Engine Cooling System Problems of Oldsmobile 88

I brought my car in to the dealership for an oil leak and while there the mechanic also checked the coolant level. It was low. He pressure tested the system and found the coolant cap to be not sealing properly. I paid for my repairs and left. The next morning the check engine light came on. I brought the car back to the dealership. They found the engine was misfiring. They checked the coolant level again and it was dry. The intake manifold had melted and coolant had leaked into the engine and was consumed by the engine. Now I need a new intake manifold, gaskets, spark plugs, wires, and an oil change to the tune of $800+. I have searched on the internet and found many similar complaints. Why does gm not do anything. The intake manifold was plastic. Plastic does not belong in an engine. I hope you make them recall this.

See all problems of the 1999 Oldsmobile 88 🔎.

My Oldsmobile 88 year 1999 had engine failure in 2005 with only 59,930 miles. The upper plemum desintegrated allowing coolant into the cylinders, locking up engine. No warning except rapid raise in engine temperature only about a minute to pull over into a parking lot.

My Oldsmobile 88 was loosing anti-freeze. There was a recall on the fuel pressure regulator, so I took it in for recall repair and had the dealer check the coolant system. They said my intake manifold needed to be replaced at a cost of $1200. This is the second time I have had to have this done to the car. The intake manifold was replaced at 60000 miles. Apparently the plastic manifold is not able to handle the heat. My car has never overheated and this should not be happening. I have 133,000 miles on the vehicle and should not have had to replace this manifold twice.

See all problems of the 1998 Oldsmobile 88 🔎.

Consumer took the vehicle to the dealer because the check engine light came on. After having a dianostic test done repairs weres done to rectify the problem. Mechanic told the consumer that a recall was issued.

Intake manifold failed. Coolant leaked inside the engine. Dealer notified. Oldsmobile delta 88,1988.

Coolant leak into engine caused car to run extremely rough to the point of having to stop. The car would not restart. Had it towed to a repair shop. The engine had seized due to coolant leak resulting in damage to the head gaskets. The head gaskets along with the upped plenum had to be replaced at a cost of $1100. After research on your sight, I found this problem on several other 1998 olds 88 cars. I also found that a technical bulletin had been issued to dealers about this problem. Why wasn't this problem with the upper plenum that is referenced in the technical bulletin sent to owners of these vehicles. I found the many other model of gm cars also use the 3800 engine with a plastic upper plenum that can crack over time from excessive heat.

Gradually you will see a depletion of the anti-freeze from the holding reservoir. This is could be a sign that the intake manifold is beginning to leak anti-freeze (just a little) into the engine. Sooner or later when the erosion is large enough then a plume of white smoke will come out of the exhaust and you have no choice but to pull over and call the tow truck. I have replaced the engine intake manifold twice on my 1998 olds 88 due to degrading of the interior wall where the anti-freeze flows back into the engine. Both times the total cost of the repair (including plugs, wires, new manifold, labor) was around $1,200. On the last manifold gm had established adding a piece of metal where the anti-freeze was eroding the "space age plastic" intake manifold. Based on this, gm knows this is an engineering problem, but they will not take ownership of it and or pay for it.

Ltr to gm reimbursement for repair on recall defect of intake manifold on 1998 Oldsmobile eighty-eight. The vehicle intake manifold failed prior to recall notification. When the consumer started the vehicle it backfired and shut off. The consumer attempted to restart the vehicle several times without success.

Oldsmobile delta 88, 1998 63000 miles "coolant temperature warning" light came up while I was driving on highway. I drove about 1/2 mile to the service area. Turned off the engine. White smoke expelled out of exhaust pipe, a smoke odor was inside of the car. Turned the engine on 10 minutes later. There was complete silence. The engine got locked up because a coolant leaked into the engine from the upper plastic intake plenum. The engine was replaced. It is a common problem for 1995-2000 gm 3800 VIN k engines.

My vehicle has only 50,000 miles on it and already has an internal leak of radiator fluid. There has been no leakage under the car from any hoses or components. My engine light has gone on now and the car is sputtering. I have taken the car down for repair and they state that the plastic intake manifold has cracked causing the fluid to be sucked out of the radiator system and evaporated through the engine. My car has not caught fire, but according to the information on this site, I see that my car is in danger of having that happen.

Leak in coolant system spread to the engine which resulted in the engine needing to be replaced. The engine developed a leak in the cooling system before it had become obvious, the leak spread to the engine. The engine was replaced. The consumer's father had experienced the same problem with a new 02 Buick lesabre due to the 3800 engine's defect that caused the leak. (this happened to three of their Buick vehicle's) NHTSA action #ea02030.

Car overheated without any visible signs of this but the red area of the gauge then the check eng light came on. Pulled to side of the road, checked it got it cooled down, then proceeded to the very next rd to gas station for better view of what was going on. Got to it very quickly and the temp was back up. Stopped let it cool and added water to the now empty resovair that was full when we started the trip. And no signs of leakage and no boiling over, let it cool. Added water. Then tried to crank it up, it would not. Had to have it towed to dealer, thought eng had locked up. Was told their was a feature to this car that shuts down the eng when a leak like this occurs. Wondering how many other people are taken because they thought the eng was gone. . . . . . And it was not. But it somehow damaged the starter when all this happened. I had a mechanic check out the car before we left on this trip, had the oil changed and everything. But something went wrong when the leak, and running hot occured. Not sure how it messed up the starter. But also know since it shuts the eng down, locks it up, how many people are having to get a new eng cause their person did not know about this feature as well.

Engine sputtered and shut down causing loss of power steering, power brakes, etc. Fortunate not to have happened at high speed or in heavy traffic. The engine locked up completely and would not restart. Cause was coolant leakage through crack in plenum which had to be replaced at a cost of over $700. This is very likely the cause of the following consumer complaints listed on your site: odi id's - 553119, 883623, 886028, and possibly others that were unexplained. I only searched for olds 88, but the same engine is used in pontiacs, and other gm makes. This problem is common enough to have been listed by the automotive service assoc. Of arizona repair shops - see their website and an article under the title "coolant leakage" which explains the problem very clearly. The plenum is plastic, and is simply subjected to more engine heat than it can safely handle over time, causing the cracks to develop over time, hence the continual and gradual loss of coolant until it finally gives way resulting in too much coolant leaking into the engine to allow for combustion. As stated earlier, this engine shutdown could be very dangerous at higher speeds or in traffic.

Car sold with 100,000 mile coolant-- part backordered-- can't get due to short supply. Requested that dealer contact olds zone manager for warranty / cost of failure support. No response as of this date. No safety defect listed.

No summary listed for above vehicle.

Misfiring, backfiring, stalling and coolant leaks due to leaking plastic intake manifold and gaskets. Dealer claims to have found no problems in sept. 2000. Kept having problems. Took to another repair shop and upper intake gasket was replaced, failed 2 weeks later and was replaced again. Leaks coolant onto floor. Can smell coolant in passenger compartment and garage where parked.

See all problems of the 1997 Oldsmobile 88 🔎.

Vehicle is continually loosing coolant, several repair attempts with the replacement of the water pump however vehicle continues to have leakage.

Three other persons reported the same water pump failure.

The radiator and water pump failed prematurely due to corrosion, also the heater core failed.