A big payday on this boring old Buick LeSabre flip with engine trouble
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- Опубликовано: 25 ноя 2021
- I bought a non running 1998 Buick LeSabre with an extra engine for $500. I suspect I will not need the engine but rather a new intake manifold and some gaskets. Let's find out if my hunch is correct. Then let's talk numbers and see what the return on investment was for this quick flip.
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Finding a car like this, with a problem big enough to discourage the existing owner but well known enough to generally be a good fix is a real skill. You essentially buy the car for crush weight and turn it back into something that someone will value at least to a reasonable level, and will probably run a few more years yet. Excellent work!
That's basically what I did with my daily gas saver
Can last far longer than that if the owner has any sense.
The engine will last until you die. The rest of the car will deteriorate much sooner.
The Dorman coolant elbows are ok BUT the O-rings turn into mush and leak after a year. You can use the Dorman metal elbows but need to use OEM o-rings.
Nothing nicer than seeing someone who knows what they are doing, plus plenty of tips for others, good job scott and you didn’t even need assistance from the pizza girl
Man you're giving me PTSD. I learned the hard way about the melting plastic intake back when I was 19. I hydrolocked one after doing the lower intake gaskets for the first time. I did the same thing you just did and she ran like a top! There were times we'd do two 3800 intake jobs a day and I swear by noon GM had changed the part number on those gaskets.
I just get the updated aluminum intake. stops the melting forever.
"There's your problem, lady" I was thinking, what is this, a crossover episode? And here you are.
My record is 4 of these in one day. I can't remember how many different torque specs, gasket types, tightening sequences and colors of locktite GM has been through to fix their issues. lol I just consider intake gaskets to be part of normal maintenance on any GM 94ish- 09ish. After that, they blow up before the intake gaskets can go out!
@@vehcor I believe This problem went back to the 2.8L in the mid 80s. (Celebrity, 6000, etc).
@@alb12345672 The 3.1 liter were fun too. You had to take off valve covers and pushrods.
"There's your problem, Lady!" "Not a sponsor." Someone's been watching SMA!
Still one of the best engines gm ever made.
Everybody keeps saying this. Long blocks were great, tons of problems with all of the accessories GM bolted to them. Plenum, lower intake gaskets, bypass elbows, oil pan/valve cover gasket leaks.
@@mph5896 Most of the time these issues reared their head after a absolute boatload of miles or now that they have decades of service on plastic parts. This is the case for any engine . Not every ever car had these issues. Especially if they were maintained. A shit ton of miles on Old Ass oil really trashes any plastic bits on any car. My first 3800 L67 I swapped into my 88 fiero had 255k any had none of the issues save for the recalled valve cover gaskets and various plastic bits. It was done in by a quick lube place that didn't tighten the oil filter on a road trip I replaced it with a 02 L67 that had a stack of maintenance receipts from a Park avenue with just shy of 200k. It had been re ended and I pulled it at the salvage yard and swapped it into the fiero. I warmed up the oil and changed it. Nothing was touched save for the alternator (that was forked by the fork lift at the lot) until I pulled the S/C to Powder coat it 2 years later. Only then were any of the intake gaskets replaced. That was 4 years ago and its still a absolute Powerhouse today. My 2001 Buick Regal GS I drove from 2004 until 2019 and had 197k of non hwy miles on it before selling it to my Sister that's in her 60's . She continues to drive it today with only the valve cover gasket recall and a carrier pin in the diff ever being done to it. It's sitting at 213k and has no major issues. None of them I have had my hands on have ever had issues with the oil pan gasket. These engines over time will see the deterioration on the plastic bits on it due to age but in their day they were rock friggen solid. Any decent 3800 that's in good running shape ought to run for decades more with minimal maintenance . Just as shown in this video. He knows that or he wouldn't have messed with it.
They were good engines mine started knocking at 248.000 miles so I sold it. I miss my Buick. It floated right over the bumps and it was very comfortable.
Maintained....they were solid. I've had a few
Yes 3800 engines were great. I had that same engine in 91 Olds Toronado..
Those 3800s were used in a longitudinal configuration down under in the Holden Commodore from 1988 to 2004, usually paired with a 4L60(E) auto. A rock-solid and bullet-proof drivetrain that could (with proper care) last 500,000km even out here, long after it's contemporaries are bundled off to Asia as cubes of scrap metal.
The old VN Commodore. It was favorite amongst car thieves as it was easy to steal and the same model as the police! Fun to flee from the cops in the exact same car!
Excellent video, I really like the torque rag for tightening the oil filter😎
Should be tightened by hand only as seen here
3800s are really easy to work on I changed 10 of them engines in the past but my 05 buick lacrosse had the series 3 3800 with the aluminum upper intake it had over 200.000 miles on it when I sold it never touched all original
One of the best ever made.
That was a nice quick flip. The car looked decent and those 3.8L Engines are normally good running and efficient on fuel. Thumbs UP to you Scott.
Yeah....straight from GM ....re-designed intake gaskets . They did have a re-call on these but it was unannounced .....thanks GM . Keep up the GREAT work !
Lightweight mechanic here. Really enjoy the no nonsense manner in which you make these videos. Thanks...
"Dear engineer this is how the oil change is supposed to look alike." Is correct. That 3800 series motor is the champ.
Those adjustable locking hammers sure do come in handy.. 😁
Great car for a new driver. Big, safe, and won't break a person for repairs. Nice work!
Yes! I love the old stuff. Cheers, Scott.
Best wishes from England 🏴
Thanks, the old stuff was easy to work on!
This isn't even old, but with all things relative it's old-ish. I love your content and I appreciate anyone who just chooses to get the job done and isn't intimidated by any challenge! Keep showing the next generation that all things are doable.
I love the G8s too!
@@vehcor with all due respect you forgot to put oil on the filter seal 🦭
I used to specialize in those 3800 cars, specifically 00-05 Impala police cars. I would literally buy 4-5 cars at a time with rod knocks and swap in close to new series 3 engines I could buy for $2-300.
I did lower intake gaskets on my 1997 V6 Thunderbird many many years ago. I bagged and tagged all the bolts. I remember having over 30 bags. I was proud of the work, but never wanted to do it again! 😂
I'm sure the 2nd time would have been easier. The 3rd time is when you get cocky and mess it up.
I use to buy 3800 vehicles off craigslist often about 10 years ago, with "bad head gaskets". I use to show up with a intake in hand and a set of plugs and drive em home.
Nice clean car. Always liked the Buicks, especially Park Avenue. Driven lots of Centurys in 90s/2000s.
Weird, I looked on your Amazon store, and I couldn’t find the torque rag listed there. I’ll keep looking. 🤣
I also have a verbal torque wrench and a torque rag. Both precisely calibrated. Thanks for the laughs Chris oh and outstanding content as usual.
I like seeing these flip cars, you should throw them in here every once in a while...not literally 'throw', you'd probably hurt your back!
Very Happy to see some mechanic skills, more up most peoples skill set. Enjoyed this video and a thumbs up is on the way.
After watching this latest addition of boring build Friday you keep giving me hope for the antique vehicles of the past 😂 keep up the good fight
HAD A 2002 LeSabre,nice safe feel,comfortable,great passing gear drove up from Detroit to Colorade twenty times,ran like a dream.
It also helps if you have enough experience to know what some of the common failures are on various cars. Nice job!
yep, every engine has an achilles heel, even the bulletproof 3.8.
I like the simple flip videos. Thanks for putting it out.
Loved this. Great change of pace. Learned a lot.
I did this intake job with somebody and wow what was it a fun learning experience, gm knocked it out of the park with these engines. reliable and easy to work on
I wait every week for your videos. Love the Commentary and info you provide. Best channel on RUclips!!!
No question there.
I see that little promaster is proving to be a replacement for all those GMC trucks that Scotts GM truck emporium has!
Nothing beats experience. Well done.
I own a 1994 Buick LeSabre that I bought brand new. Back in 2010 when my car had 125k miles on it, I decided to replace my plenum and lower intake manifold gaskets. These gaskets were almost toast so my decision to replace them was a good one. My car now has 185k miles and it is still running strong.
No Smoke Show! I have done this on three Series II 3800s, 2 Lesabres and an 88. The 88 had the gasket failure and the Lesabres were done as a preventative measure. Very well done instructional on your behalf! Thank you
One of the best engines GM ever made. Some of the engineering decisions with components bolted to it though is something different. It seemed like the aftermarket was quicker to fix 2 of the main issues: coolant elbows and melting upper intakes. Multiple engines from multiple brands had issues with plastic valve covers in that era.
This is how to flip a car. Great job Scott. You & Eric. O at S.M.A share some killer lines, but he's got you beat on the Brake Cleaner introduction, no music Scott!..... but you got him beat on bringing a car in, he doesn't scream! Great channel, whatever the content! :-)
Drain the pool! Great video Scott. My 96 Grand Am 3.1 needed its leaking intake manifold gasket replaced when it was 7 years old and now I finally can understand why.
Nice flip! Hard to find and at the same time knowing probably what the issue is and that you can fix it. Of course a lot of that comes from experience. Sometimes you think you know, then it ends up costing quite a bit. You were fortunate here that all was as you predicted, and you had a plan 'B' in the wings with the other engine. Good job!
Loved watching you work on this car! Hope you had a great Thanksgiving!!
Boring Flip Friday🤩 Entertaining as usual, Scott👍 Keep bringing us along as you bring em back👌
My parents century had the 3100 and it was a beast in the snow. Kinda wish it didn't need intake gaskets 3 times in my recollection from HS to college.
Think it was flooded but I learned something new with the coolant leaking and hydro lock the engine. See why I love this channel. 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼
Great job. Great video. Congratulations on your flip and thanks for sharing. Happy holidays to you and yours.
Thanks for another great video. That is probably what happened to my friends Buick. The mechanic showed her all the rust in the radiator and said the engine was shot! She bought another car. He probably fixed it and made out well for himself!
Talk about a profit! I could use a car like this as a beater to drive to work! Nice work Scott!
I enjoyed seeing you work on something older. Can't wait to see more of your most recent Pontiac G8
I had one of these as a loaner for about 6 months in 1999, and I actually enjoyed it. But I was only 31 then, so by law (well, ok, maybe it was my girlfriend's complaints) I was too young to keep it. Now I'm 53, and I wish I had it back.
I've got a 2003 LeSabre with 53,000 sitting in my driveway. The throttle sticks horribly and the brakes are out, not to mention non functioning power windows. Too good not to want to get fixed, damn I need help! Plain to see this guy is amazingly efficient at what he does, well done!
You’re Incredible man. Wow what a great mechanic. !!!
My Mom has an 04 Lesabre with less than 100K miles. She lives in Minnesota and I don't believe there's any rust on it. She keeps it clean and well maintained. Never had issues with the engine. She hasn't driven since Covid, I don't thing she ever will again as she's 91. Someone is going to get a pretty nice car some day. It's the top end model. Biggest issue has been the wheels, They've corroded and don't hold air.
My 1960 Pontiac demonstrated why they stopped using rods for the throttle mechanism. For whatever reason they use motor mounts that are a piece of rubber through the middle and can completely break. When that happens, under acceleration the engine lifts up. When the engine lifts up, it jams the linkage and floors the gas pedal.
Fortunately being a 1960 with manual steering and brakes it was easy to just turn the key off and regain control. But since it was a daily I had both mounts wrapped with coathanger wire about as much as the hanger would go, until new ones arrived.
Scott, I have an 03 and did the Dorman by-pass aluminum connectors. Looking forward to the intake upgrade and thank you for pointing out that EGR upgrade. Was not aware of that.
Interesting video. I wouldn't mind seeing more engine repairs or swaps in the future.
Vehcor a buddy of mine is a mechanic I was at his shop one day, there was this 2015 Escalade, it sounded like the lifters were shot, they replaced lifters new cylinder deactivation thing on top of the head, put it back together still making the noise, it was a second belt still connected behind the main one was and it was the compressor for the ac, I would of chewed the guy out, the mechanic, but he said no it’s a learning experience. Crazy hey.
Smart thinking leaving everything connected when you disassemble the intake. Unplugging 35 hoses and connectors are just a chance to snap 35 plastic retaining clips. I like using ratchet straps to hold back wiring harnesses and stuff. Makes it easy to get things out of the way a wee bit more if necessary when you're lifting stuff in and out of the engine compartment. Might just be a convenience thing though. I usually find bad bungee cords and good ratchet straps when I need to do such things.
I’ve love this channel and I love Buicks!
We need a “in the pile” shirt
Perfect video I learnt a lot but would never try that I don't have the tools but its useful to be able to speak to the engineer or mechanic that's going to rob me for the job! Enjoy your expertise and share your sense of humour!
I love Buicks. I admire the men who keep em on the road. An old Buick will still get you 40-50k miles farther than an old or crap anything else.
Considering the age of those cars I see a surprising amount of them on the road
very interesting. Thanks for the flip.
I love these Buicks with the 3800 V6. This engine is one of the best GM ever developed. Love these Buicks because they are not flashy yet they provide some luxury. This will be a true blue flip car.
Putting your hands in the sludge with no gloves. I can hear the clean freaks screaming from here. 😂😂😂
I bet they got second hand cancer! 😂
@@vehcor I bet they left the one (so far) dislike.
Cannot believe you used the incorrect torque rag for the oil filter . . .should have been a BLUE one for that filter 😂
I loved this one since I had a 3800 in my 2002 Grand Prix. I wish I still had that very low mileage car, but I traded it in on my Denali in mid-January of 2020.
I love the change up.. keep them coming.
Good Call. Great job.
Did this on a 98 Regal GS with the Supercharger. Chose not to replace the steering rack and ditched that car. Good power in that little sedan though. Also nice references to South Main Auto...LOL
Certain Companies must love you after slagging off their Cars &/or Components but I like your brand of humour & Sarcasm, you certainly know your way around an Engine so keep up the good work from the UK.
Nice job, I have the same car and I do this job exactly 3 years ago and still run fine!
Thx for the video! Keep up the good work!😊👍
Great video/ content
I like how you have been changing it up
Good one - 3.8L I have a 2001 gmc 1500 4.8L with 78, 800 miles. Origional owner. Door sticker says built 12-2000 Canada plant.
Texas truck that was used for wheels a few weeks a month. It runs great has crank windows and is the base model. Paid $17,800
brand new. Would like to buy a Tundra or newer GMC pu.
I dont have enough gold bars to pay for a new one. Thanks for your pro videos, i like the humor as i usually have similar. Good job with your channel, love the content.
Thanks for the support!
why would you buy a new truck that will give you nothing but headaches? stick with what you have..."old reliable". I'm actually looking for an older pickup as I'm tired of all the BS with newer ones.....
Take care of it. Those GMT800s are good trucks and will last a long time if you treat them right.
Keep that truck you have!! Its worth more to you than what you paid new. If you buy a new truck you'll lose that much in instant depreciation!!
You do realize that in 2001 there were people complaining about the cost of your truck. By the way, using the CPI calculator your $ 17,800 is $ $31,276 in Nov 2021 $.
Thanks for sharing and enjoy the humor. Am concerned that the painting gnomes had nothing to do.
Good one. Thanks for sharing.
Enjoying the channel. Tks for sharing.
I own a 99 buick LeSbre limited love the car when I bought it it had 70 thousand miles on it I had the intake changed because of this problem it now has 150 thousand miles love the car
These vids are awesome. Keep up the great work Sir!
Great overview on the intake replacement; I am about sold on getting one of these Regal/LeSsbre/Lucerne versions. Seems to be a very underrated but reliable and easy to maintain car :-)
Looks a clean car for its age,that is the best oil filter wrench for the job,I alway use it where possible. Not many 1998 car left in that condition over the pond in England where I live! Great little car for someone now.
I know nothing about car engines, but you make it look so easy, I wish I could do that, not the cleaning though.
other than the car not running it looks to be in good shape, congratulations on a good find.
Excellent video! Thanks!
Try a mix of three parts oil, one part transmission fluid in the engine. The trans fluid absorbs water and cleans inside the block. I had a '93 Chevy with a 4.3 blow the intake gasket, and before I figured out where the water was going there was four gallons in the crankcase. I changed the oil with trans fluid mix every day for a week, just drained the filter and reinstalled it, and it was spotless inside after that.
I thoroughly enjoyed this
Great video, and funny too! Thanks
I usually do valve cover gaskets and plugs when doing this job also...just easy and seals up more leaking!
Man's confidence is incredible. Incredible video 🤙
Say what you want but the Buick 3800 series ranks up there with Chevy 350's,,i found the big Buicks (LeSabres,etc) a joy to work on, my experiences.
I find this interesting, because here in Australia we died get the 3800 Buick engine from the mid 80s, but turned 90 degrees in our Holden Commodores, but we don't get plastic intakes so we don't have this problem. Using water in the cooling system does make the in take and timing cover corrode sometime and dump the cooling system into the oil anyway.
Great job,all that work just to hold the harness back and slide it in. Cheers from Jacksonville Florida 🌞
Sounds like the northstar engines and the head bolts and the pontiac 2.8 and 3.1 that almost always end up toasted due to bad head gaskets. It's almost as if they didn't learn a think after building engines for 80 years......
I didn't know Dorman stuff was lousy. I guess you live and learn. I have worked on lots of 3800 engines. Not too bad at all.
👍👌👏 Extremely well done again and as always (video and work). I said it before and I say it again: You are truly a cool guy!
Thanks a lot for making teaching explaining recording editing uploading and sharing.
Best regards luck and health.
Friday evening in the Netherlands. Vehcor is on the tube and rocking...😁
Same exact thing happened on my 96. Just finished lower intake gaskets, upper intake assembly, and upper plenum gasket.
Nice job. Came out great looking.
Great job as always 👍🏼
While these Buicks can be boring, they are safe, comfortable, affordable, and fairly reliable modes of transportation. My wife's '04 LeSabre is a great example, and I am looking for another like the one in this video for my daughter. It's nice to have a lot of metal around you when you are driving surrounded by maniacs, and doing so in comfort is a plus.