Hi,

I had to take the engine valve cover offto retireve thePCN valve grommet which had accidently fell in (now that'sa differentstory!). While had the cover off I was wondering if I should replace the rubber gasket, it looked in good shape soI just carefully put it back into the cover groove and reused it. But, what is the recommended practice, how often should the valve cover gasket be replaced?

... thanks in advance.

 

i think TECHNICALLY your supposed to, but if it doesnt leak i dont see the harm. Just check it in a few weeks to make sure its not leaking.

 

typically 60-90k miles is the life of the gaskets, when the mating surface gets hard/flat or has minor cracks in it that is the time to replace it.
If you can make a dent in it with your thumb nail it is okay to reuse.
Thats the Hondadude rule of "thumb"

 

haha, i like that.. the Hondadude rule of thumb...

usually when i take off my valve covers i replace the RTV right then and there... it takes 20-30 min to clean it all up and it could never hurt to make sure your seal is good!