• The site migration is complete! Hopefully everything transferred properly from the multiple decades old software we were using before. If you notice any issues please let me know, thanks! Also, I'm still working on things like chatbox, etc so hopefully those will be working in the next week or two.

98 Grand Prix GT 3800 V6 leaking oil

Fritcr

Fritcr

New member
My GP is leaking oil all over the place. I can't figure out where it is coming from. At first I thought it was the oil pan gasket but it seems more concentrated to the frontish or oil filter side a bit of the engine. It is everywhere and I can't really see where it is coming from. Is there certian oil leaks that 3800's are bad for in that area or do you think it is probably the pan gasket? Any help would be great! I'm a newbi here.
Rob
 


Have you taken a look from under the car yet? If not, get your car up on some ramps. You will be able to see for sure if the pan gasket is the problem. You will also have a better idea of where the leak is coming from, so therefore you will no longer have to use words like "frontish" ;)
 
valve cover gaskets are all the same. the GT's leak as well...I had to replace mine this past month.

is it coming out in a steady stream? or is it just dripping? does it do it when the car is running? or off?

if it is coming from the belt side of the motor.....

oil pan gasket- possibly
oil filter housing gasket- possibly
front main seal- possibly
valve covers possibly
 
Not saying it's not leaky valve covers, just saying that GM isn't going to fix the covers for free due to the recall unless you had the supercharged L67 model. My GT has an oil leak, but I still haven't seen anything leaking underneath. I'm not looking forward to eventually replacing the oil pan gasket. Valve covers are going to be replaced soon, too.
 


Ok I put is up on the stands yesterday again and it has seemed to slow down for some reason but it has leaked out almost 1/2 quart in 2 weeks on the garage floor. I have only driven it like maybe 200 miles in that time. Anyway, it is NOT the valve cover gaskets. There is no oil at all coming down the sides of the engine. There is oil drips on the pan gaskets bolts...mostly the back side of the engine (firewall side). Most of the oils is coming down and going into that "cradle" sort of thing under the front (belt side) of the engne. There is a cradle thing...I'm assuming it is part of the lower engine mount maybe? Anyway that thing has a lot of oil in it and then it drains down under drips on the floor. I can't really tell if it leaks more running or if it makes a difference. Because of this cradle thing I can't see where it is actually coming from. I'm taking in tomorrow to my mechanic to find out what it is. He told me the they were bad for oil filter adapter gaskets. I tried to look and see if that's where it is coming from but I can't really tell.
Thanks for all of the suggestions!
Rob
 
Couple things that I can think of on the front of the engine like that. The oil filter is right there. Could be that the oil filter is loose and leaking. Or, the gasket from the old oil filter could still be stuck to the block and the new one isn't sealing correctly. May need to pull off your oil filter and have a look. Or could simply be leaking from the oil filter adapter. There is a gasket that seals this to the block. But the first thing I though about was the oil pressure sending unit. That is right in that area as well. And that could be leaking. See if you can see it leaking from any of those places.
 
Mechanic said it is my power steering pump. I had put lucus in it and I guess it just looks so much like oil that I didn't realize it was the power steering pump. He said the pan gasket is seeping a but not where all of the oil spots are coming from. So I guess I need a new pump and also it needs a rack. (I knew that already)
Has anyone put a rack on themselves? I have never tried to do that. I have problems with my neck so most (under the car) stuff has to go the garage up the street. I will do about anything else though. He said 7 1/2 hours to put a pump and rack on it. WOW. I'm just trying to decide if I should get new one's or get one from the junk yard. Looks like the rack and pump on the 98 Montana that was rolled is not the same. SHOOT.
Rob
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top