Valve Cover Leaking and Green Stuff

[Nayr747]

I noticed my valve cover gasket was leaking oil a little while ago and was just wondering how bad it looked to you guys. I'm pretty sure it was like this when I bought it used so it didn't happen all of a sudden. I was also wondering about something else I noticed right to the left of the valve cover. There's this green stuff on the thermostat? and also some oil. Anyone know what this could be?

 

[khsdm]

that looks like corrosion to me, maybe a cracked radiator hose and for the valve cover gasket, thats a pretty easy fix

 

[tighty]

I have that green stuff on my water pipes too...not as much as yours mind you. It is corrosion of some sort, I would plan on replacing those sometime in the near future. My engine looked just like yours with the oil dripping everything, I cleaned it up and installed a new VC gasket tonight. I'd bet thats your problem too.

 

[WICKEDTEEN84]

replace the valve gasget and get that radiator flushed and you should be good to go

 

[ken inn]

the green stuff is coolant leaking. time to change out the hoses. they get hard and dont seal after a while. the valve cover gasket also gets hard, and dont seal, so oil seeps past it. you need to change that, too. if it has never been off the car, it will be a beyatch to get loose. that sucker likes to weld itself to the head. lots of cussing involved. get a factory mitsu gasket, they seem to be better than any of the aftermarket ones i have used. also, i clean both surfaces, head and valve cover, then use a thin layer of hylomar on both sides. this will greatly aid in the sealing, AND, then next time you pull off the valve cover, it will come off really easy.

 

[Defiant]

You're seeing why we used to use screw drive hose clamps. Ah, but those took an extra three seconds to assemble, and Job One at the factory is to get these effers out the door.

 

[tighty]

the green stuff is coolant leaking. time to change out the hoses. they get hard and dont seal after a while. the valve cover gasket also gets hard, and dont seal, so oil seeps past it. you need to change that, too. if it has never been off the car, it will be a beyatch to get loose. that sucker likes to weld itself to the head. lots of cussing involved. get a factory mitsu gasket, they seem to be better than any of the aftermarket ones i have used. also, i clean both surfaces, head and valve cover, then use a thin layer of hylomar on both sides. this will greatly aid in the sealing, AND, then next time you pull off the valve cover, it will come off really easy.

Yeah I was trying to get OEM too and ordered mine from SBR and when it got here came to find out its some generic crap. =( Just a heads up in case you start looking around online for OEM. In fact they got it from somewhere in CA, and shipping it back to them then back to me in CA, . Better head to your local Satan station to pick it up.

 

[Nayr747]

Ok, I have a bunch of questions. For the valve cover gasket, I was gonna get a Fel-pro from Napa. Should I go with the OEM instead? How much are they? How do you clean the mating surfaces? I've never heard of that Hylomar stuff, is it like RTV? What should I replace my hoses with? I couldn't just take the hose off and clean it up and tighten it real good? Someone said I should flush my cooling system, should I get a shop to do that? I tried it on my last car and f-ed it up pretty bad ($1200). Yeah, I'm stupid.

 

[c5chris]

I had the same problem - I could mistake your pictures with my engine compartment a few months ago.

I had changed hoses and used new clamps. The valve cover gaskets were changed and be VERY CAREFUL on torquing them. Too much and the VC breaks. Too little and you have a leak problem.

I replaced my thermostat too at the same time I flushed my cooling system.

 

[Nayr747]

Anyone know where that oil on the t-stat might have come from?

 

[sweet97]

Anyone know where that oil on the t-stat might have come from?

The fan is a pull type so it blows air onto the motor and might be spreading the leaking oil. That corner of my motor is wet with oil also. I just changed the valvecover gasket. I'll spray the engine at the car=wash soon. If you do that you MUST be careful not to get everything wet, just that corner or your car may not start afterwards!

Guess what? I took a drive this morning and smelled oil.
Popped the hood and looked around. Oil on the bottom of the hood and on the motor. Oil dip-stick had popped out. www.dejontool.com sells a crank vent. Often the crankcase of turbo cars can become pressurized. That's what forced the dipstick out. The crankvent creates a vacuum in the crankcase which allows the rotating assembly to rotate easier because it is not fighting against pressure> slightly more HP and no more dip popping out. Mark

 

[JiveMasterT]

so wait, i wanna clear things up... is the oil circled in red because of a leaky valve cover gasket or something else? i have it in the same place, and it seemed too low to be because of the valve cover gasket... maybe i should just change it and clean things and see how it goes though.

sorry to jack the thread but i thought this might help shed some light on sources of leaking oil.

 

[toojung2die]

My engine looked like these pictures when I bought it. I cleaned it thoroughly and have kept it clean since then. I'm seeing a little oil seep out of the VC gasket at the half-moon rubber plug part of the VC gasket that's above the t-stat housing. Over time this seepage will make the whole corner of the engine look like the photos again. That half-moon must be a weak point in the gasket seal. Now I have another little project to look forward to and an opportunity to buff up my VC.

 

[Nayr747]

Well I cleaned up the area in the pics as much as I could with simple green It was crazy actually seeing METAL under all that crap. JiveMasterT, I assumed it was oil leaking because if you look at the right part of the circle, where the exhaust mani connects, there is a distinct line like it was flowing down from the top. While I was cleaning though, I saw basically the same on the right side of the engine. I guess it's just leaking on all sides?

When I replace the gasket I was gonna get my valve cover powder coated black with letters unpainted. The place said it would be $80 total including shipping and everything and me sending them my cover. Does that seem like a decent deal?

The fan is a pull type so it blows air onto the motor and might be spreading the leaking oil.

But the oil looks like it's in a line right where the gasket on the t-stat is. It looks like its coming out from it, but that doesn't make sense.

If anyone could help with some of my questions in my earlier post I would really appreciate it.

 

[sweet97]

I get my powdercoating done by www.boneheadperformance.com. My valvecover is black with polished letters, my fuelrail is red along with fuelrail,thermostat housing and my intake manifold is bright silver. CHeck him out

 

[JiveMasterT]

Well I cleaned up the area in the pics as much as I could with simple green It was crazy actually seeing METAL under all that crap. JiveMasterT, I assumed it was oil leaking because if you look at the right part of the circle, where the exhaust mani connects, there is a distinct line like it was flowing down from the top. While I was cleaning though, I saw basically the same on the right side of the engine. I guess it's just leaking on all sides?

When I replace the gasket I was gonna get my valve cover powder coated black with letters unpainted. The place said it would be $80 total including shipping and everything and me sending them my cover. Does that seem like a decent deal?


But the oil looks like it's in a line right where the gasket on the t-stat is. It looks like its coming out from it, but that doesn't make sense.

If anyone could help with some of my questions in my earlier post I would really appreciate it.

i was thinking that maybe it was the headgasket leaking or something like that because it is lower down on the whole motor assembly, but if my hg was leaking i think i would have a whole mess of other problems, like coolant in my oil...

 

[Tallen]

You're seeing why we used to use screw drive hose clamps. Ah, but those took an extra three seconds to assemble, and Job One at the factory is to get these effers out the door.

What is this technology you speak of?

 

[sweet97]

T-bolt clamps

 

[toojung2die]

If anyone could help with some of my questions in my earlier post I would really appreciate it.

Exactly what questions haven't been already answered? Your valve cover gasket and coolant hose connections have been leaking.

 

[sweet97]

Mine had oil in the sae place. went to the car wash and cleaned it. i will watch it and see what happens.

 

[Nayr747]

Exactly what questions haven't been already answered? Your valve cover gasket and coolant hose connections have been leaking.

These ones.

Ok, I have a bunch of questions. For the valve cover gasket, I was gonna get a Fel-pro from Napa. Should I go with the OEM instead? How much are they? How do you clean the mating surfaces? I've never heard of that Hylomar stuff, is it like RTV? What should I replace my hoses with? I couldn't just take the hose off and clean it up and tighten it real good? Someone said I should flush my cooling system, should I get a shop to do that? I tried it on my last car and f-ed it up pretty bad ($1200). Yeah, I'm stupid.

I'll check out boneheadperformance, thanks.

 

[toojung2die]

I'll check out boneheadperformance, thanks.

I guess you're just being honest about your mechanical skills. Good you can laugh about it. As long as I can laugh at myself I'll never run out material

If you found you were not up to the task of flushing out a cooling system then maybe you should think twice about replacing the valve cover gasket yourself. If you don't do the job right you'll end up with a worse leak or even a cracked valve cover. Can you enlist the help of someone who has done these kind of things before to help you? I haven't had a personal car fixed in a repair shop since 1979 except for those rare occasions when I don't have the expensive special tools required. Wheel alignments for example. A man has to know his limitations.

If you can't get help then get an OEM Service Manual. You'll rarely go wrong by carefully following the manufacturers instructions. It's indespensible.

 

[Nayr747]

Well, I gotta learn somehow, ya know. My goal is to be able to do all my work myself and know my car back and forth. I practiced on my previous car so I wouldn't screw this one up. I know it might be a hard goal but it's what I've wanted for a really long time. I can't get anyone else to help me cause I dont know anyone. Everyone I know thinks cars are to get you from A to B. Sucks.

 

[toojung2die]

Congratulations, you just passed the entrance exam to the Auto Mechanic School of Hard Knocks.

 

[leet]

Well, I gotta learn somehow, ya know. My goal is to be able to do all my work myself and know my car back and forth. I practiced on my previous car so I wouldn't screw this one up. I know it might be a hard goal but it's what I've wanted for a really long time. I can't get anyone else to help me cause I dont know anyone. Everyone I know thinks cars are to get you from A to B. Sucks.

Main thing to remember when installing the Valve Cover:

Inch-Pounds, not Foot-Pounds! I've seen so many people crack them from torqueing the crap out of them. Just take it easy, make sure you get all of the old gasket out. If you don't, you're guaranteed a leak. I always use a good sealer in between the metal and the gasket (good copper RTV or Hylomar if you can find it.)

As for the hoses, if they are bulging at all, I would recommend replacing them. No sense having one explode going down the highway, right? I would replace the stupid factory clamps with a good set of screw-drive (or T-Bolt, but $$$) Hose Clamps.