I don't have all of the details but trying to help my brother-in-law out. He is stuck in Gretna La (went to visit family and take his kids to the Mardi Gras parades) and lives in Indiana. The car is a 1999 Delta 88 and it overheated while driving around town. I think this was the day after driving about 850 miles in 14 hours. He found radiator low and coolant in oil. The shop he took it to (I think a dealer) said "the plastic EGR valve failed and let water into the oil" (this is 2nd-hand info from my wife). I think it is a 3.8 liter motor, but not sure. After replacing EGR valve for $650 or so, "the car won't start so we have to change all of the fluids" or something like that. I expect this is a problem created by the repair tech but who knows.
Is the EGR valve plastic on these cars? Would it let water into the oil? Googling around, it sound like the manifold is plastic and fails, not the valve so I'd assume the intake would need replacing.
Is this a common failure on these motors? Should extended warranty cover (they say no)?
He's pretty much at their mercy so will end up paying whatever it costs to get the car back on the road but any shared experiences or advice would help.
Thanks Bobby