I took it to the stealership to get the alternator and some vac. lines replaced all under an extended warranty. They informed me that both valve cover gaskets and right side cam adjuster gaskets are leaking. By no means am I a mechanic or close to but I am trying to get this stuff done as cheap as possible so I am going to try to tackle this myself.
View 3 RepliesSo, weird smell that I thought was burning plastic or rubber is actually hot oil leaking from the valve cover and tensioner gaskets.
My car is nearly 8 years old (2003), and has about 70K. Should I go ahead and buy a timing belt kit and replace all that stuff at the same time?
I have a 2005 hyundai santa fe and the valve cover gaskets are leaking. We were able to change the one in the front but we cant figure out what to do with the back one. Need to find a video showing what to do...
View 2 RepliesOwn a 2000 Camry XLE 6-cyl. Both valve cover gaskets are leaking. Rear one leaks onto the manifold and causes stench. Have been quoted $350. to replace because the job is complicated. Have any of you done this on your own, and if so, would you recommend it or go to a qualified mechanic?
View 9 RepliesI have a 98 Subaru Legacy Outback with 133K miles. It was leaking from the power steering pump and valve cover gaskets. My husband replaced the passenger-side valve cover gasket (which involved removing the air box) and the power steering pump (which required removing the alternator). When we put the car back together and reconnected the battery, it no longer starts! It "clicks" once but won't turn-over. The car does not have an alarm system (but it was an option on this model). We've tried jumping it. The battery is about 14 months old. The alternator is about 10 months old and the starter was replaced about 10 months ago too. We've double checked the wires that were disconnected and don't think we've missed anything.
View 3 RepliesOk I have a p1316 code so I was told to change valve cover gaskets so I did. Now starts for 4 sec and dies, what is going on....
View 2 RepliesI have a 2006 Infiniti G35 base sedan. The dealer noticed oil on the engine and said that I needed to replace both valve covers and gaskets -- My question: Why is it necessary to replace the valve covers and not just the gaskets?
View 6 RepliesA couple of days ago, I was driving my car around when the oil pressure light came on. Having recently changed the oil myself, I figured I had neglected to tighten something down there and it had become loose and was leaking oil. I stopped at two different shops. Both shops told me the leak was coming from the valve cover gasket. Instead of paying $200 for them to replace it, I did it myself. I didn't use any sealant or silicone, or anything like that. The old gasket was hard as a rock and had some sort of red cement around it.
After I had everything back together, I had a partner start the car for me. The oil leak has become much worse--probably a quart a minute. The thing is... I can't see any oil leaking from the valve cover gasket. You would think that an oil leak of that volume would be visible if it were coming from the top of the engine, no? We're going to take the gasket off again to inspect and perhaps use some gasket sealant in select spots, per some YouTube videos we watched.
I'm thinking of purchasing a 2001 GLX VR6 Jetta with lots of deferred maintenance (shocks/struts, brakes, exhaust). Most worryingly, the valve cover gasket is leaking oil. The price is pretty low, but is such a beast worthwhile at any price or is it better parted out? And the interior is about as beat up as the mechanical--screeching passenger window motor, broken glove compartment ... Is this thing worth being brought back to life?
View 6 RepliesTruck was running a little rough before valve cover gasket replacement. Replaced gaskets and it ran rougher than before. Found a burned out spark plug coil and replaced coils, plugs, and wire. Runs smoothly now, but there's very, very low power, probably tops out at 35 mph. What gives?
View 19 RepliesThe car: 1991 Honda Civic, 4 cyl manual Bought a month and a half ago. Past: I have been dealing with a slow coolant leak in the car that up to this point I have been unable to locate. No puddles or obvious leaks. Small amount of smoke out back, nothing like a blown head gasket, but a little more than average for a car its age.
~Ran a block tester - head gasket fine.
~Checked spark plugs - look fine, not too clean or dirty.
~There does also appear to be water in the oil from time to time, this is not constant, and I do not put water in my radiator (beyond mixing with coolant).
Today: Looking around valve cover noticed it was dirty. Also noticed some sort of sealant/caulking like material that easily came out of the seal between Valve cover and lower engine. I then began to drive the car and noticed small amount of steam coming from the hood. When I opened it up there obviously had been coolant spraying on the left side of the engine. It was difficult to locate a leak point, but appears to be coming from the seal between the valve cover and engine. I have seen it suggested else where that coolant could not leak from a bad valve gasket, but could be leaking from the intake manifold and look like it was coming from the valve cover. Should I just try to replace the intake manifold gaskets?
After reading some posts I think my passat could have the cam seal and valve cover gasket leaking. I smell burning oil when stopped. How much should this repair cost if I go to an indy repair shop?
View 3 RepliesI had it checked out at the dealer and they called it a "weep" so they went on to tell me that VW probably wont approve warranty work for it. I pushed for them to take pictures and send it in anyway.
Now assuming they won't do it, I have been looking for a DIY or a technical order on the job but I can't find anything.
Just found valve cover of my Tiguan is leaking out oil this morning. Will go to dealer tmr for gasket replacement. My car is just over 50k miles. What happened to VW's car quality control???
View 5 RepliesHaven't had the engine cover off for about 25k now (cleaned it up under there last time I changed plugs.) Took it off today and noticed it's a little oily on all four sides around the valve cover.
Pretty sure I can account for the oil that's near the filler cap... I don't recall spilling enough that would completely go around the entire valve cover though...
But how did it end up so high on top of the valve cover on the corners? It's even a little wet looking on the back if you look hard enough..
I only have 4600 miles left of the 10/100 warranty so I'm glad I caught this and hope the dealer can do something about it... or are they going to tell me this a "normal" amount of seepage? I haven't owned a vehicle with plastic valve covers before so I don't quite know what to expect.
My son-in-law came by tonight and showed me his ticket from his oil change at the dealer on his '08 Azera, 108k miles. Tech remarked that both valve cover gaskets AND the oil pan gasket were leaking. I've walked through his garage many times when my daughter has the car at work and I've never noticed any oil on the floor. Should have I seen any? I told dealer I would just drive it and monitor the oil level and any other signs of oil leakage. Since he bought the car with 101k miles and a fresh oil change ticket and never checked the level over the next 7k miles I don't think it's leaking bad.
View 2 RepliesI have a 2003 Toyota Camry with 210,000km on it. Today I popped the hood, noticed the coolant was slightly low in the over flow reservoir so I looked around the engine bay. Now I know generally coolant does not go up that far and it's just oil... But this has got my head turning. There's a crusty coolant residue drip that looks to start at the valve cover. At first I thought maybe the water pump was leaking, and the pulley was spinning it farther up, or spraying back from a rad leak when driving. but the fact it's crusty and A clear line that looks like a drip that's a slow leak and has crusted over time makes me wonder.
I mean generally coolant wouldn't come out of the valve cover unless it was right full of coolant, causing enough pressure to push it out... Am I wrong ? Once I get to the shop on Monday I'm going to pressurize the cooling system and pull the spark plugs and the valve cover to look at the head, The highest spot I see the drip start is the valve cover, only thing I could think of is the intake leaking, and traveling over there but even then, it doesn't make sense to me. The thermostat housing is about 2.5" under so it can't be that... It's such a small leak, the reservoir is only down about maybe half an inch and the oil looks clean as can be.... There's some pictures below that you can somewhat see it.
I just had my oil changed and was told that my rack and pinion was leaking also my valve cover leaked I had the gasket change about a year ago an the leak is so slight it wont even show up in my dip stick, is it possible the valve cover leak is getting on the rack boot. Also can I change just the boot car has 15000mi in great shape an well maintained.....
View 7 RepliesI have a 2002 toyota camry xle 6 cyl i believe i have a valve cover gasket leaking vehicle has 112,000 miles. is there a step by step removal proccess i can access. I have done one on a 1995 honda passport 6 cyl how difficult is it
View 2 RepliesPassenger side valve cover leaking. My local parts stores have two brands.
Fel-Pro and MAHLE Original.
Any comments, preferences, anecdotes? I don't want to do this job twice.
I've been noticing an oil burning smell after driving recently, it's been going on for a few days now. My oil level is good, I have 8,500 miles on the car. Today I finally had a chance to look under the hood for any visible leaks, and I noticed some oil stains on what I think is the valve cover gasket.
2015 Sonata 2.0T ...