linewar Posted December 8, 2012 Share Posted December 8, 2012 A mechanic friend came over this morning and we knocked out the passenger side (US Models) valve cover gasket. That wasn't as big of a deal as I thought, it's just intimidating. Got the gasket and grommet set from Auto Zone, unplugged all the connectors on the cover and removed them from their mounts, and set them out of the way. The plastic connectors, being 16 or 17 years old and repeatedly exposed to high heat, cracked on two or three of them where you slide them off mounts on the valve cover. We moved everything out of the way, and wriggled the cover on out. Discovered immediately why it was leaking - the rubber gasket was hard and brittle, like rubber thats been sitting out in the sun for several years. That's why re-torquing the bolts did nothing to help the leak. If anything, it may have made it leak worse because the tightness is not the issue - it's the rubber of the gasket deteriorating past its function. Prying it out of the grooves in the valve cover, it came out in chunks. The new gasket was nice and pliable. I didn't like that the valve cover is held on with Phillips-head bolts, so I ran to the hardware store and got the same length and thread pattern metric stainless socket-head bolts. (Allen wrench) It's hard to explain exactly why I chose socket head over hex head, it kinda just felt appropriate. My only rational reason is that I was concerned about over-torquing a hex head. Everything went back in well, and for the connectors that broke where they mount on the valve cover, I used electrical tape and/ or zip ties to fix them in place. Sorry I didn't take pictures, but suffice it to say that the hardest part of this job was selecting new bolts. Oh, and also, if you buy the gasket set with the grommets for the bolts, remember metal side up, rubber side down. Unfortunately, soon the same will have to be done on the driver's side. Man I am REALLY not looking forward to having to remove that entire intake plenum. What a drag. But there are obvious signs of leakage (minor now, just wait. . . ) around the bolts, so it's a job that will have to be done - it's just a matter of when. Just a side note, with the cover off I noticed that the rocker arms of the back 1/3 were a darker brown than the ones near the front, where the oil filler is. Also the inside of the valve cover had noticeable sludge in it in their area. Is that a sign that the former owner didn't change the oil regularly enough, is it a sign of a coming issue with the oil pump, or is it normal due to the way the oil flow works across the rockers? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Towncivilian Posted December 8, 2012 Share Posted December 8, 2012 Have you ever changed the PCV valve? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
linewar Posted December 8, 2012 Author Share Posted December 8, 2012 Nope. Is it on the passenger side or driver's side? We simply disconnected the hoses for both breathers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Towncivilian Posted December 8, 2012 Share Posted December 8, 2012 Here's the PCV valve: I would replace it with a new OEM one only. It's easy to swap out, unlike the VQ35DE which has it buried under the upper and lower intake manifolds. That was a PITA. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
linewar Posted December 9, 2012 Author Share Posted December 9, 2012 I'm having trouble orienting where in the engine bay that is by the pic. Can you give me a general idea? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kingman Posted December 9, 2012 Share Posted December 9, 2012 Metal side DOWN rubber side UP. The philips screws are probably on there so you can't over tighten them and strip the aluminum seeing as there's only about 1/4" of thread in the heads. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Towncivilian Posted December 9, 2012 Share Posted December 9, 2012 Look near the throttle actuators, you can see them in the pic. The valve will be there, covered by a hose of course. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
linewar Posted December 10, 2012 Author Share Posted December 10, 2012 (edited) Metal side DOWN rubber side UP. The philips screws are probably on there so you can't over tighten them and strip the aluminum seeing as there's only about 1/4" of thread in the heads. When we first installed them, I did it that way, but as you torque down the bolts, the bolt head begins to press through the rubber of the replacement grommets. If I did it over, I would re-use the facotry grommets since they are full-jacketed metal. (through the hole) That would just raise the issue of flexibility in the original grommets since the leak was caused by the gasket material losing all of its elasticity. When we backed out the first few bolts and flipped it around to rubber-side down, it made sense. The bolt grommet acts as a secondary gasket to the valve cover gasket itself to keep oil from slipping through the bolt holes. With the design of the replacement grommets, when you add torque on the metal side of the grommet, it smushes the rubber side down into the bolt-hole of the valve cover. Too much torque and bad things happen, the right amount of torque and it smushes in just right. Edited December 10, 2012 by linewar Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rig002 Posted March 13, 2013 Share Posted March 13, 2013 What is the Torque for those Bolts?.. Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davesuede Posted April 4, 2013 Share Posted April 4, 2013 When we first installed them, I did it that way, but as you torque down the bolts, the bolt head begins to press through the rubber of the replacement grommets. If I did it over, I would re-use the facotry grommets since they are full-jacketed metal. (through the hole) That would just raise the issue of flexibility in the original grommets since the leak was caused by the gasket material losing all of its elasticity. When we backed out the first few bolts and flipped it around to rubber-side down, it made sense. The bolt grommet acts as a secondary gasket to the valve cover gasket itself to keep oil from slipping through the bolt holes. With the design of the replacement grommets, when you add torque on the metal side of the grommet, it smushes the rubber side down into the bolt-hole of the valve cover. Too much torque and bad things happen, the right amount of torque and it smushes in just right. When using the kits with the grommets you should reuse the metal factory buckets that the oem grommets were in, I have seen several people not use the factory metal bucket and have oil leak issues after replacing the valve cover gaskets. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrisq Posted March 10, 2015 Share Posted March 10, 2015 This will be handy. I am tackling both valve cover gaskets this weekend! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
00R50TN Posted March 28, 2015 Share Posted March 28, 2015 (edited) For the sludge, try Marvel Mystery Oil. Some people say it doesn't work and not to use it. I have used it several times with Valvoline High Mileage 5W30 Synthetic Blend. I use a Purolator oil filter. When I changed my gaskets, mine was clean and it runs like a top. No sludge or buildup at all. Edited March 28, 2015 by 00R50TN Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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