Hi all,

Bought this car new off the lot in 1997. Currently has 94,500 miles. Color is white with taupe leather interior. This is not my first H-body. Previously owned a 93' Olds 98 Super charged touring sedan. Wound up giving it away to charity at 130.000K, no longer could tolerate/justify the $$$ repair the car. Wish I could have something positive to contribute to this forum. But I have had a hell of a time with both these cars. Yup, water leaks through the door seals/cowl, manifold leaks, replaced water pump 3x, alternator 2x, power steer pump 1x, A/C clutch, A/C condensor, oil pan leaks, HVAC blower, new gas tank and sending unit, EGR vlalve, serpentine 3x, pulleys......more, lot more. I just ordered the Kenco UIM, because I'm paranoid that mine will also fail, stranding either myself/wife/family. Now I read about possible under hood fires. I'm at the breaking point, after I install this new intake, may just sell this car and be done with it. On a positive note, the paint and body are in absolutely superb condition. So is the interior. Car runs excellent, tranny never gave me a problem - ever. Someone convince me why I should keep this car. My other car was an '05 Accord that never went back to the dealer on a 3yr lease. I just bought the wife an '08 Maxima. I need some piece of mind for myself, just can't take the constant pressure of having to maintain this car any longer. At this point, I'd be happy with a used but reliable "import" as a replacement.....help!!!!

First off, welcome!!

I just spotted the problem. You have the white curse. Might as well sell it for a different color.

When I bought this car, it seamed like 1 out of 10 people around here owned either a Bonneville, Lesabre or Olds 88. GM sold a ton of these cars. Now, you"ll only see a few Series 1 and Supercharged cars driving around. I've been taking note, and rarely see anybody driving a Series 2 (95-99) car. Been going to the same oil change place since new and the tech told me I'm the only customer left with a Bonneville. Appears they are all in the wrecking yard, most likely a victum of UIM failure. I changed the LIM and UIM gaskets at 59,000 and went to the orange non- dex coolant. Hasn't used a drop of coolant since. But, I've come this far and will install a new Kenco UIM kit. Absolutely will not change the LIM gasket. Just can't deal with that elbow again and the possibility of not doing it perfectly. Causing a problem when this is non in sight at this time. Been there, done that.

Well you've already paid to fix most of the car, might as well keep it. And any common underhood fire issues (I can't think of any specifically common with a 97 L36) should be taken care of with recalls. If you go to a dealership and have your VIN run, they can check that out.

What could have been wrong with your gas tank?

Also, the "White Curse" refers to something we've noticed around here that a high percentage of accidents and weird problems seem to happen to white cars.

Still a lot of older Bonnevilles around in this area.

What could have been wrong with your gas tank?

Tank was leaking and the gas lines attached to sending unit had mega layers of rust. Road salt must have caused this corrosion to occur. The cost to repair the tank was no less than to just replace it with new.