Valve Cover Carbon - Normal buildup?

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Joined
Nov 12, 2018
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SLC, UT
Replacing my valve cover gasket due to severe leakage in the plug seals and wondered if the state of the inside of the valve cover is what one could expect from a 1994 ~195k mile truck. I searched but there aren't many pictures of the covers pre-cleaning in threads. .
image_67237633.webp
 
that's about normal. looks like oil maintenance has been fairly regular.
 
Looks normal to me.
 
Looks about normal but might be even better in the future with some of the newer oils that leave even less carbon/varnish IME.

FWIW while the cover is off you may want to spend some time cleaning inside oil baffle (box) in the top of the cover, varnish/sludge can build up inside. A can or three of Carb cleaner IME will not do the job, repeated flushing with a degreaser like Purple Power, etc does a better job.

Tip: IME thick dielectric grease (ie out of a tube) slathered on the gasket and seals can be used before you install the gasket and the tube seals and help hold the gasket in place during installation. FWIW
 
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