I read about this in a post earlier. How do go about doing this.

Bill said after 50k cleaning it would make a noticeable difference.

I take Bills word for gold on anything Bonny. So can someone give me some help on this??

Thanks for the help.

Tim

Let me check with my cuz at Thanksgiving he will know but if not some of the real gear heads will chime in and have an answer. I have done it twice years ago (74, 75ish) on my dads 71 Boneville (455 oh yeah) and once on my 77 Bonn (301) 20 years ago or so. But I am not real sure how do it with fuel injection. Those two each were Rochester 2 barrel carbs.

In the post I made in August, there are some basic pictures of the removal process on a Series 1 Supercharged 3800.
http://www.bonnevilleclub.com/forum/...181&highlight=
might help you out a bit!
Scroll down toward the last post..

Items needed:

1) Couple of Clean Rags
2) Toothbrush
3) Throttlebody cleaner (sometimes referred to as intake cleaner)
4) Ratchet with the appropriate heads
5) New throttlebody gasket.
6) An empty container to catch coolant
7) Some vacume line or other tubing to suck coolant.
A good phillips head screwdriver.

Reccomended Items:
1) Flex-head sockets for your ratchet. As I leaarned at NEBF, this will save you much pain when getting the bolts out.
2) Pin head pliers for removing the MAF screen

Steps:

1) Remove your radiator access cover (Its that cap right on top of the radator
2) Use your tubing and suck about half a gallon or so of coolant out of your system. (This is to avoid a mess later)
3) Remove your air intake from the throttle body.
4) Discconect all cables from the MAF, TPS, and that other sensor (Name slips my mind atm)
5) Remove the 4 bolts and screw (Number and alignment might be different on your car)
6) Gently slide the throttle body away from the engine. Be prepared for some coolant to splash.
7) Set the throttle body aside and remove the TB gasket from the engine. Replace with a new gasket.
Very gently and remove the 3 sensors from the throttle body. You don't want that cleaner destroying a $30-100 sensor. (Note the alignment of the TPS arm for later)
9) Remove the MAF screen using the pin head pliers if you have it. Be very careful removing the screen as it is easily damaged. (NOTE: Some people have permanently removed thier MAF screen and have had great luck, while some haven't. I personally decided to leave mine in. Search the boards for more information on this and make your own choice there).
10) Whip out your toothbrush and rags and throttle body cleaner and go to town. The throttlebody innards should have a machined finish after you're done.



11) If you decide to keep your MAF screen, reinstall it now.
12) Install the TPS. Be sure the TPS arm is aligned the same way it was when you removed it.
13) Install the MAF and the other sensor on the TB.
14) Reinstall the Throttle body back on the engine by using the alignment screw and reinstalling the bolts you removed earlier.
15) reattach your intake.
16) Plug your sensors back in. (Don't be an idjit like me and forget this part )
17) Load your coolant back into the system, making sure that the fill line is back where it belongs.

Have fun. (Much thanks to Bill and Randy, I learned this from them.)

Now would the process be the same for an 00+, and i dont think there is anything different between the process on a */C vs. an N/A right?

I don't -believe- so.

Does anyone besides me think that cleaning the intake system harms the dreaded intake gaskets?

I cleaned mine myself with a spray can a couple of years ago at 99K miles. Within weeks, the intake gaskets failed and were replaced by the Pontiac dealer.

Just recently in November, I had my intake cleaned professionally at a local shop. Agian, wiithn a few weeks, I had another intake failure at 146K miles. The car is going to the crusher, but I know I will buy another 3800 Series II.

Yours would be the first report of that happening that I've heard of. Off hand, although it may seem strange, it'* likely coincidence. One of the differences is that you had yours cleaned while still on the car. The recommendation here is to remove the throttle body and sensors. A more thorough cleaning can be accomplished that way.

We've had members run seafoam to clean the top end of the engine, without any apparent damage to the intake gaskets.

This thread is pretty old. I'd suggest that you start a new thread on it.

Please don't dig up old topics. Start a new one with your questions in the proper section for your car (92-99, not 2000-2005), and link back to this one if you like.