If the oil hasn't had time to drain back to the engine case (overnight) you should be okay pulling the lower covers without too much of a mess. Keep the car level, and don't leave it open over night.

 

I thought the whole point of the billet valve covers was to stop the leaks because the mag ones warp and these don't?

Of course they should be fitted and torques up correctly and assuming all is in order behind them but if they still don't seal then what's the point of them?

 

Seems to be the seals are the Achilles Heel.

 

My OEM valve covers were a mess. I was thinking about getting them cleaned and painted, but that's another rabbit hole to go down. Then the Rennline sale come up and I bought a set.

I am really disappointed with the leaking. The shop is dependable with the owner having a long history with air cooled engines. I am wondering if his torque wrench might be out of spec.

So I'm going to buy a torque wrench. Its difficult to find a 'good' one. Many come uncalibrated and I've convinced myself that for this torque range a dial indicator is best. These come in at about $150 or more.

Any clearance issues using the bulkier dial wrenches? This will be for lower covers. Or other recommendations for a reliable wrench?

Thanks,

Dan

 

The Snap-On TechWrench is one of the best tools i've purchased but their retail prices are a bit absurd. I would check ebay or find out who makes the tool for Snap-On and maybe buy it directly which is usually substantially cheaper.

 

I think CDI makes those for Snap-On. Try model 2401CI3


Not exactly inexpensive, but not sure what Snap-On charges.

 

Just to update this thread, I did the worst leaking cover about 2 weeks ago.

I pulled the DME and cranked the engine in the hopes to get as much of the oil put of the crankcase as possible. there was still some dripping.

I used Hylomar on valve cover only. Pelican recommended only valve cover sided needed sealing and when I pulled the cover, there was no signs of leaks on the head surface. So thats what I did.

I bought a small Seakonk torque wrench that was cal'd to 84 inch pounds. The torque felt a lot higher than 'finger tight' before the wrench slipped.

Things seem dry. It'll take a while before all residual oil drips down. (I need more clean cardboard to see for sure).

Now to do the other side.

One big plus. I had oil dripping from area on RMS. As engine was just out and rebuilt I kind of cringed. Then I thought it might be the oil pressure sender. When I fixed the leaking cover (on driver's side) the oil dripping from RMS are stopped!! The tech had said the oil was coming from front of valve cover. I guess it was getting blown all over front of engine and then dripped down to lowest point along center line.

Dan

 

Park make a good quality bicycle torque wrench which I've used many times and regularly check against my snap on torque wrench and it's spot on!

 

Does any one make decent price and quality valve covers anymore. Seems all I find online a OE or OEM. Rennline doesnt seem to list them from what I can find.

 

http://www.rennline.com/Engine-and-Related/products/806/

 

Thanks when I typed in valve covers only the factory ones popped up! Are these good ones to use? My factory ones are pitted and the coating is pealing off inside and in the groves.

 

These are the ones I purchased I'm still fighting leaks. Maybe due to not draining sump. Dont know.

Next oil change I will get covers milled and use sealer. I'm wondering if powder coating skews tolerances. I've had to remove coating to get good fit on other pieces.

They do look good though...

 

My update. It has been over a year and a good many miles since I put on the Rennline upper and lower covers with pelicans gasket kit. Still not a drop of oil. My stock covers were not leaking, they were just roached and peeling just like everyone else's. I had no intention on changing the covers, but when I did my valve adjustment there was no way I could put them back on looking like that. I used the silver color billet on the bottom to match the case and exhaust and black on top to match the engine tin and everything else up top.

 

The factory changed from magnesium painted valve covers to aluminum. IIRC all you can buy now is aluminum. They are identical in every way to the magnesium except they are not painted. It is apparent they even used the same tooling to cast them since aluminum and magnesium both shrink the same. I am finding that the old mag covers are usually fine and it is just the seals that dry up and shrink over time and usually lack of use that cause them to weep. I was shocked to find that my aluminum covers were leaking after 4 months in storage but are 7 years old. When I opened them up I found the shop had over tightened mine as I find on most cars I have replaced them on lately. The gaskets had shrunk considerably so I just replaced them and now my engine is oil free again. Except the little I spilled on the refill of the oil. I always get impatient waiting for the oil to slowly make it to the tank. Not sure why the 964's do this the earlier cars were never a problem. Just have to learn to pour a 1/3 quart every so many minutes to get it all in there without making a mess.

 

Is that a 993 rear brake caliper? Or am I looking at a turbo?