Mighty valve cover leak

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warracer

New member
Alright, last summer I went with a cometic ''Street pro'' top end gasket kit, everything worked great. But, I recently I noticed some humidity surrounding the valve cover (slight oil leak), now my guess would be that the cometic gasket isn't as good as the oem one, either way, I will be ordering an OEM one this spring, but my question remains, I looked for the correct procedure in the bgb, I was stunned when I saw the torque on these bolts, 6N/M, thats insanely low and at that torque, the cam cover seems lifted by the gasket... Oh, and I got myself some hex bolt to make sure I don't re-use the awful phillips screw (toyota... what?why?)...

Anyway, anybody has some cue on how to properly install/torque the valve cover?
 
C

CSAlltrac

New member
The Cometic HG is far supior to the OE piece. For the valve cover, start in the center and work your way out. Tighten until you see the gasket compress a bit.
 
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warracer

New member
CSAlltrac":xa5yuesi said:
The Cometic HG is far supior to the OE piece. For the valve cover, start in the center and work your way out. Tighten until you see the gasket compress a bit.
Click to expand...

For the HG, of course, the graphite OEM one is weak sauce, but the valve cover gasket started leaking a bit after 6months, which isn't normal but ill order a new oem one

But aren't the torque soft?? When I torqued it down to spec, the valve cover wasn't touching the head, maybe its normal?
 
C

CSAlltrac

New member
The VC won't touch the head, the bolts would probably break before it did. I wouldn't worry about the exact spec. just go down as level as possible(inside working your way out) and make sure there's good compression of the gasket.
 
M

mx6er2587

New member
coming from a recent nightmare experience with a vw valve cover gasket; Its best to stick with those low factory torque specs. It doesn't take much to seal that gasket and too much can be just as bad as too little. There's a reason Toyota went with Philips head bolts to begin with
 
S

sarnodude

New member
There are a few places on the VC gasket that require FIPG sealant, in addition to the rubber gaskets..
You need to consult the BGB, for the exact locations.

If you don't use a few dabs of FIPG sealant in the required locations, I can virtually guarantee your VC will leak.

The screws do not require huge gobs of torque, since they exist to compress the rubber seal.

I have installed the OEM gasket on my MR2 a couple of times, and no leaks yet after a year or so.
(I have a 1990 Alltrac as well, withthe identical engine).
 
Q

quieter

Member
you gotta put fpig in the 4 corners or some permatex high temp and let it sit for 18-24 hours, like sarnodude said its in the BGB. make sure you put gasket maker on the intake manifold (to take off those 2 last bolts)
 
athousandleaves

athousandleaves

New member
As a side note, I believe that they're not actually Phillips style screws but JIS (Japanese Industrial Standard) screws and this is why you'll strip them out when you try and torque them down properly.
 
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warracer

New member
Yep they're JIS

screws_JIS_phillips_comparison.jpg

1027018d1364511581-q-common-screw-drivers-g-shocks-philips-vs-jis.jpg



But I replaced them with hexagon socket screw since JIS 3/8'' bit are near impossible to find around here
 
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