in a rural-ish area so I dont have a lot of options for mechanics.

I'm going to make a drive and get a second opinion, because I dont know if its even worth fixing for that cost. The car only blue books for 1700 in good, 1200 in fair.

$1,700?!? You could buy a new/rebuilt 3.1 engine for that price!

If you have the time, see about doing it yourself? It's not a hard job, and if you set aside a weekend for it you can get it done with a simple Haynes manual and a few extra tools you might need to purchase. If you can't do it yourself make sure you shop around if at all possible.

[therapyreject]

Yeah, having the gaskets done is out. I got a few quotes for rebuilding the engine, anywhere from 2000 to 2600, all with at least a 1 year/12k mile warranty. Two quotes were like 4200 but they offered a 100,000 mile warranty. I'm leaning towards rebuild since the car is otherwise in good condition.

Just out of curiosity I asked a shop about swapping the engine for the 3.8 L67. Told me they can do it, but a lot of other things have to be replaced (which I knew), and that getting it smogged would be a pain in the ass (I live in CA). Would be like 4500. Its a fun thing to dream about, but just not realistic.

[therapyreject]

I found a 98 LTZ with 110k, for about 2500. It has most all options; ABS, 3.8 engine, power seats, leather, sunroof. Versus spending around 2k to fix my base 2000 Lumina with 161k, I think picking up an LTZ with less miles is a way better investment.

Any drawbacks between the years/trims that I should know about before I decide to make the switch?

[ptcfast2]

Originally Posted by therapyreject

I found a 98 LTZ with 110k, for about 2500. It has most all options; ABS, 3.8 engine, power seats, leather, sunroof. Versus spending around 2k to fix my base 2000 Lumina with 161k, I think picking up an LTZ with less miles is a way better investment.

Any drawbacks between the years/trims that I should know about before I decide to make the switch?

None that I can think of. The 3.8 may not be the BEST engine in the world, but it's not a bad step up in performance from the 3.1. Can't say much about their longevity though...I've only seen 3.1's with upwards of 300,000 miles on them. 3.1 engines are tanks as long as you take care of them (and solve the intake gasket problem)!

Anyways, they redesigned quite a few parts on the 2000+ Luminas that don't exactly match up with the older gen models. Nothing major really...just modernization stuff and general improvements. I say go for it. A loaded LTZ is a nice sedan...I've been eying one for sale around the corner for a few weeks...but I don't think I can part with my base 98 just yet. I've put too much work into her and she still runs like new.