i have an 03 regal with a drop of oil coming out of the gasket right above the spark plugs. it is only a drop every 20 seconds or so. is this a head gasket problem and is there any chance a stop leak oil would work in this situation. the car seems fine. no oil in radiator fluid no radiator fluid in oil. the heat works fine. any help would be greatly appreciated.

more than likely it is your valve cover gaskets. get them replaced and you oil drips will be taken care of from the top

This is a potential fire hazard and you should make it a priority to replace it. Front valve cover gasket is an easy job on the bonneville, should be similar for your regal. Get the gasket (the ones that come flat on carboard and not folded up are a little easier to get in), otherwise you can use a little rtv to make sure it stays in place. Make sure when you replace the valve cover you torque bolts to spec.

The back valve cover is a little more trickey, I believe I had to remove the alternator to get to it. You should probably replace it as well though. If one is leaking, the other may not be far behind and you are less likely to notice a drip off the rear valve cover. You would probably smell every drip with the heat on in the winter though.

if the front is leaking the back will start soon enough. you will need to move the MAP sensor bracket. thats easy. dont over torque.

great stuff guys. thanks so much

wasnt there a recall on all 3800 II regarding this issue?

yes but it was only on the K motor vehicles (L36) not on the supercharged cars even though they had the exact same gaskets

cant be true
i had the recall on my 2003 GTP (L67)

sorry meant to say on the bonnevilles at least

The recall is for the plastic spark plug wire management bracket. When oil drips from the valve cover and burns on the exhaust manifolds, sometimes that plastic bracket catches on fire. It'* not the gasket but the bracket, and Bonnevilles didn't have that from the factory.