2000 chevy van, intake gaskets

[jt512]

a good friend of mine just picked up a 2000 chevy 1 ton cargo van to use for his small electrical business. it has a 5.7 vortec engine and approx 160k on the van, the po told him it needs intake gaskets replaced because it idles rough and will stall out. i kind of remember a intake issue on that era trucks, maybe tb gasket? anyone have any suggestions? how bad are these vans to pull the intake off of? he bought the thing for $700 and overall it's in great shape, he wants to bring it to my house to work on it and i am just trying to see what i am getting myself into before i agree. thanks!

 

[84zz4ss]

Labor guide shows about six hours. Not to different than the early 5.7. The a/c-p/s bracket has to move forward to clear one intake bolt. You don't have to remove the upper intake.

Common repair. Use quality gaskets and torque to spec.

 

[jt512]

are the lower intake gaskets the likely problem? any common gasket failures on this year/engine? i have not even seen this thing yet and my main concern is that a big, white, extended cargo van is going to be "staying over" at my place untill it is fixed.

 

[84zz4ss]

Yes lower intake. Very common on vortec engines.

 

[4X4HIGH]

IIRC there is a revised intake gasket for this engine. They were notorious for intake gasket failures around the water ports in the corners. IIRC it was an issue with that coolant used in those years not being compatable with the intake gasket material. The new gaskets are made of a different material.

 

[jt512]

thanks, that is the info i was looking for!

would you recommend dealer parts or would the parts store (advance,pep b's, napa) have the revised gaskets?

 

[4X4HIGH]

You can get the latest revised gaskets from your local auto parts store. Just be sure to ask them about it in case they don't know.

 

[bigblock72]

Super common problem on the vortec 4.3, 5.0, 5.7s. Any name brand gasket will be fine (fel pro, victor, etc) Make sure you get a tube of silcone for the end seals.

Probably take you all day to do.
Remove upper fan shroud, remove fan before taking off belt.
Unbolt a/c compressor and move out of the way, don't unhook the lines.
Unbolt driver's side bracket from engine and slide forward 2 inches or so. There is a nut behind the P/S pump that needs to loosened but not removed, also a nut at the bottom of bracket on front that is likely covered in goo.
I like to remove the driver's side lower water pump bolt to drain the coolant from the motor, no need to fight the radiator drain.
Unbolt tensioner and idler pulley, unbolt passenger bracket and slide bracket forward.
Unhook bypass hose from manifold, remove upper hose from t-stat housing.
Remove throttle cables and bracket from intake and t-body, remove heater hose from intake.
Unhook wiring from TPS, IAC, coolant sensor, MAP etc.
Remove distributor cap leaving 4 wires connected, make sure and mark wires to corresponding numbers on cap. Mark rotor position and remove distributor.
Unhook EGR tube from front of intake manifold
Unthread fuel lines at back of intake, leave fuel lines on top of intake.
Remove 8 bolts that hold down intake manifold. Blow off all dirt from top of motor then unbolt valve covers, pry valve covers up and slide away from intake about half an inch.
Remove intake as an assembly, try not to get dirt in valley.
Cover valley with wrags and scrape old gasket from heads.
Clean intake and install new gaskets, apply 1/4" bead of silicone on ends.
It's usually easier to have another hand to hold the intake on the outside while someone is sliding the intake through on the inside. Be careful not to disturb the silicone or you'll have to try again.
Torque bolts to 20 ft. lbs. even though the spec is 10. The gaskets take a set and the bolts will loosen, 10 ft. lbs will turn into a leak, 20 ft lbs will change to 10-12 ft lbs in time. Had a few come back before I figured that out.
Cover the seats and carpet because you'll make a mess no matter how hard you try.

Leave the heater hose off of the intake until you fill the radiator back up or you'll have a huge air pocket that cause all kinds of grief. IF the heater hose uses a quick disconnect replace it with a new.

Replace the o-rings on the fuel lines.

Make sure you change the oil and filter when you get it back together.

The serp belt tensioner and idler pulleys are probably worn out so go ahead and install new.

Make sure you line the distributor back up to the same spot it was in. You CAN NOT set the timing on a vortec, if the distributor is in more than about 10 degrees off it will set a code.

 

[jt512]

called my buddy earlier and told him to bring it over tomorrow night and we would start on it. i think i made his day because he was planning on having it towed to a shop approx. 20 miles away.

thank you guys for all the great info as always!

 

[Slapperbar]

Super common problem on the vortec 4.3, 5.0, 5.7s. Any name brand gasket will be fine (fel pro, victor, etc) Make sure you get a tube of silcone for the end seals.

Probably take you all day to do.
Cover the seats and carpet because you'll make a mess no matter how hard you try.
Remove upper fan shroud, remove fan before taking off belt.
Unbolt a/c compressor and move out of the way, don't unhook the lines.
Unbolt driver's side bracket from engine and slide forward 2 inches or so. There is a nut behind the P/S pump that needs to loosened but not removed, also a nut at the bottom of bracket on front that is likely covered in goo.
I like to remove the driver's side lower water pump bolt to drain the coolant from the motor, no need to fight the radiator drain.
Unbolt tensioner and idler pulley, unbolt passenger bracket and slide bracket forward.
Unhook bypass hose from manifold, remove upper hose from t-stat housing.
Remove throttle cables and bracket from intake and t-body, remove heater hose from intake.
Unhook wiring from TPS, IAC, coolant sensor, MAP etc.
Remove distributor cap leaving 4 wires connected, make sure and mark wires to corresponding numbers on cap. Mark rotor position and remove distributor.
Unhook EGR tube from front of intake manifold
Unthread fuel lines at back of intake, leave fuel lines on top of intake.
Remove 8 bolts that hold down intake manifold. Blow off all dirt from top of motor then unbolt valve covers, pry valve covers up and slide away from intake about half an inch.
Remove intake as an assembly, try not to get dirt in valley.
Cover valley with wrags and scrape old gasket from heads.
Clean intake and install new gaskets, apply 1/4" bead of silicone on ends.
It's usually easier to have another hand to hold the intake on the outside while someone is sliding the intake through on the inside. Be careful not to disturb the silicone or you'll have to try again.
Torque bolts to 20 ft. lbs. even though the spec is 10. The gaskets take a set and the bolts will loosen, 10 ft. lbs will turn into a leak, 20 ft lbs will change to 10-12 ft lbs in time. Had a few come back before I figured that out.
Leave the heater hose off of the intake until you fill the radiator back up or you'll have a huge air pocket that cause all kinds of grief. IF the heater hose uses a quick disconnect replace it with a new.

Replace the o-rings on the fuel lines.

Make sure you change the oil and filter when you get it back together.

The serp belt tensioner and idler pulleys are probably worn out so go ahead and install new.

Make sure you line the distributor back up to the same spot it was in. You CAN NOT set the timing on a vortec, if the distributor is in more than about 10 degrees off it will set a code.

I thought I'd move that up for ya. It sounds like you've one or three of these?