Valve Cover Gasket life?

[mf70]

Catching up on new acquisition Aveo, first apparent problem was considerable oil leak(s) from valve cover, with oil down over the exhaust and three spark plug wells ~2" deep in oil.

Went in (thanks to how-to's on this site) and replaced with Autozone gasket. The old gasket was hard and friable, and could not be bent without cracking. I was surprised to find the gasket had been changed for the PO a year before. I don't know if there was an overheating "event" in the meantime, but I was wondering...

How much life are you getting from a valve cover gasket?

Mark

[avguy]

Mine was still in very good shape when I changed it after 6 years of service. IMO it's very unlikely that a VC gasket would be cooked like that from an overheat, but I guess it would take a materials engineer to confirm that. It's also hard to believe that some outfit could be making gaskets so poor that they crap out like that in 1 year. You said the "the gasket had been changed for the PO", which sounds like he didn't do it himself. IF so, my money is on someone maximizing their profits by just snugging up the VC bolts, instead of changing the gasket. If you saved the old gasket, there might be a name stamped on it somewhere, which could prove if it was the factory original (or not). Did you change the plug wires as well? They generally get a good case of rot from that extended oil bath.

[mf70]

I think you're right. I chose my words carefully. I know the PO, and he is not a technical person. I think he got took. The plug wires (which would be easy to check) were new, supple, and clean. The gasket (which could not be checked) was old, black and brittle.

Unfortunately, I threw the old gasket in the garbage this morning. I didn't think to look for OEM part numbers on it. I need to check to see if it was the same shop that changed (???) his timing belt 60,000 miles ago. Imagine how easy it would be to short someone on a timing belt change!

Reassuring data on your gasket life.

Mark

[avguy]

It would actually be easy to check if the timing belt was changed - just pop off the top half of the cover and read the stamp on the belt (might need to crank once or twice to bring the stamp to the top). I would be a bit surprised if even the most dishonest shop would do this, because if the factory belt breaks it would be very much a very smoking gun in plain sight for any other mechanic to see.

Far more likely is that the other 3 parts in the belt loop didn't get changed along with the belt itself. Many of us who DIY are well aware that the early Aveo timing belt breakage was actually mainly the result of a bunch of bad pulley bearings. And so it's become fairly common practice in the DIY community to change the pump, and 2 pulleys along with the belt. The parts guys are on board with this, with most of them selling kits with the 4 parts packaged together at $100 or less for all 4. But I think that changing everything is far less common for shops because the price for the belt job alone gives most customers enough of a sticker shock so that they don't even want to consider additional $$ on top ot that. Not blaming the shop mechanics because it all goes back to designing the belt in such a way that causes it to be a time-consuming job even for a pro. And that commentary is of course not limited to Aveos - I know first-hand that changing a Honda Civic belt ain't no bargain either