My RS is in the shop, and the Chevrolet Service Consultant claims that Valve Cover Seepage is "Normal" in the 3800?! He said his car has that engine too and replacing the seals will still result in seepage. My Ext. Warranty company claims they will only cover a dripping leak, and that seepage is not a failure. HUH?! Seepage *IS* a leak.

Do many of you have seeping 3.8L valve cover gaskets, viewable from beneath the car?

 

Am I the only one? I'm at ~77k mi.

 

Your not going to win this one. GM been saying for years seepage is normal and oil consumption of 1qt per 1000 miles is normal.

My 3800 shows no sign of seepage and does not require oil between changes (5K mobil 1).

 

Mines has a slight weep but it's also in need of a few other gaskets soon. I wouldn't worry about it unless its fairly bad.

 

I can't see how it's normal. To me, the valve covers just are not held down with bolts in enough places to be torqued enough to prevent seepage. I would say it is a design flaw...

Yea, my RS (and SS) both require extra oil between changes...

 

Design flaw because you can see seepage after 10 years? Remember the purpose of a car is to move you from place to place. The fact the the motor gets a little dirty does not effect the way the cars works in anyway. If it is truly seepage you are talking CC's of oil between changes.

At the dealership when a good, repeat customer come in and want this fixed the service writer will just write leak, if he puts the word seepage on the WO GM will not pay for it. GM change to Black paint on the motors to make seepage harder to see. Now you want to talk bad design lets talk 1986 back Valve covers. Heck that design was around for 30 years and it was good for NOT LEAKING for 3 years tops with the factory gasket. Man I resealed a lot of 305 valve cover under warranty back in the day most of those where my car smells like burning oil.

 

I noticed mine seeps as well,when I went under the car I was worried that I had a coolant leak or something but noticed the seepage is by the oil pan,I was confused until I saw this thread

 

What most people do not realize is that gaskets and some seals could not care less about miles, their life is measured in time. Sure seals will cut into a shaft and make you think it cause of miles but the reason it cut into the shaft is because the seal got hard due to age. Over heating a car can really speed up the process.

 

What are "CC's"? Cubic Centimeters, I assume.

I also assume there is some good trick to see seepage on a black painted motor -- anyone know? UV Light?

Regarding "Over heating a car can really speed up the process." -- do I hear you advocating lower temp thermostats?

 

Seals are rated to a working temp, as long as they do not go over that they are ok. If your fans fail to your stat sticks then end result can be damaged or rapidly aged seal. I have seen no testing that shows a well made seal will last much longer if you maintain a lower (within it working temp) temp. So a 180 deg stat will not make your seals last much longer if at all.