Valve cover gasket replacement ?

[perk]

I've got parts on the way to replace my valve cover gasket, along withe fan clutch and thermostat (thanks Dan!). The FSM notes SST's are needed for VCG job. I've got a thickness gauge for checking the valves, but what other tools will I need to do the job? Any other tips would be helpful.

Thanks
Perk

 

[cruiserman]

No SSTs that I recall unless you're talking about removing the valve shims. Be careful pulling on the spark plug boots. Remove the 10mm bolts holding the heater valve to the firewall to make it easier to reach the #6 plug boot.

 

[concretejungle]

Didn't even think about it when i ordered my valve cover stuff from Dan, but should you do a thermostat at the same time?

 

[perk]

No..I don't think those two are related. I got the thermostat and fan clutch to refresh the cooling system. My fan clutch definetly needs replacing so I thought I might as well do the thermostat. My temp gauge is always reading right about halfway if not a frog's hair above. I'm hoping that these two items will lower this a bit.

 

[cruiserman]

Have you measured the actual temperature rather than going by the gauge?

 

[John E Davies]

Here's a trick for installing the cover gasket:

Clean the groove in the cover and put tiny dabs of high temp silicone sealant into the groove about every 6 inches. Press in the new gasket and turn the cover right side up on a clean flat surface. Weight the top with something to keep a little pressure on the seal. After a few hours you can handle the cover without fear of the seal slipping out of place. Overnight is best.

If you remove the fan and clutch before checking clearances, you will have more room to turn the crank. Instead of screwing around with the service manual technique, just work your way from front to back or vice versa while turning the crank to place the tip of the cam lobe 180 degrees from the shim and do your check. Write down the clearances to compare the next time you do the job.

Fun job - not! I usually pad the radiator and grill heavily with old towels and a sheet to keep from scraping my chest too badly. If you are lucky any shims needing replacement won't be in the back, or you will have to remove the cams. The special valve tool is good to have on hand. I don't particularly like pulling cams unless there is no other option.

John

 

[Romer]

When you do the valve cover, you should replace the gromets for the spark plugs.

 

[concretejungle]

When you do the valve cover, you should replace the gromets for the spark plugs.

Got those. Got new belts too, and am ordering a PCV grommet. Can you think of anything else while i'm there, besides wires?

EDIT: i think i may read up a bit on the enlarging of a oil feeder hole, supposidly reduces start-up rattle if not eliminating it all together. Might try that while i'm messin' around.

 

[Romer]

You might as well change the plugs if they haven't been changed in a while

 

[perk]

Have you measured the actual temperature rather than going by the gauge?

No...one of those things I've been meaning to do. What is a good method for checking the temp?

 

[perk]

Here's a trick for installing the cover gasket:

Clean the groove in the cover and put tiny dabs of high temp silicone sealant into the groove about every 6 inches. Press in the new gasket and turn the cover right side up on a clean flat surface. Weight the top with something to keep a little pressure on the seal. After a few hours you can handle the cover without fear of the seal slipping out of place. Overnight is best.

If you remove the fan and clutch before checking clearances, you will have more room to turn the crank. Instead of screwing around with the service manual technique, just work your way from front to back or vice versa while turning the crank to place the tip of the cam lobe 180 degrees from the shim and do your check. Write down the clearances to compare the next time you do the job.

Fun job - not! I usually pad the radiator and grill heavily with old towels and a sheet to keep from scraping my chest too badly. If you are lucky any shims needing replacement won't be in the back, or you will have to remove the cams. The special valve tool is good to have on hand. I don't particularly like pulling cams unless there is no other option.

John

Great info John...thanks. Siliconing gasket to cover sounds like a good thing to do.
I'm hoping I'll find all of the valves with proper clearences (obviously ), as the idea of adjusting them sounds a little complex for my expertise. I'm hoping that once I get them exposed and study them a bit that if they do need adjusting it will all start to make sense. There are three SST's listed (valve lifter stopper, falve lifter press, falve clearance adjust tool set). Do I need to purchase all of these? If they would make life a lot easier I would just as soon get them, assuming their not too expensive. Are there alternative tools? It sounds like I'll need a micrometer....what exactly is that?
If I do find clearances off on the #6 valves I think I'll leave them be, as she's currently running very well and the idea of taking tha cam out sounds problematic.

 

[sixsracing]

A micrometer is a device used to measure small items. Usually smaller than six inches or so. Sometimes measurements are displayed digitally (preferred) most often displayed like an analog watch face. This tool is helpful if the thickness of the shim you are removing is not known. They are marked from the factory but can be worn off with normal wear and tear. You need to know how thick the shim you are removing is to determine what thickness needs to be installed. It sounds like this is your first time doing a valve adjustment. I don't want to scare you but here's some advice:

Take your time, try to remove all distractions, measure everything twice.

If you have a question or are not sure of something, STOP. Get some help or post your dilemma. Severe engine wear/damage can result from an improper valve adjustment.

When your done making your adjustments, turn the engine over by hand a few times slowly. Do not use the starter motor. Then measure all your clearances again.

Take your time. Yes I know I wrote that already.

You can pick up a digital thermometer at a Sears store for about $10.00. It's a good investment and you will use it frequently.

Good luck and happy wrenching.

 

[perk]

A micrometer is a device used to measure small items. Usually smaller than six inches or so. Sometimes measurements are displayed digitally (preferred) most often displayed like an analog watch face. This tool is helpful if the thickness of the shim you are removing is not known. They are marked from the factory but can be worn off with normal wear and tear. You need to know how thick the shim you are removing is to determine what thickness needs to be installed. It sounds like this is your first time doing a valve adjustment. I don't want to scare you but here's some advice:

Take your time, try to remove all distractions, measure everything twice.

If you have a question or are not sure of something, STOP. Get some help or post your dilemma. Severe engine wear/damage can result from an improper valve adjustment.

When your done making your adjustments, turn the engine over by hand a few times slowly. Do not use the starter motor. Then measure all your clearances again.

Take your time. Yes I know I wrote that already.

You can pick up a digital thermometer at a Sears store for about $10.00. It's a good investment and you will use it frequently.

Good luck and happy wrenching.

Very good advice....thank you
Couple questions...How do you turn the engine over by hand? Where do you put the thermometer to check coolant temp? Do you carefully remove rad cap when hot?

 

[John E Davies]

Very good advice....thank you
Couple questions...How do you turn the engine over by hand? Where do you put the thermometer to check coolant temp? Do you carefully remove rad cap when hot?

You turn the engine by using a big socket and ratchet handle on the crankshaft nut - with the spark plugs removed you can easily turn the crank. Having the fan and clutch out of the way helps a lot.

The thermometer can just be stuck into a cranny in the engine block away from the exhaust system - don't take the temp at the radiator since it will likely be cooler than the engine itself. If you remove the rad cap when the coolant is hot it will spray everywhere and you risk getting scalded. The system is pressurized at 0.9 bar ( around 13 psi) when the engine is at operating temperature.

You know, it's really good to ask questions - that's how we learn, but I am more than a little concerned about your current level of knowledge. I strongly recommend that you find a knowledgable buddy to help you with the valve check or take the truck to a shop. The potential for screwing up your engine is significant if you decide to replace shims. The check itself isn't real risky.

I like to encourage owners to dig into routine maintenance, but to go in blind is not a good thing.... Have you thought about taking a basic auto repair course at your local community college? It would be very valuable.

Good luck.

John

 

[sixsracing]

Take a temp. check on both sides of the thermostat. The lower hose and the housing on the engine side of the thermostat. This will let you know if the thermostat is opening all the way or if the thermostat is restricting flow. Of course the engine needs to be at operating temperature or the thermostat may be restricting flow because that's what it's supposed to do. If you can remove the cap safely, with some practice this can be done (keep some rags handy and if you can steal an oven mit from the wife it offers even more protection) then yes putting the thermometer directly into the coolant is the preferred method. The other alternative is an infra-red type thermometer but these are generally pricey ($100.00-$400.00) and you probably will not justify the expense to use ratio. This is all a lot of extra effort to just replace a thermostat. Get one from the dealer and install when you drain the system. The diagnostics is more for coolant related issues like water pump and head gasket failure.

A course is always a good idea, just make sure it's being taught by someone that should be teaching. There are lots of automotive teachers out there that are teaching because they weren't good enough to actually fix anything. I'm sure there are some techs on this forum that have run up against some of their "ASE Certified" students.

 

[perk]

The potential for screwing up your engine is significant if you decide to replace shims. The check itself isn't real risky.

John, Sixsracing, I appreciate the advice and words of caution. The shim removing procedure in the FSM appears straight forward, I have read over it numerous times. What parts of this procedure, specifically, have the potential to get tricky? Is it easy to damage the valve lifter, or some other component, when trying to remove the shim? I realize that if the shims are placed back in too tightly or too loosely, damage can occur. I would go through the procedure of checking and adjusting the clearances very methodically. Hopefully this is all for theory and hypotheticals, and I will find all of my clearances to spec.

Thanks again
Perk

 

[sixsracing]

Getting the cam and crank in the right place in regard to each other before you take a measurement. On most motors this can be shortcutted by making the lobes of both the intake and exhaust cams face away from each other or the lifter. Whichever gives you the most clearance between shim and cam.

Measuring the clearance and then calibrating the correct shim thickness to give you the appropriate clearance is very important.

Those are your big issues.

Unless you compress the ifter to the point of crushing it should not be a problem.

Honda has decided that a magnet should not be used to remove the shim from it's bucket. I have no idea why and have never seen another manufacturer spec. the same.

You'll be fine, remember:

No distractions, take your time, measure twice.