Help - My nuts are bleeding! Any issues with silicone gaskets?

[RarlyL8]

Interesting.
As you can see from the photo above, all of the nuts leak. Either that or the entire cover leaks and the oil finds its way to the nuts and drips off. I'll take a good look around when I open it up for the oil change and valave adjustment.

[rs6er]

If you want a deal on the silicone gaskets PM me. I bought a set from our host in order to do a valve adjustment. When I removed the covers, I discovered several broken studs and had a top end done. Didn't use the gaskets at all.

[john walker's workshop]

upper engine leaks also wet down the lower stuff of course. from that pic, i would first be suspect of the upper vc gaskets, valve cover surface, cam line seals at the towers, cam lines, oil filter seal, oil cap seal, breather and vent hoses, etc.

[Christien]

I'm paying close attention to this thread, because I've got exactly the same problem, with silicone gaskets. I put them on just recently, at my last oil change, and took the opportunity to really clean up the mating surfaces. I placed sandpaper on my garage floor (poured concrete, the smoothest and flattest surface I could find around the house) and sanded them. I found peaks and valleys, but only if you measured in fractions of a millimetre. I replaced them and yep, still leaks just as badly.

So while I'm chasing down various oil leaks, drips, etc from all over the engine, is there anything I can do in the meantime to at least stop the oil from dripping on the exhaust, burning up, then smoking like crazy? When I shut the car off, every few seconds you hear "PSSSSHHHHH" as another drop drips on the hot metal and sizzles. I have to leave the garage door open for 10 or 15 minutes so the house doesn't stink!

[Craig Stevens]

I had the same problem with my SC. Oil leaked from the cam covers no matter what I did. I finally changed the cam towers & rocker shafts with new shaft seals & have not had a leak there since. I changed out the seals with the engine in the car first. (Not fun) then I discovered the tower shaft bores were out of spec so I had to drop the engine to change the towers out. Good luck, Craig

[RarlyL8]

Oh you guys are making me feel real good about this. I started out needing new valve cover gaskets and end up with a full engine rebuild.

I think I'll take John up on his offer and change the gaskets to silicone and see what happens. If the leak persists I'll dig into it.

Do you guys use that oil dye stuff to trace leaks or is there something very specific I can look for? My engine is very clean, if there is a long term leak somewhere it is hidden from view.

Also, I clean the valve cover drips every time I drive the car, before and after (what a PITA). Generally the leaking is more active when the engine is running. Is this a clue as well or does it happen that way because the oil is hot and less viscous?

[Craig Stevens]

Remove the cam covers & check the chambers that are outside the rocker chamber. only the chambers with the rocker arms should be wet. the others should be dry. you can try to tighten the shafts to stop the leak, or put new shaft seals on & tighten. be very careful not to over tighten or you will strip the screw. Craig

[Christien]

Mine also drips worse after running, I always just assumed it's because it's hotter and more viscous. I got a suggestion regarding my tranny leak to find the source of a leak that I thought was clever - make sure everything's clean then coat everything with corn starch. Then watch for trails in the corn starch to find the source of a weeping leak.

[Gunter]

[QUOTE=Christien;3595452]I'm paying close attention to this thread, because I've got exactly the same problem, with silicone gaskets. I put them on just recently, at my last oil change, and took the opportunity to really clean up the mating surfaces. I placed sandpaper on my garage floor (poured concrete, the smoothest and flattest surface I could find around the house) and sanded them. I found peaks and valleys, but only if you measured in fractions of a millimetre. I replaced them and yep, still leaks just as badly.
QUOTE]

Use a plate of glass for the sanding, not the floor.
JW points out all the parts that could contribute to the leak.
Rocker shafts don't have to be cracked to leak.
If they were installed in the wrong position (Too much to one side) or if the bore in the cam case is worn out, they will leak.
It's prudent to check the position of the shafts during valve adjust; they can work loose.
If the mating surfaces are clean and level, new Nyloc nuts and Alu crush washers are used along with new gaskets and there is still oil showing up, the leak might be coming from somewhere else.
Of course, if some of the studs for the VC have damaged threads, the Nyloc cannot seal.

[RarlyL8]

I'm making a list of things to check .........

[OldTee]

Originally Posted by RarlyL8

Do you guys use that oil dye stuff to trace leaks or is there something very specific I can look for? My engine is very clean, if there is a long term leak somewhere it is hidden from view.

Yes and it works very well. Found a cracked aircraft engine case with the stuff and some leaks near the oil pressure switch on a 911 engine. The blow oil shows very light green and the leaking crack shows bright green.