By all means pursue burping the baby. But keep your eye on the coolant.

-It'* been cold but extremely dry here in PA since Sat. Moisture in the exhausts will show low. Burning coolant will last longer and rise higher. but you're right it is a subjective call. I am smell challenged too from too many broken noses in sports. But sweet is actually a function of your taster, not your nose. If you are really stupid like me, you can put some cloth in one of the tips. when it is good and damp do a quick taste.

BTW, did they swap out the plugs? They were the smoking gun for my uppers failure. On the port side of the plug, it will be clean. Both the entire side electrode and center electrode tip will be white. The other side of the plug will exhibit normal firing.

Yes, they did swap out the plugs. I forgot to mention that. (I'll try to edit my original post.) They didn't save them for me, but no doubt they're as you describe. This baby really sucked down some coolant at the end. Thank goodness I was a block from destination, and shut it off when I did, because I had no idea what was happening.

I have the original UIM in the trunk, I want to check the date codes, to see if it was replaced before I bought the car (53k miles) or if last week was the first failure.

I still think I have a pinhole radiator leak somewhere. But I need to get to a car wash and thoroughly rinse off the rad and surrounding frame members, with fresh water, so I will know for sure if I see more wisps of steam coming from under the hood. I wonder how long I can nurse that along.

Why not just put my face down there, and inhale repeatedly. It would prevent me from having to deal with another UIM failure.

Meanwhile, very short daylight trips, and an eagle eye on the reservoir. I wonder if I will *ever* trust this car again, now that I know how badly the engine is built.

What prompted GM to go to this design in the first place, when the original 3800 was so very reliable? Did they need to generate more service revenue for their dealers, or what?

No. Your sensor for 'sweet" is on your tongue. If you huff the daylights out of the exhaust, you'll end up on the 6 o'clock news. Yellow police tape around the car and you on the ground. Neighbor interviews "He seemed like a happy person. I know he was upset about his car, but I never thought it would drive him to this."

One thing you might want to check is the sensor on the left hand side of the radiator. I got a false positive on a leak, because the plastic surround was leaking.

You may not have enough time on the plugs to use them as a reliable indicator

Few people have gone through as much as I did trying to convince my dealer, who gave me a comprehenxive dealer warranty, that at least the uppers were bad. I had two complete engine failures before they bit. Patience is the ticket. Take it one step at a time. It sounds like your mechanics knew what they were doing. Mine didn't even change the oil.

get this top end issue cleaned up. or identify it as a non-issue. The engine and car are a brick. Both of my cars have had nasty UIM failures. And both recovered beautifully.

With the exception of the vulnerable EGR passage design, the series II is a very well-made engine. It produces over 200 hp, and provides fuel economy that is better than comparably equipped Toyota Camrys in automobiles that are quicker, heavier, and more comfortable. The Series II 3800 also bore the brunt of gasket and component damage caused by the use of Dex-Cool introduced in 1996.

Four steps to success and happiness with the L36. 1: Heat shield for the UIM. 2: Reduced diameter stovepipe 3: Aluminum frame LIM gaskets 4: Flush the Dex and replace with new "mixes with any color" coolant.

X2
Bill really knows what he'* saying when he tells you this. He'* done a ton of research and helped develop the best repair practice we know of today for the UIM.

STOP STOP STOP!

Do NOT do this. Some people are violently allergic to the chemicals in coolants. Even a small taste can be fatal.

I said "if you are stupid like me".

Technically, to determine if something is sweet, it has to reach your mouth. and in enough quantity to trigger your " taste buds". the nose knows flowers. The tongue knows sweet, sour, salty, and bitter. the reason I can't "smell" is because I can barely breathe through my nose.

Suit Yourself. I tried.

By the way, inhalation gets chemicals into your body much faster than ingestion by mouth.

This is just a terrible idea, and there are some cases where people wind up with liver transplants.

Respectfully, it is not a "suit yourself" proposition. You made the point excellently. If you inhale the exhaust to try to see if it is sweet, you have take enough to actually taste it. Meanwhile, you are driving the exhaust directly into the lungs and blood with absolutely no control. If you touch a cloth to your tongue, you can wash it out with water (or beer) and get zero in your blood stream, or anyplace beyond your tongue. You have complete control.

(We're gonna get the boot aren't we? for being OT)