Upcoming Recall/07035 97-03 GP & Regal 3800 S/C vin 1

[chevyboy88]

Originally Posted by tjarrett999

I am also one of the 267 and I think one of the 17 structure fires that the NHTSA is reporting. Mine occured on 5/30/07. I am also wondering about the deductibles. I am out $1500 between the homeowners and car claims that I had to make. I have never been involved in anything like this, and I am not sure how it works. I am waiting to hear back from my insurance now, but I have no clue how long that will take. I have been told that I should contact a lawyer, but I am not sure that is the best way to go.

Here is what mine looked like:

Funny that your car looks almost exactly like my sisters did after it caught fire, the fire fighters said at the time that it was probably an electrical problem with the car but I figured it had to be something else.

[edsuski]

I recently had both valve cover gaskets replaced due to oil leaks only to learn that a significant amount of the oil had been coming from the oil pan gasket. That too was replaced (not cheap) and it appears that most, if not all, of the oil leaks have been fixed.

Does anyone else have an oil pan gasket leak?

Ed

[GMGusler]

My insurance co is going after GM for subrigation of their loss and my deductable - the irony of it all is I just got a recall letter, (3/17/08) from GM, I called the toll free number and started a claim with them also - the toll free number is: 1-866-608-8080 if anyone else is interested.

[jpstax]

Thanks GMCS for the info! I e-mailed my dealer's service department manager with the link to your post. I'm waiting to hear his reaction to the many pics.

[sh105]

I have a 1998 Regal GS and I got a letter in the mail addressing the recall issue. I just called my local Buick dealer and he told me that he would order the parts and let me know when they came in. I told him that I did some research and was it true that only the front (left) gasket was going to be replaced. His first comment was that both should be replaced under the recall. He looked it up and only the front is covered. The rear gasket on my car leaks badly and leaves a puddle on the garage floor. He told me that if I wanted the rear gasket replaced also it would be $232 plus parts. The front rocker cover has a small leak but nothing like the rear. Is there any approach to use with the dealer so that I can get the rear repaired as well under the recall?

[robbo]

just received my letter in the mail for my 98GTP. the dealer had no idea what i was talking about and said that GM hadn't told them a thing about the reclall. I gave him the part number that needed to be replaced and he claimed to have some in stock....so it looks like i know what i'm doing tomorrow or thursday...
my question is: why would this only effect cars once they're parked (or am i reading it wrong)? isn't it also a problem when the car is in motion?

[edsuski]

Originally Posted by sh105

I have a 1998 Regal GS and I got a letter in the mail addressing the recall issue. I just called my local Buick dealer and he told me that he would order the parts and let me know when they came in. I told him that I did some research and was it true that only the front (left) gasket was going to be replaced. His first comment was that both should be replaced under the recall. He looked it up and only the front is covered. The rear gasket on my car leaks badly and leaves a puddle on the garage floor. He told me that if I wanted the rear gasket replaced also it would be $232 plus parts. The front rocker cover has a small leak but nothing like the rear. Is there any approach to use with the dealer so that I can get the rear repaired as well under the recall?

This is a very good point. Is it not true that we can make fluid seals that will not leak over the life of a car? How much more would it cost - I for one am willing to pay it. If millions of cars are leaking oil onto the roads due to improperly designed (read cheap) seals - aren't we seriously polluting the oceans and lakes (run off after it rains)? Shouldn't any fluid leak be covered under warranty as an ecological hazard? If that were the case - I'm sure very few cars would leak. Just because the oil is not likely to catch fire does not make it safe to spread around the country and pollute our land and water. Am I missing something here or are companies just too greedy to do the right thing?

[JTP]

I had a fire last year. Thank god the parking garage attendant noticed the smoke and put the fire out. The car was saved or at least i thought. I took it to the dealership to be repaired. They made me feel like it was my fault. I was told that it was an electric fire, because of my spark plugs. Three months later I reported a burning oil smell, that was another $500.

So I called GM on Monday to discuss the recall, since my car had a fire in Feb 07. I was told that i would receive a claim form in the mail once the formal recall is sent out.

Then today I received another call, requesting more information about my car and how the fire affected me. Now i'm told someone will contact me in within two days to reslove my issue. I was also told that since my car caught on fire it has escalated to another department, that wants to resolve my problem.

WTF!!!

[GM4Life99]

Originally Posted by blank disk

How can some leak and some not?

The whole reason they leaked was that they were made of a material that warped from heat. Well, they all have heat and they all have that material, so yours is very rare.

the lincoln is a ugly car and wont last twice as 'long as a cadillac will fords are trash

[sdandis]

Isn't the Park Avenue Ultra with the supercharged engine also included in this recall? Doesn't it have the same engine?

[Orbit Orange]

Does anyone else have an oil pan gasket leak?

Yes, has been for quite some time. Never a lot and I always check the oil level. Dealer quoted me over 400 bucks to replace it several months ago. They also quoted me about 250 bucks to replace the front gasket that will now be covered under warantee. Lucked out on that one I guess.

just make sure there is no oil on the head under the rocker cover(valve cover).

Well it leaks of course, has for the last 4 or 5years. Once again just kept my eye on the oil level. I'll be taking it in soon. There has also been the nice hot oil smell for the last few months when it sits in the garage. I just pop the hood when my wife gets home and let it cool. What do you bet my dealer has NO clue about this yet?

[lindaelaine]

My car (1999 Buick Regal) caught on fire in January while I was driving it. Is GM doing anything to reimburse customers like me who are out our deductibe and other expenses due to the malfunction? It was pretty scary and the car was completely burned up and totalled by my insurance company.

Since you are out the money for fixing them with the recall, I think there ought to be compensation for people like me whose car caught on fire before the recall took place.

Incidentally, I replaced it with another Buick--my third in a row. I didn't even really consider another brand but might have had I known the fire was due to a problem with the engine design itself.

[iboost]

I have a 2004 Regal GS. The recall that I've seen only calls for 97-2003. The 2004 has the same engine, why wouldn't this recall effect the 2004's? Have they changed the valve cover gasket for this year?

[GMCSonoma]

Date: April 21, 2008

Subject: 07035 – Product Safety Recall
Engine Compartment Fire

Models: 1997-2003 Buick Regal GS
1997-2003 Pontiac Grand Prix GTP
Equipped with 3.8 L V6 Supercharged (RPO L67 –
VIN 1) Engine

To: All Buick and Pontiac Dealers

Attention: Service Manager, Parts Manager and
Warranty Administrator

PRODUCT FIELD ACTION ANNOUNCEMENT

General Motors is announcing Product Safety Recall 07035 today. The total number of vehicles involved is 231,624 VINS. Please see the attached bulletin for details.

Note:Customers were mailed an advisory letter for this condition and may have returned to the dealership for inspection and repair.

Due to parts availability, recall customer letters will be mailed in two phases. 1997-2000 model year customer letters will be mailed one week after bulletin launch. Dealers will be notified when 2001-2003 model year customer letters are mailed.

Note: Technical Service Bulletin 08-06-04-019 and the associated T-ops will be canceled with the launch of Safety Recall Bulletin 07035 today. The 07035 recall procedure and V-ops should be used to repair any open 07035 vehicles. Vehicles previously repaired under 08-06-04-019 using T5700 (GM gasket) are completed and will be shown as closed in GMVIS for 07035. Vehicles previously repaired under 08-06-04-019 using T5701 (non GM gasket) will remain open in GMVIS for 07035. These vehicles will require repair under 07035. Both groups of T5700 and T5701 owners will be mailed detailed owner letters.

Mailing Information
Phase 1 of the customer notification letter mailing will begin on April 28, 2008.

GM Vehicle Inquiry System (GMVIS)
GMVIS information will be available on April 22, 2008.

Service Information System (SI)
Bulletin 07035 will be available in SI on April 22, 2008.

Campaign Initiation Detail Report (CIDR)
The CIDR will be available in GM DealerWorld on April 21, 2008.

[Bazooka574]

Here are my thoughts on the L67 engines not involved in the recall. The W-body platform ( Regal, GP,etc.) includes a restrictive exhaust U-bend after the catalyst to provide the rear O2 sensor a location protected from road debris. I replaced my 98 Regal GS catalyst and downpipe with an aftermarket from W-Body Store that uses a Magnaflow converter and a sideways O2 bung, deleting the U-bend. My exhaust no longer sounds like it is hissing, and the underhood temperatures dropped enough that the engine makes far less popping noises as it cools off after parking it. L67's mounted in W-bodies using this restrictive exhaust maintain higher engine temperatures than L67's mounted in F-bodies AND this extra heat builds up more in the rear valve cover crammed next to the firewall and exhaust headers. After shutting down, the front valve cover cools quicker than the rear and also contracts quicker than the front head does. Apparently, this mismatched movement during cooldown is the friction source which eventually erodes the front valve cover gasket. If you drive an L67 that isn't crammed into a W-body with restrictive exhaust feel free to brake as hard as you like! Just keep an eye out for the oil leaks we all know you will have soon.