Extra Warning signs heed for intake gasket going out.
Hey guys, its the guys with the 1998 Intrigue, 3.8L V6, 62000 miles (yup, pretty low!)
So I just went through the gasket experience. Luckily there wasn't any damage to the cylinder walls to have to address or anything like that. I was lucky! I wanted to give some extra warning signs to the intake gasket going so that others can know as I didn't see any of the typical warning signs nor did I have a catastrophic failure.
1. Irregular idle. It was almost imperceptible. I'd start the car in the morning and while walking around it getting loaded sometimes I would hear the car drop maybe 100 RPM for just a second or two before coming back up. Turns out this was tiny amounts of coolant going into the cylinder. This wasn't affecting the engine once it was powered up but at idle it was causing a light bog.
2. Burning smell. This usually indicates a leak of some type. While my valve covers are also very lightly leaking, it was nothing compared to the oil leaking from the intake manifold and running down the side of the engine. I couldn't see the leak because it was weeping down the back side of the engine.
3. Unexplained oil loss. This is what did it for me. I check my oil once a week (in fear of the head gasket issue!). One night I came out from work at 2AM and turned on my car and it said "Add Oil". Sure enough, I pull the dipstick and its just on the Add Line. Considering it was just below the Max line 6 days prior, I knew something major was up. I couldn't find a leak until I looked at the protective shield under the engine and noticed there was a pool of oil. I didn't know until daylight after I got the car home that it was a mixture of oil and coolant. Luckily the coolant was going outside the engine rather than inside the cylinder (in large amounts anyways).
2 days later, $600 lighter, I am back in business and I lost the burning smell and the occasional rough idle.
Hopefully these new gaskets will last me a long time!
EDIT: Clarification that these are the *intake* gaskets and not the head gaskets.
Hey guys, its the guys with the 1998 Intrigue, 3.8L V6, 62000 miles (yup, pretty low!)
So I just went through the gasket experience. Luckily there wasn't any damage to the cylinder walls to have to address or anything like that. I was lucky! I wanted to give some extra warning signs to the intake gasket going so that others can know as I didn't see any of the typical warning signs nor did I have a catastrophic failure.
1. Irregular idle. It was almost imperceptible. I'd start the car in the morning and while walking around it getting loaded sometimes I would hear the car drop maybe 100 RPM for just a second or two before coming back up. Turns out this was tiny amounts of coolant going into the cylinder. This wasn't affecting the engine once it was powered up but at idle it was causing a light bog.
2. Burning smell. This usually indicates a leak of some type. While my valve covers are also very lightly leaking, it was nothing compared to the oil leaking from the intake manifold and running down the side of the engine. I couldn't see the leak because it was weeping down the back side of the engine.
3. Unexplained oil loss. This is what did it for me. I check my oil once a week (in fear of the head gasket issue!). One night I came out from work at 2AM and turned on my car and it said "Add Oil". Sure enough, I pull the dipstick and its just on the Add Line. Considering it was just below the Max line 6 days prior, I knew something major was up. I couldn't find a leak until I looked at the protective shield under the engine and noticed there was a pool of oil. I didn't know until daylight after I got the car home that it was a mixture of oil and coolant. Luckily the coolant was going outside the engine rather than inside the cylinder (in large amounts anyways).
2 days later, $600 lighter, I am back in business and I lost the burning smell and the occasional rough idle.
Hopefully these new gaskets will last me a long time!
EDIT: Clarification that these are the *intake* gaskets and not the head gaskets.
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