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Post by tipsymcstager on Apr 24, 2011 1:15:57 GMT -6
a fairly cut&dry job! the only tools you'll need are a 10mm deep and shallowm as well as 3" extension (1/4" drive was best)for the valve covers and coils, a 14mm for the sight cover, flathead to unclip the harness's and some degreaser. plus the gasket kit (FEL-PRO Part # VS50597R) and thats all! i started in on the back one, unclip the harness tie's and plugs(blue) theres one more you can't see on the left side of the cover below the one pointed out pop off the vacuum lines (yellow) then you remove the bracket (green)  on the coil wire harness theres a connection you can't see from the top you'll need to reach behind and pop it off the valve cover to separate the two here's an under car shot to show it's how's it's set on  and disconnected  next pull the coil pack off (10mm) tilt it to the front and lift out. no need to pull any spark plugs, they can stay in place. heres a pic of the front valve cover bolts same 7 locations on the back one  i found it best to lift the valve cover off by just pulling up on the chain side first (passenger side) then angling it out, it'll go back in the same way. now thats it's off a couple shots of where it was leaking at the bottom   the front is real easy, undo the wire harness clips, two on the left side again two on the top (blue) shove that out of the way. undo the coil plug (theres a lock you slid out, then depress the little button and pull) the PVC hose and finally that vac line on the right(red) pull the 7 bolts, theres grommets in the bolt holes, so you'll need to give the bolts a good tug after you've unthreaded them.  here's the front off, you can see where it was leaking, same in the back, as well as the plug rings    probably the hard hardest thing to do was getting the back cleaned up for the gasket! be sure to take your time and get everything off, a clean surface is imperative for a good seal! spray a litle degreaser in the cap of the can, and brush some on, let it do it's thing and all that crap will wipe off a lot easier, without any scraping! then wipe it down again with a clean cloth to get the degreaser off!   heres what comes in the gasket set.............LOL glad i was taking pic's!!! when i was cleaning up i found 7 plug gaskets on the floor and thought i missed one when i put the covers back on!!!! counted the one's in this pic and seen they put an one extra in the bag! boy was i pissed, for about 5 min's then laughed for 10.  a shot with the gaskets on and the bolt grommets in, ready to go back on  did the back one first, don't know if theres a torque# for the cover bolts but you'll find a shoulder on them, that bottoms out on the head so you don't crush the rubber! so for me it was just a touchy feely thing theres really no need to over do it. when you hit bottom just give it a good crank with the 1/4 drive and you'll be ok. (don't really see how you'ed get a torque wrench on the back anyways)  now you can get the coil back on, pull the little springs out and give them a little tug to expand them so you get a good contact! then push them back in with your pinky and you'll feel them seat right, after they slip past a rib on the inside  put the boots in first, and push them down till you feel them "pop" on. then push the coil in next. don't try to put the boots on the coil first you'll never feel it seat right. and you most likly can't get them both on at the sametime on the back cover!  front done  and the back  put your wire's and vac lines back on and your done!! not a hard job to do yourself, about 2 hr's time if your handy with a wrench  |
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Post by nelson480 on Apr 24, 2011 13:27:40 GMT -6
Looks very straight forward!
Good job tipsy!
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Post by Marc on Apr 24, 2011 14:23:38 GMT -6
80 inch pounds for those bolts, according to pg. 6-193 of the 2001 shop manual.
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Post by snipes78 on Apr 24, 2011 16:37:37 GMT -6
A very good right up tipsymcstager i just picked up my FEL-PRO gasket on friday and was looking for a write up but didnt c one, till now.
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Post by dynamic1964 on Apr 24, 2011 16:48:06 GMT -6
Thanks tipsy. Gonna save this thread.
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Post by tipsymcstager on Apr 24, 2011 19:07:27 GMT -6
80 inch pounds for those bolts, according to pg. 6-193 of the 2001 shop manual. appreciate you adding that marc! i know i've got the 80in on them, i don't have a torque wrench small enough to get in on the back side. and i may have forgot to say, it's best on any gasket. to start in the middle and and work your way out and around in a cross hatch pattern. like ya do with lug nuts |
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Post by tipsymcstager on Apr 24, 2011 19:12:16 GMT -6
A very good right up tipsymcstager i just picked up my FEL-PRO gasket on friday and was looking for a write up but didnt c one, till now. haha, count your plug rings first! i may have one of yours sitting on my bench.......lmao  |
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Post by ntrenn on Apr 24, 2011 19:25:15 GMT -6
Thanks Tipsy....got the parts, just haven't had the time to get in there and change mine....
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Post by snipes78 on Apr 24, 2011 23:04:26 GMT -6
A very good right up tipsymcstager i just picked up my FEL-PRO gasket on friday and was looking for a write up but didnt c one, till now. haha, count your plug rings first! i may have one of yours sitting on my bench.......lmao Yes of course i will check them... LOL |
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Post by 29vivian on Apr 27, 2011 9:31:10 GMT -6
Awesome write up, I have the new gaskets also, just have not been looking forward to doing the work. I was concerned about the rear cover, but your post has given me the confidence. Now I just have to find the time! Thanks again!
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Post by Marc on Apr 27, 2011 9:55:04 GMT -6
Tipsy.....I'm glad I was able to help. I think that you'd be able to get the back bolts with a 3/8" drive torque wrench if you can't get them with a 1/2" drive......I assume you have a 1/2" drive.
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Post by tipsymcstager on Apr 27, 2011 16:43:48 GMT -6
i have a 3/8" and 1/2", i should have a 1/4" torque wrench!
but......................!
i'm confidant what i tightened to is real close, and with the shoulder on the bolt, and loc-tight on the threads should be fine!
really not that critical anyways.
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Post by snipes78 on May 1, 2011 12:36:53 GMT -6
I finally got around to doing my covers this weekend and with Tipsy write up a piece of cake. Big ups to Tipsy for that! I also changed my spark plugs and put in some NGK Iridium IX in there to complete the job... wow what a difference. Now the only thing i have to change is my Serpentine Belt which will get done real soon.
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Post by tipsymcstager on May 1, 2011 16:55:09 GMT -6
thank's bro!!
makes me very pleased this is helping, and was worth the effort of assembling the thread!
;D ;D ;D
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Post by aurora2001tan on May 2, 2011 14:07:14 GMT -6
If you guys want to be cheap you can just spmear the grey non hardening gasket maker stuff on the seals. Like Honda Bond www.inlinefour.com/oemhoho.html light years ahead of your general silicon rtv crap. |
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Post by tipsymcstager on May 2, 2011 22:53:28 GMT -6
If you guys want to be cheap you can just spmear the grey non hardening gasket maker stuff on the seals. Like Honda Bond www.inlinefour.com/oemhoho.html light years ahead of your general silicon rtv crap. these gaskets (or the 1G) don't require any type of "silicon rtv,gasket maker stuff " on them. so if your going to take it apart to do all that. the real cheap way would be to do the job right the first time, so it lasts. and not waste time hacking it up! |
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Post by trey1475 on May 7, 2011 16:37:09 GMT -6
Thanks... I been planing on doing this myself for the past few weeks because my rora is leaking a little oil around the engine housing. I was a little timid but looking at these photos and instructions, I'm confident I can take on the task. Thanks again!
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Post by tomharder on Nov 11, 2011 22:01:23 GMT -6
Thanks for the info on the valve cover gaskets. I just purchased a 2001 3.5 last weekend. Drives well. I t has 49,000 miles on her. Noticed pretty quick that its leaking oil. So. Today I replaced the valve cover gaskets. I was very thankful to have the pictures and descriptions. I have never done anything like this before. Only brakes and oil.
Overall went well. Took me 6 hours to change both gaskets ad plugs on front and back.
Biggest issues were amount of space to work on the back gasket,in the back, getting the back coil pack out and back in, and cleaning.
I was surprised by a few things.
One. It appears that the gaskets were nearly new. Making me think it had the gaskets replaced recently (no papers from prev. owner). Also the spark plugs were ngk's. Not original right?
So this will be the car's third set of plus in under 50,000 miles. I also put ngk's in. I was a little concerned when I was able to remove the coil cover bolts with my fingers. They were loose. The valve cover bolts were not very tight either. I wonder if that was a function of work space back there. I must admit I was afraid the car would not start, or would make some shrieking noise or start spraying oil. However, I turned it over and all seems to be ok.
When I went under the car, (before gasket change) there was oil on everything. I am hoping this solves the problem. Does the 3.5 have any other known oil leak issues?
Thanks again for the thread. Never would have attempted it Had you not given me the confidence.. Feeling pretty good about myself right now.......... Hope that feeling lasts.
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Paulaurora
Super Moderator 
Posts: 3,847
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Post by Paulaurora on Nov 11, 2011 22:31:26 GMT -6
If some one need valve cover gaskets for 3.5l i have new one $20 plus s/h PM me
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Post by robaurora01 on Nov 12, 2011 6:43:27 GMT -6
tom im not sure if ngk was original or not because when I took my plugs out they were ngk also but I highly doubt the previous owner of my car did any of that work cause he lacked many other maintenance items I also replaced mine with NGK iridiums
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Post by aurora2001tan on Nov 12, 2011 20:41:41 GMT -6
tom you should get the motor hot. Jack it up high as you can and with some safty glasses spray that foam engine degreaser all over from GUNK. Let that sit for 20 minutes and do it again. After that you can hose it down and take to car wash to hit with some pressure. Yes the top valve covers can really make the motor nasty. Should be good now.
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Post by aurora2001tan on Nov 12, 2011 20:49:07 GMT -6
If you guys want to be cheap you can just smear the grey non hardening gasket maker stuff on the seals. Like Honda Bond www.inlinefour.com/oemhoho.html light years ahead of your general silicon rtv crap. these gaskets (or the 1G) don't require any type of "silicon rtv,gasket maker stuff " on them. so if your going to take it apart to do all that. the real cheap way would be to do the job right the first time, so it lasts. and not waste time hacking it up! Yeah it sucks we have to put sealer on these and I did it to the rear and its still good after 110k I did use some sealer on the bottom lower part of the gasket. So why did the original ones fail aft 100k? The bolts are shouldered so they can only get so tight. One simple smart design here and I think with more torque on the bolts the gasket would have never failed. But since you can only tighten it down so much , the gasket can only squish a little. Heat and cold will shrink it. This gasket should have never needed replaced. From an engineering stand point. The covers are so heavy duty, these could have been designed to seal better the first time and never should have needed redone for....a leak. I have proof. I took off a valve cover on a 2001 4 cyl sunfire. This gasket is basically like a piece of lickerish. The way it was designed it could have lasted forever. Bolts were not shouldered. Gasket was heavy duty. We reused it and about a month later removed it again to replace a rocker arm. The gasket was awesome. still sealed perfect. We reused it and didnt put a dromp of gasket sealer on it. This design truly didnt need it. But yeah I agree gasket sealer isnt the right way. But I dont want to have to redo the rear gasket and so far. Im winning. So why the rant? This is a perfect example of the engineering failures GM has apologized for and a clear mistake that should not be repeated. |
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Post by okidedrak on Jan 10, 2012 23:49:53 GMT -6
Listen to Aurora2001tan and use sealer or spray on gasket adhesive before replacing your gaskets, at least on the botom edge. I did mine, 25k KM ago and they are leaking again, big time. You can clean as much as you want, and do everythign right. The design and/or gasket material is poor. I used felpro before.
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Post by aurorafanatic on Feb 29, 2012 19:52:23 GMT -6
Im on the process of changing mine this week... im on day 3 bc i have school monday-thursday only have limited time to do it...i have cleaned the valve covers put new gaskets in and while i was at it i changed the spark plugs and wires...it has been a job for me bc im not the best at working on cars i tell you that back in a true pain in the ass...hard to get to an you can see anything back there...im having issues keeping the gaskets on while i attempt to put the cover back on...i also have an extra valve screw i wonder where that came from i have no idea...other than that im good...
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Post by aurorafanatic on Mar 1, 2012 18:24:51 GMT -6
if you have new plug and wires do you still need to pull the springs out to stretch them...i placed new coil boots in and didn't do anything with them
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Post by Rocinante on Jun 21, 2013 22:53:17 GMT -6
Kudos to OP (Tipsy) for this write-up. I was able to replace both my valve cover gaskets utilizing the information provided. A couple of things I'd like to add: - I was able to get my torque wrench on all of the bolts on the back valve cover - no issue at all. - Engine Brite now comes in a spray gel can, which helped prevent it from running off. - The hardest part was getting the back valve cover back into position. Along the passenger side of the rear valve cover, one of the braided electrical cables kept getting in the way. I was halfway done tightening down the bolts before I realized my mistake - watch out for this! - In one of Tipsy's photos, I cannot clearly see the small hoses attached to the top centre of the valve cover, so I took another pic: imageshack.com/a/img21/3417/wucd.jpg |
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Post by slywolf on Jun 22, 2013 9:39:58 GMT -6
Just a tip, be super careful not to scrape the new gasket on either of the timing chains. The rubber part of the gasket will rip, and you will have to buy a whole new set! (Learned the hard way on the back one  ) |
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Post by danielnewtech on Jan 5, 2018 23:45:49 GMT -6
For the process should I use rtv. with the gasket And On The VALVE Side UNDER The GASKET or on top the engine? |
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Post by surfcitygene on Aug 9, 2018 15:19:44 GMT -6
OH OH... It doesn't seem like my back cover will come out!! I have everything disconnected and coil pack off but looks like the bottom of the cover interferes with the cam sprocket and the firewall.
Was this write up done on a 3.5? I've done a lot of mechanical jobs but this one is certainly one of the worst. Getting to those cover bolts between the firewall and the cover was a Real challenge. Right now I'm sure wishing I never would started this job.
Of course a first grader could do the front cover but certainly Not the Back on this car.
I'll go back and try it again before I decide to give and button it all back up. It'll leak like a sieve then probably
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Post by surfcitygene on Aug 9, 2018 23:47:13 GMT -6
Tipsy, Don't know if you'll see this but a big Thanks for a really super posting with pictures. Can't agree on how easy it was though.
What was the original colors of these covers? Black at rear and Sliver in front? It'll be a near miracle if the gasket isn't messed up getting it back in. My large wiring loom across the top of the rear cover is super tight which doesn't allow the cover much clearance.
I'll tell ya, I'm a big fan of Permatex Ultra Black for preventing leaks and lots of other things and I won't ever be taking that rear cover off again so I might go for that. I certainly do like the little retainer clips that come on the gasket. It'd be impossible without them.
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