Should this hole have a plug in it?

Hello I'm a fng so i'll try to give all the correct info so that it's easy for whoever to answer my question. I just bought a 1996 3800 series II Riviera, and wow I never knew how freakin' awesome the Riviera is. anyways I dont know a whole lot about cars and I was checking out the engine when I noticed this hole in it and all kinds of soot around the outside of it and I'm pretty sure that engines dont be doing it like this but here are some pics and it would be great if some one could tell me if I need to put a plug or something in it, thank you very much.http://www.flickr.com/photos/36279935@N03/4999863759/

Welcome to the site

Not quite sure what it's for, casting perhaps, but I have it too. LOL I've never noticed it before, and I've been under the hood a million times, and had the engine apart. You just made me go out at 1am with my flashlight to look . That "soot" is just dirt. So, that hole appears to be normal.

thank you bro i really aprechiate that. but that's alot of soot or dirt dont you think or am i just tripping

As he said, that is a blind casting hole. It leads to nowhere and cannot be the source of your soot or dirt.

Spray some engine degreaser on that area and clean it up with a small stiff bristle brush you dont want anymore and rinse clean. It may take a couple of try's before it is real clean.

Then you can watch for where the soot, if it is indeed soot, is coming from. The only things in that area are the exhaust crossover pipe, check if it has a leak, and the EGR valve has a tube in that vicinity.

Point being it is much easier to determine what's going on if you start observing with the area clean.
It may be nothing more than just engine grime that has accumulated over the years.

awesome thanks for the info, ya i just bought this for $300.00, it's not perfect but wow what a car for real I honestly can't believe I never knew about Riviera they're awesome I think at least.

Rick could be right about that joint for the Crossover Pipe. It could be leaking on the backside causing the soot to build up there.
Also, if that hole were to be leaking air for some reason, you'd more than likely hear a loud exhaust type noise coming from it, not to mention I'm sure you'd have severe driveability concerns

All of us love our Rivs too, so you found the right site! You will find all the information you could need here. Enjoy!

Abaddon wrote:

LOL I've never noticed it before, and I've been under the hood a million times, and had the engine apart.

lol, dont feel bad at least you werent the only one. im under the hood at least once everyday and ive never seen that hole either. i even knew exactly where he took the picture from from what i could see, and i still have never seen that hole.

I agree, think it is exhaust leaking from that pipe on the top side we cannot see.

ill be the first to say it, i highly doubt its soot. i believe that if anything it is just mixed oil and dirt that dried a bit, especially since scott said the hole is supposed to be there, this is why i think its not the crossover:
both of the crossover flanges are on either side of the pictured hole, this is where you would normally have a leak and there is no "soot" in this area. (neither on the the flanges OR anywhere near them)
for the crossover to dump soot on that particular hole, it would have to have a hole of its own almost dead center on the underside of the pipe, at which point you would have more problems than just soot (you would have a loud exhaust leak)
not only would you have a loud exhaust leak with a hole right there, but notice the sensor in between the crossover and the hole, there is no "soot" whatsoever. for the crossover to drop soot on the engine in that area the sensor would be covered also.
anything below the rocker covers usually gets covered pretty good in grime, especially since i doubt this particular cars has been changed.

to OP: spray the engine real good with some degreaser (including your hole with mystery "soot") and rinse it off. then every once and a while after driving take a look under the hood and see if it comes back, and where it comes from.
another thing you can do before the degreaser is wipe that area with your finger, what does it feel/look like and what does it smell like? does it feel dry and smell like exhaust or does it feel slimy/gritty and smell like oil/dirt?