Greetngs;

I have an oil leak. I think, but am not sure, that it may be the valve cover gasket.

I have two questions:

1). How difficult is it to replace the valve cover gasket? Is there anything in particular that I might need to know before removing the valve cover?

Here is the AutoZone repair guide for a valve cover gasket: AutoZone Repair Guide Valve Cover Gasket
(The page says the illustration is for a 1996 model. I am not sure how much difference there would be between the 1996 model and my 2000 Accord)

2). Is there any other common place where a 2000 Accord LX might leak oil besides the valve cover gasket?

I would appreciate any insight into my problem.

Thanks.

 

To answer your first question, a valve cover gasket is one of those simple jobs that can be messed up easily.

Second, a really common place for oil to leak is inside the spark plug wells. When you buy a gasket it should come with O-rings for the spark plug wells. You will see what im talking about when you remove the valve cover.

Also, DONT over tighten the cover. It isnt something that NEEDS to be torqued down, its only rated at about 15ftlbs, wich is nothing. Just tighten it enough to where it is snug and not going anywhere.

Getting the gasket it sit right can be a pain since you have to put it on the cover first and the put the cover on the engine. Put 4 SMALL dabs of gasket maker on each corner to help it stay on. Before you tighten it all down, make sure it is all seated right and not pinched anywhere.

Good luck.

 

OP to answer your question is would be helpful to know if you have a 4cyl or 6cyl.

Where are you seeing the oil at?

 

Tyler Joyce, crispin;

Thanks for responding to my question. It's a four cylinder engine.

The oil leak is at the right end of the engine if you're looking from the front.

There is oil that has blown on (what looks like) the air conditioner compressor. The air conditioner compressor unit is at the right end of the engine. It is at about same height as the valve cover gasket.

There also is a little bit of oil that has blown on the alternator. The alternator is also at the right end of the engine. It is just below the height of the valve cover.

It's not leaking a whole lot of oil. It is just dripping a little bit.

 

Valvecover gasket is easy. Your 2000 is very similar to the 1996. Probably a different part number for the gasket itself, but the procedure is the same.

Look at the round seals around each sparkplug tube, and note which way they go. There IS a right-side-up & upside-down to them. Gasket set should include them, if not, buy them anyway.

At each end, the valvecover gasket makes a sharp corner where it goes up & over the camshaft seals. Apply a little bit of sealant right there. Permatex Ultra-Grey.

Don't overtighten the valvecover hold-down bolts. They are easy to break. Valvecover gasket sits inside a groove, and overtightening the bolts does NOT improve the seal.

 

Also I would ask you if it is possible that the power steering pump might be leaking.

It is above both the compressor and alternator.

Prior to me owning my car, the PO must of had a leak there as both the a/c and alt were covered in oil.

I think if the valve cover was leaking from the front corner it would follow the side of the block and drip down to the ground. I think it would be hard for it to reach the alt and A/C.

Jim Blake gave you the correct way to change the valve cover gasket.

Let us know what you find.

 

If you have a honda dealership by you it may be worthwhile to get the OEM parts they are much easier to get together then the aftermarket ones they are not much more expensive.

 

Thanks everyone for responding to my question.

I took my car to the Honda dealership this morning to have the oil changed.

- The service man said that the engine had oil all over the bottom. The only way they could tell where the oil was coming from would be to clean the engine, put a dye in the oil, and let me drive the car for one day, then bring it back in and let them look at it.

- The service man said that the oil could be coming from the front engine seal or the rear engine seal.

- He said it could be coming from the power steering pump. (I don't think it's coming from the power steering pump because it's been leaking for a while and the power steering is okay)

- He said that it also could be coming from the valve cover gasket.

- He said that if it were coming from the rear engine seal they would have to remove the transmission. If it were coming from the front of the engine the repair would probably cost less - but in either case it could cost $500 or more.

The Honda dealer said that the valve cover gasket cost $14.00; and the spark plug grommets cost $3.33 each.

I think what I might do is replace the valve cover gasket first. If that don't work then, since the car has got a lot of miles, I might not have the oil leak fixed unless it gets worse.

 

Cleaning up the engine real good then watching for EXACTLY where the oil leaks out, is real tedious but not terribly difficult. That makes it a perfect job for DIY because a shop mechanic trying to earn a living will be dividing his attention to different cars & maybe paying more attention to the jobs that "pay" better.

 

Get a couple of cans of engine de-greaser, i get the big blue cheap stuff from the big blue cheap stuff store, if you have ramps or jacks put the car up in the air, cover the alternator, and spay the engine everywhere you see oil, crawl under it and spray everywhere, leave it for 5-10 minutes, get your hose and pressure nozel, if you can hook it up to your hot water tap in the garage for the washing machine, spray all the de-greaser off with the hot water. Then if you have a shop vac that can blow, or you have a compressor, blow dry the water off. Lower the car, start the car and let it idle for 15-20 mins, if there is no signs of oil, try taking it on a low speed drive, 20mph or under so the oil doesn't blow all over, then check it. If still nothing, give it a day of driving, then check it. It will save you time and money from replacing parts that don't need replaced.i did that 4x before i figured out which part it was..