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Stop Leak Additives ??

Discussion in 'The Hokey Ass Message Board' started by Razzmataz, Jan 24, 2008.

  1. Razzmataz
    Joined: May 22, 2007
    Posts: 7

    Razzmataz
    Member
    from az

    IVE GOT AN INTAKE GASKET LEAKING coolant ON MY 4.3 GM V-6, I dont wnat to spend 400 to have it fixed since Iam going to get another car soon , whats the best stuff that might seal up the leak ? I tried Alumna seal, it didnt do noting
     
  2. TagMan
    Joined: Dec 12, 2002
    Posts: 6,295

    TagMan
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

    I got some stuff for my son's car about three years back and used it exactly as the directions said to do. It's been about 3-years now and it held great. I'll look and see what the heck the name of the stuff was and let you know. It was a pain in the ass to put in and took some time to drain, flush, run up to temp, re-drain, etc., but to my amazement, worked well and saved me a lot of money.
     
  3. redlinetoys
    Joined: May 18, 2004
    Posts: 4,302

    redlinetoys
    Member
    from Midwest

    I have had good luck with the alum powder, I think that is what you are saying you used. Sometimes, I have had to use two of them.

    I have heard some say that the factory puts something very similiar in their engines to eliminate any leaking.

    I would add another, but if it doesn't work you may just have too bad of a leak.

    Not crazy about any of the other additives available.
     
  4. Chevy Gasser
    Joined: Jan 23, 2007
    Posts: 718

    Chevy Gasser
    Member

    An old timer told me years ago about Bars Leaks, he's long gone but I still use Bars Leaks now and then. I admit, most of the time I used it to seal a leaky radiator but it worked well for that, I ran a couple old radiators long past what I should have.
     

  5. dave lewis
    Joined: Dec 12, 2006
    Posts: 1,378

    dave lewis
    Member
    from Nampa ID

    Bars leak dry tabs are in every new car engine on the assembly line. Gm, Ford,Toyota etc all use it. Use the liquid type . Shake it up really well and pour it in. The milky white stuff in the bottle is solouble oil, its a great water pump lube and also a chemical surfectant( which is why antifreeze is also "summer coolant") a surfectant makes the water cling to metal surfaces..and allows it to absorb more heat..
    Bars leak will do the job.
    Dave :)
     
  6. dirthawker1313
    Joined: Apr 18, 2005
    Posts: 647

    dirthawker1313
    Member

    i had that same problem with a GM 3.2 v6 i used ground black pepper 2 table spoons. it worked for 2 years even during 120 deg summers
     
  7. put some raw egg whites in along with the pepper !

    Click and clack approved
     
  8. flatheadgary
    Joined: Jul 17, 2007
    Posts: 1,012

    flatheadgary
    Member
    from boron,ca

    for minor leaks i have used pepper and it works, but for a really permanet fix, you can't go wrong with k&w block sealer. i had a car run for about 25 miles without any water in it and it was literally red from the heat. suprisingly it still turned over and started the next day. run like crap though. cracked the block and head, put in the block sealer 3 years ago and still runs today. no problems, drive it all the time. the first time i had any experience with this stuff was back around '62 and my brother bought a '57 poncho, but the guy didn't tell him it had a cracked head. anyway, put the block sealer in it and never leaked again. brother drove it everyday for about 2 years and sold it. met the guy who bought it about 3 years later and he said it still ran fine. i am to understand it is some kind of ceramic material that hardens up after you let it sit in the motor for 24 hrs. i am not a big fan of snake oil remedies, but i have to say this stuff does work.
     
  9. duke182
    Joined: Nov 27, 2005
    Posts: 562

    duke182
    Member

    try tightening any bolts that might be loose first. I have had sucess with several of the comercial products but for the money ,pepper is the way to go and it smells like gravy when it gets hot. i've also heard that mustard powder works well. good luck.
     
  10. dave lewis
    Joined: Dec 12, 2006
    Posts: 1,378

    dave lewis
    Member
    from Nampa ID

    Well, since you brought it up.....Irontite ceramic seal is the best for cracks..you really have to follow the instructions for it to work the best..
    Bars leak for gaskets, heater cores, radiators.. cerramic seal for cracks..
    Fyi.. ceramic seal is used when the machinist installs seats in your heads and also pin crack repair uses it...
    ceramic seal saved a race head for me back in 1981..Saturday night @ the track it cracked on the outside of the head around 3 head bolts. spewing hot water everywhere! We drained the water and poured in the ceramic seal, started it up and warmed it up, topped it off and let it set for 2.5 hours..( lucky we had prequalified for this one !)Did not start it up untill going out for the main...100 laps later and $1000. richer it was still NOT leaking....
    My father-in law still has that head in his trophy collection.
    Dave :)
     
  11. lewislynn
    Joined: Apr 29, 2006
    Posts: 2,279

    lewislynn
    Member

    Lemme guess...Watsonville Speedway?
     
  12. plym_46
    Joined: Sep 8, 2005
    Posts: 4,018

    plym_46
    Member
    from central NY

    Way back when I had a 73 Subaru that had 170,000 miles on it. I blew a head gasket in Ohio on teh way back to Syracuse, NY. I drained the antifreeze that was in it, put in clear water, and three Jars of bars leak. I bought some new antifreeze, 2 jars more of bars leak. three gallons water and a balogna sadwich and started back east. I drove it for about 40 minutes and noticed that the white cloud following was diminished by a lot, I pulled over, let it cool added another jar of bars leak and about a half gallon of water. I stoped again just east of buffalo and added about a quart of water. I drove home, shut it down, and went to bed.

    The next day I drained the water, refilled with 50 /50 new coolant, and added the 5th jar of bars leak. I drove the car for another 10,000 miles adding only a bit of coolant once in a while.

    Of course the tired subaru engine probably had only a bout a 5 to 1 compression ratio by then, not a 10 to 1 like modern engines but its worth a shot.
     
  13. If it costs $400.00 to replace an intake gasket, that means you are paying for labor. Do it yourself...it ain't difficult.
     
  14. droplord49
    Joined: Jan 12, 2004
    Posts: 1,690

    droplord49
    Member
    from Bryan, Tx

    My Oldsmobile has a 10in long crack in the external side of the block and I put some stuff I got from NAPA called Blue Devil in it. I followed the instructions on the bottle and it hasn't leaked a drop in almost a year.
     
  15. jonny o
    Joined: Oct 26, 2007
    Posts: 836

    jonny o
    Member

    One of the keys I have found with bars, or any other product, is to follow the instructions to the letter.
     
  16. dave lewis
    Joined: Dec 12, 2006
    Posts: 1,378

    dave lewis
    Member
    from Nampa ID

    Good guess Lewislynn.. The clue is "saturday night", so no, not at Watsonville.
    Merced !!! (Watsonville is a friday night track)
    Funny thing is it ran fine, no leak, the night before at Watsonville ! We even ran it at the house and adjusted the valves etc. saturday morning.
    So, do we know each other?
    PM me!
    Dave :)
     
  17. The Big M
    Joined: Dec 22, 2005
    Posts: 231

    The Big M
    Member

    Does the 4.3 V6 in question use Dex-Cool (i.e. the orange/red coloured antifreeze) in the cooling system? If so I think it might be wise to confirm which products, if any, are compatible with it.
     
  18. man-a-fre
    Joined: Apr 13, 2005
    Posts: 1,311

    man-a-fre
    Member

    Dexcools the source of the evil !!!
     
  19. Tinman
    Joined: Mar 6, 2001
    Posts: 963

    Tinman
    Member
    from Orange, CA

    Indeed... Dex-Cool becomes highly acidic if not replaced at the proper intervals. I've done a few "intake manifold gaskets" for friends on their newer GM cars, and more often than not, the source of the problem is some serious porosity develpoing in the aluminum components (lower intake manifold or cylinder heads.)

    Try the stop leak method first, but don't be too shocked if your problem continues... even after a gasket swap...
     
  20. Nads
    Joined: Mar 5, 2001
    Posts: 11,862

    Nads
    Member
    from Hypocrisy

    They're all garbage IMHO.
     
  21. HOT40ROD
    Joined: Jun 16, 2006
    Posts: 961

    HOT40ROD
    Member
    from Easton, Pa

    Years ago I used Bars leak in a 2.9 Ford with cracked heads. The motor lasted for two years before it broke. when it broke, it broke. water came out the exhaust, intake and radiator.
     

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