Valve cover gasket

[evanda]

Hi (excuse for my bad english!)

I have a Chevrolet Evanda 2.0L, engine made by HOLDEN (australia) engine code T20SED.
My car is a NEW car with just 3500 Km and i have a slight oil seepage just from the front of the engine,no oil in the spark plugs, no seepage from the rear of the engine.
From the front of the engine i have very little seepage and the rubber from the front right hand side is broken (see photos).

how in a new car just after 3500 km the rocker cover gasket is bad??
Is better to change it (i have just a litte seepage) or not?
I read that in Opel/Daewoo/Vauxhall/Holden 2.0l engine is a frequent problem, if rocker cover gasket leaking is a chronic problem, if i change it , i can have maybe the some problem later.
Some photo of my engine, what dou you think about that?

[MMamdouh]

looks like very minimal seepage if any at all... i recommend you live with it as most probably the gasket you will buy won't be as good as the one you got - or very expensive if you got it from the dealer - so just forget about it as it doesn't seem dangerous at all.

just make sure the cam cover is bolted tightly on the head and don't keep that close eye on whatever you saw their... you will keep on worring and mess the joy of the ride for nothing.

actually the white stuff looks like some kinda OEM silicon gasket or so and that protruds to the outside when the cover is bolted on so it is normal... if some part d\falls off on the outside it is ok... the gasket is still intact from the inside and doing its job, if you remove it and use other gaskets it won't be as good and start to leak.

their is and old saying that says: don't fix it unles it is broka and you are not in that area yet.

MMamdouh

[Daniel]

Hi evanda,

That's abnormal to have a leak after this short mileage. Just let your dealer change it under warranty.
BTW, where are you from on this planet?

Daniel

[evanda]

looks like very minimal seepage if any at all... i recommend you live with it as most probably the gasket you will buy won't be as good as the one you got - or very expensive if you got it from the dealer - so just forget about it as it doesn't seem dangerous at all.

just make sure the cam cover is bolted tightly on the head and don't keep that close eye on whatever you saw their... you will keep on worring and mess the joy of the ride for nothing.

actually the white stuff looks like some kinda OEM silicon gasket or so and that protruds to the outside when the cover is bolted on so it is normal... if some part d\falls off on the outside it is ok... the gasket is still intact from the inside and doing its job, if you remove it and use other gaskets it won't be as good and start to leak.

their is and old saying that says: don't fix it unles it is broka and you are not in that area yet.

MMamdouh

Hello mamdouh, thank you for your help
Daniel say to change my gasket and you say don't change it, i am really confuse.

Mamdouh why the gasket is just seepage in the front of engine and not in the rear and not in the plug ?
Do you think is normal in a new car?
Can i put some Loctite sealant around the gasket (betwen the plastic cover and the gasket).

My car have 3 years warranty but i am litlle bit afraid to give my car to my dealer to change the cover gasket, dealers here in France are really not serious and the most of time they do bad work.

[evanda]

Hi evanda,

That's abnormal to have a leak after this short mileage. Just let your dealer change it under warranty.
BTW, where are you from on this planet?

Daniel

Hi daniel i am from Paris/france

[lanowoo]

HI evanda,
Well its not usual in a new car, but.. some daewoos are like that, mine also leaks only in the front, usually towards the front two corners, i would not worry about it as MMamdouh says, just make sure the valve cover is snugged down, but remeber, don't tighten it too tight, or it may break a bolt or cause a bind in the gasket to make it leak worse. And its great to see a person from france, . Welcome to the forum .

[MMamdouh]

looks like very minimal seepage if any at all... i recommend you live with it as most probably the gasket you will buy won't be as good as the one you got - or very expensive if you got it from the dealer - so just forget about it as it doesn't seem dangerous at all.

just make sure the cam cover is bolted tightly on the head and don't keep that close eye on whatever you saw their... you will keep on worring and mess the joy of the ride for nothing.

actually the white stuff looks like some kinda OEM silicon gasket or so and that protruds to the outside when the cover is bolted on so it is normal... if some part d\falls off on the outside it is ok... the gasket is still intact from the inside and doing its job, if you remove it and use other gaskets it won't be as good and start to leak.

their is and old saying that says: don't fix it unles it is broka and you are not in that area yet.

MMamdouh

Hello mamdouh, thank you for your help
Daniel say to change my gasket and you say don't change it, i am really confuse.

Mamdouh why the gasket is just seepage in the front of engine and not in the rear and not in the plug ?
Do you think is normal in a new car?
Can i put some Loctite sealant around the gasket (betwen the plastic cover and the gasket).

My car have 3 years warranty but i am litlle bit afraid to give my car to my dealer to change the cover gasket, dealers here in France are really not serious and the most of time they do bad work.

well Evanda... it is confusing indeed but here is the guid to it:

you are right about all you mentioned concerning the leak and all... it is not normal to have that at this early stage and theoritically speaking you should have it replaced under warranty.

in the real world you should know that dealerships (AKA stealeships) are not all that good and all that honest, they can do a lousy job or tell you the car needs a new cam cover or maybe even both... at this point all hell is going to break lose and you will regret the day you ever though of poping your hood.

the compromise comes into play here as the leak is not that bad and we all know that those cars have this inherent problem so don't fix it now as it is not into the critical level yet and not worth the risk of going to the dealers specially that you said they are not all that good.

in the end it is my personal opinion and thats what i'd do if that was my car... the final decision is yours.

MMamdouh

[NubiraDellwoo]

[quote="evanda"]Hi (excuse for my bad english!)

I personaly would fix it... The leak can only get worse with time... and it's a mess when it gets worse and gets all over everything including the driveway... Being that it is so new... You may not need to replace the gasket if you lay a film of silicone (high heat type and sensor safe at that)... I had to replace my gasket ($ 45.00)... But my junk had 75,000 miles on it... The silcone bed is the ticket even with a new gasket... mine shows no sign of leaking now... and it was easy to do... My 12 year old son could have done it and he is not mechanically inclined whatsover... LOL

Good luck with whatever you choose to do...

Note... if you try to reuse the gasket... make sure you wipe it off to remove the oil residue before the reseal... Be careful not to tear it... Wipe down the metal of the head with a clean lint free rag as well to remove the oils and residue before applying a bed/film of silicone... Rubbing alcohol or similar spirits should do the trick... Nothing that eats rubber though... If the gasket looks too compressed or is brittle... then it must be replaced...

Where you may not see it leaking is in the spark plug wells... so look in there and if you have oil there... it's a must do