Fixing valve cover leak-suggestions?

[Silent Runner]

Alright, I've done lots of mechanical repairs on Toyota and other cars before, so I'm not a total newbie, but this is the first time I'm going to pull apart my perfectly running Gen3 V-6. I have to replace the rear valve cover seal, because it is flowing oil, and makes a bad smell every day, and my condo is ruled by a bunch of old far...s, that really take offence to this among their pristine BMW's and other 3 year old or newer cars.. I just purchased all the required gaskets (valve covers of course, and intake plenum). I have a Hanes manual and some handy pics the dealer was nice enough to print up for me of the parts in exploded view. Since I'm going in there, any tips on extra things to do along the way, or to look out for?

[JohnGD]

The problem may be with the valve cover bolts not putting enough pressure on the cover. Either get new ones or add a couple of washers. The wavy stack looses compression force. Not the best design. I think there was a thread discussing this.

You have new spark plug tube seals and some RTV? PCV valve and grommet? How about checking valve clearances? Valve stem seals can wait until the next timing belt change.

Originally Posted by Silent Runner

Alright, I've done lots of mechanical repairs on Toyota and other cars before, so I'm not a total newbie, but this is the first time I'm going to pull apart my perfectly running Gen3 V-6. I have to replace the rear valve cover seal, because it is flowing oil, and makes a bad smell every day, and my condo is ruled by a bunch of old far...s, that really take offence to this among their pristine BMW's and other 3 year old or newer cars.. I just purchased all the required gaskets (valve covers of course, and intake plenum). I have a Hanes manual and some handy pics the dealer was nice enough to print up for me of the parts in exploded view. Since I'm going in there, any tips on extra things to do along the way, or to look out for?

[pmesfun]

PCV Valve and Grommet, Rear plugs if needed. Clean the tb and iacv. Also the Intake plenum if you want to spend the time. Iacv coolant hoses if needed.

[71Corolla]

How is the condition of the cam seals?

The job is not that hard, but of course you will have to at least partially drain the coolant. Make sure you cover the intake manifold so nothing falls into the engine. And while you're at it, replace the spark plugs unless they have been done recently. The half-moon plugs will also need to be sealed up, as well as the plastic cam plug on the drivers side of the engine.

Really the hardest part is getting the wiring harness out of the way enough to give clearance to remove bank1 cam cover (firewall side). Also, replacing the spark plug seals is a bit tricky.

If you need help, I can always come over and give you a hand.

[ajkalian]

Originally Posted by Silent Runner

Since I'm going in there, any tips on extra things to do along the way, or to look out for?

This thread has everything that you need to know about changing out the valve cover gaskets. The first couple of pages are on the top end maintenance but the valve cover stuff starts on Page 3.

Need Advice


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[Silent Runner]

Thanks guys! I appreciate the advice, and I'm going to add a couple of things to my shopping list before I dig in. I'm paying close attention, because the heads are going to come off this summer after a local shop ports and polishes a set of donor's for me. It's funny though, I've done turbo replacements, suspension stuff, ripped the entire interior out of the car, lots of sound and electronics,.. but this still makes me a little nervous.

[fenixus]

PM sent

[Silent Runner]

Alright, the job is done but jeeess, it whas actually a bit of a bugger. I cleaned the iavc, scrubbed down the throttle body, cleaned up the cold start injector and checked the condition of all the hoses related. This was done about 4 years ago, so it looked like they replaced alot of stuff already and it was in good shape. What was nasty was the little stuff that manuals don't tell you about re-assembly. Like don't tighten the throttle body down until you have re-connected all the braces, egrs, and bs bolts on the firewall side of the engine. They also don't really mention that it helps to be fairly physically strong, in order to pull,push and yank all the necessary stuff around. It would have been nice to have someone helping out with this job besides my very bord poodle. No wonder Toyota charges $600 or so for this job. So far, so good, no leaks, no check engine lights, just a sore back and knees. BTW. I could have had the cylinder head off my old Toyota Corolla, back on and running in much less than the 7 hrs or so it took me to do this job. Lots of respect to you guys who pull this car apart like its easy...