My '01 GT

[lysoll]

Just found the website and their is a lot of good information on here.

I have had my '01 for about 2 years now and it has about 81000 miles on it. I have had a few problems with it, luckily it was covered by the extended warranty. Front wheel bearing was replaced, the transmission also took a dive at about 71000 miles. I read in another post this was a GM issue? What kind of issue and is it something I need to investigate further? After it was rebuilt, the valve body went bad and had to be replaced, not very impressed with the GM dealership.

I was wondering if somebody could be a little more specific on the lower intake manifold gasket? I read in a post it was an engine recall? What kind of noises should I listen for? Will I leak any fluids? Will it damage my engine?

Thanks for any input!!!

[GTP Dad]

I am not certain about the recall on these gaskets but you can check recalls.gov to search for it based on you model. Leaking lower intake manifold gaskets will present themselves with water on the intake or you may see water in the oil. If there is water in the oil then the oil will look like chocolate milk. If water gets in the oil and you keep driving it you will ruin the engine. Keep tabs on the coolant level if you see it dropping then check the oil immediately and look for external leaks. The gaskets have been improved on more recent models but they are still a problem. Good Luck! and Welcome to AF!!!

[lysoll]

Thanks for the info and I will keep an eye on it. I change my own oil and have found nothing unusual about the appearance of it in the drain pan. My uncle runs a shop in minnesota and I was going to get with him about how much it would cost to put a new gasket in.

Now that I am thinking about it, it has been about 10000 miles since the tranny was rebuilt, Should I get it flushed since most of the parts were replaced and there is probably some metal particals floating around? Or do I wait until the schedualed maintanance?

[BNaylor]

Originally Posted by lysoll

Now that I am thinking about it, it has been about 10000 miles since the tranny was rebuilt, Should I get it flushed since most of the parts were replaced and there is probably some metal particals floating around? Or do I wait until the schedualed maintanance?

It is highly recommended not to get any type of flush either full or fluid exchange on a 4T65E tranny, especially with your mileage. Pan drop consisting of screen filter and ATF only.

[richtazz]

I 100% agree with bnalyor3400 on the trans flush issue. On the intake issue, the lower intakes can develop an oil leak at either the front drivers side or rear passenger side corner. The biggest intake issue on these cars is with the upper plenum. The factory intakes have an issue with the EGR stove pipe passage cracking near the bottom of the throttle body area, causing coolant to leak in to the engine. The 99-up's are less problematic than the 95-98's, but still have an issue. If you see coolant leaking from under the throttle body, or have coolant mysteriously disappearing, I'd suspect an upper intake issue. Just to clarify, the 3100 engines leak coolant into the oil, the 3800's normally leak externally or directly into the cylinders. Many dealerships suggest changing the lower intake while doing the upper plenum, but it's my experience in the 99-up it is not necessarry, as long as you have no oil pooling around the 2 locations mentioned above.

[BNaylor]

I agree with Rich. The '99 and up normally do not require a lower intake gasket change. They have a modified EGR stovepipe (smaller). It is either the Plastic UIM or just the UIM gasket.

Here is a UIM with EGR stovepipe damage. Symptoms will be excess and unexplained coolant consumption. Driveability problems may be cylinder misfires.

[lysoll]

Thanks for all the great info!!! I will definetly keep an eye on a few details. The coolant seems to be at its regular height, no water in the oil, and no white exhaust.