» » »

Chevrolet Q&A

Ask Your Question

1998 Chevrolet Malibu Question: Intake manifold and valve cover gasker and thermostat repair

 

Question

jmaccjr, 3.1L V6, Fontana, CA, January 25, 2010, 19:52
 Rookie

Right after start up and about 10 min driving my temp sky rocketed. I pulled over and it went to normal. Drove home and found my car was leaking coolant under my car by the belts and my hoses were hard and full of pressure.. Took to a shop and was told to replace intake manifold and valve cover gaskets and thermostat... $350 for job... picked up the car and drove home I noticed it is still leaking from the same place. Took it back and now I need a water pump $75 more... Why could they not diagnose that first... Did I get screwed or was it a common mistake for them not seing that? Please help

1 Answer
Answer It
Flag This

  • Answer #1

    Bret Bodas from RepairPal Test Shop, January 26, 2010, 15:25
     Master

    It's hard to know without seeing it, but if the intake manifold was leaking above the water pump it's possible they didn't think it was leaking. However, a good technician will pressure check the cooling system after working on it to verify the repairs, and it doesn't sound like this happened. It sounds like they are giving you a good deal on the water pump, but I would ask them why they missed it and is it possible the intake manifold gasket wasn't leaking? They may have misdiagnosed this, but good luck getting that to admit it if they did.
    Good Luck

    Reply
    Flag This
Answer Ranks

This week's top 10

1 globalhelper 6 csubak30
2 pushrod 7 Hal...
3 ziptie12 8 elk
4 milesauto 9 gearhead89
5 ella1234 10 Eric Sevim