I have a 2003 Chevrolet Impala with the larger (3.7 L?) 6 cylnder. It has recently developed a significant cooling leak only when the car is runing. I took it to the dealership and they reported that it had several leaks in the cooling sytem incuding an intake valve. The service advisor said that it was currently leaking to the outside but left unrepaired would soon leak into the engine ruining it. They want $950 to repair it. Said it’s burried deep and that it was a 5-6 hour job, requiring replacement of multiple elbows and gaskets. I am wondering about the liklyhood of multiple leaks appearing at once. Is this likely to be the problema and will it really leak into the engine?
Leaking intake manifold gaskets have plagued many GM engines. I had mine replaced on a Caprice V8. It cost about $200 in 1998, but the rear drive V8 was easy to work on. The $950 quoted is not unusual for a dealer.
First, I should ask you if the car is still under warranty?
I would check first if there is a recall or a “secret warranty” on this item. These are free fixes to acknowledged problems when the owner puts on the pressure.
In any case, you have no choice but to fix this; an external leak will easily turn into an internal leak as well. And the cost of this is very high. If the dealer can do nothing for you, I would get it fixed at a good independent garage. If the labor is 6 hours, there is about $40 per hour difference between the independent shop and the dealer, so you would save 6x40=$240 at least.
A friend of my wife has a Saturn with the same problem, and the dealer quoted $900+ to fix it.
Is this another ‘Death-Cool’ story? If the coolant used is the GM orange coolant, called Dex-Cool, it turns to a gasket-eating acid if an incompatible coolant, like green ethylene glycol was added, or a leak developed where air was allowed into the cooling system. Do a search on this forum for ‘Death-Cool’ to read some of the horror stories. If the dealer will not do the work under warranty service, check for a good independent shop to do it a lot cheaper.
My Certified 2000 Blazer (bought Feb 2003) developed an intake gasket leak right after I changed the coolant, it had ~44k. I asked nicely and the dealer agreed to split the repair 50/50 even though it was out of warranty (39m/39k for GM certified). Dexcool is not bad in itself, but if any air gets into the system corrosion and sludging will develope quickly. I decided to switch over to green antifreeze after the repair was done. My regular mechanic confirmed the coolant was leaking into the oil. He told me the coolant will displace the oil from the crankshaft bearings and ruin the motor. I have 90k on the truck and the repair is holding.
Good luck,
Ed B.