Well, at 146k miles it finally happened

Fla02LS

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I've gone thru 20 ignition coils, eight new plugs, new radiator, throttle body, dccv, degas bottle, 4 different plastic coolant components, thermostat, drive belt. Just when i thought i was just about done replacing sh!t i start smelling burning oil. My first thought.... OH F*CK, now what? Well did some inspecting and noticed the passenger side valve cover barely leaking some oil onto the exhaust shield and burning off. Also some oil seeping out of the furthest rear portion of the coil cover which i am guessing is the cause for a slight coil stumble at startup but goes away after driving for a bit. I knew the VCG was an issue with the LS but thought that was one repair i was escaping. Anyway, doesnt seem to be an urgent repair but i think im gonna just let the dealer do this one. The service advisor at the dealer was really complimenting my LS, saying he felt the LS was ahead of its time and that the styling kills any of the new models. I would have to agree.
 
Maintenance Items

I, too, have 146K miles. I've replaced the coils once, with Accel, and put in new plugs at the same time. I've also replaced the alternator, and put in a new belt at that time as routine maintenance. I tightened up the cam cover bolts then, too, but that was a pre-emption since there was no sign of leakage.

I've not had to do any of the other things you mentioned, but I do have a slow power steering leak. It requires a refill about every three months, and there is some mess on the underside of the car, but it shows no evidence of dripping when parked.

There's just enough 'loose' noise for me to expect to have to put in new sway-bar supports sometime this winter.

KS
 
I've gone thru 20 ignition coils, eight new plugs, new radiator, throttle body, dccv, degas bottle, 4 different plastic coolant components, thermostat, drive belt. Just when i thought i was just about done replacing sh!t i start smelling burning oil. My first thought.... OH F*CK, now what? Well did some inspecting and noticed the passenger side valve cover barely leaking some oil onto the exhaust shield and burning off. Also some oil seeping out of the furthest rear portion of the coil cover which i am guessing is the cause for a slight coil stumble at startup but goes away after driving for a bit. I knew the VCG was an issue with the LS but thought that was one repair i was escaping. Anyway, doesnt seem to be an urgent repair but i think im gonna just let the dealer do this one. The service advisor at the dealer was really complimenting my LS, saying he felt the LS was ahead of its time and that the styling kills any of the new models. I would have to agree.


If you are trying to save money, the passenger side is so much easier than the driver's side vcg. I did both less than a month ago and found that my passenger side vcg was the only one leaking. I am not the only one that has had only the passenger side vcg leaking. Yes, mine is a gen 2. I only have 75,000 on mine though. The felpro gasket set was i think 48 bucks from rockauto.com. I would also advise to have your coils and plugs changed when you do this. Good luck.
 
It took me 7 hours to do my drivers side, so if it isn't leaking, I wouldn't mess with it if I didn't have to. Mine is a gen 1 and was leaking into the COPS and fouling plugs, so I put the gen 2 gaskets on it.
 
not a tough job

its not a tough job to replace the gaskets, just long and tedious, so many bolts!
I took my time, Friday night took everything apart, laid out all the bolts as removed in order to keep track of them. Cleaned any parts that needed it. Got up the next morning rested and started the re-installation. The hardest part was reconnecting the rubber hoses at the rear of the engine at the firewall. But it all came together perfectly.
 
Its only the passenger side and i'm only gonna replace that side. It might make sense to do both at the same time but i'm going for the easy fix.
 

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