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Valve covers and gaskets

4K views 12 replies 6 participants last post by  partnumber187 
#1 ·
My 190 2.3 went from going 3,000 miles this summer before needing a quart of oil......20-50 dino oil
to my low level oil light going on after a 1,500 mile run.......10-40 dino oil.....now its colder fall weather.

My question is...does a MB gasket only last three years?........and do higher mileage valve covers warp, and not seal as well as lower mileage valve covers.

If necessary, I can go to a U-Pull it and get another valve cover, and order a new MB gasket. Thanks, Rob
 
#4 ·
Yes...The last valve cover gasket was a MB gasket....around three years ago. I've had cheapo's leak after a year.

And over the years when the car started needing more oil, its usually been a valve cover gasket that has shrunk in the winter, or cracked. Also...oil caps are good for about 3 changes, and then they start seeping a little.

I didn't know if our valve covers distorted over the years. I think they are magnesium.
 
#13 ·
I didn't know if our valve covers distorted over the years. I think they are magnesium.
Is this the case?

I saw a thread in the W124 section where a member was looking for sources for a brand new M103 valve cover because he was tired of buying used covers that leak. I'm looking to buy another valve cover I can take my time and refinish so that the car isn't out of service while I'm doing the job. If it's that hit/miss I'll either be very careful selecting one from a car in the yard that appears to have no leaks around it (which I should do anyway) or forget it all together and redo the one on the car that's good.
 
#5 ·
Hi

I own my 1990 2.0L petrol m102 for a couple of months. It had a valve cover gasket leak at the front. The merc gasket i removed looks and feels perfect. I replaced it with a febi and torqued down the nuts correctly and the oil is still gathering at the front semi circular part of the seal. I have checked and rechecked everything a few times but no difference.
My car is on 87000 miles. The valve cover shouldn t be warped but it could be.
I might throw back in the old merc and carefully torque the nuts just in case the previous owner hadn t done the job right.
I wonder if the oul is seepung from the oil filler cap and just by capillary ang gravity (i park on a hill ) collecting at the front.
Did someone mention That the filler cap seal dies quickly and needs replacing?
Also i was reading about using some permatex ultra black gasket dressing along with a new gasket but i hate doing that. I like a simple clean correct job. I ll hold off on that a while.
I m sure this isn t a help but at least i m on topic
Thanks
Darragh
 
#6 ·
Darragh, I am willing to bet your leak is not the valve cover gasket but rather the top timing cover gasket. They always leak, not too difficult to replace and re-seal. I know because I have the same problem and have talked to others who do. It is a design weakness in my opinion. One should not have to seal things with locktite in an engine but that is what is called for. I have a temporary "diaper" fix that I have to change every other gas refill. I can send a photo when I get home.

I will get around to a permanent fix when I open the valve cover again.
 
#9 ·
Not my actual engine but very similar to my m102 4 cylinder version. Red indicates area oil collects.fyi
Sorry Darragh, it appears the 4-cyl and 6-cyl engines are quite different in the front timing cover area. Your engine may only have a single piece timing cover that requires the removal of the entire piece for example for a cylinder head removal. I looked it up in my Haynes manual.

My 6-cylinder has a two piece cover, upper and lower. Only the upper gets removed for changing the head. It is the seam between the upper and lower cover that leaks notoriously in most 6-cyl engines.

You may have an entirely different problem.

For the sake of Ignatz and maybe other users reading this, now that I have taken a couple of pictures of the diaper, I'm attaching them. My engine has a new MBenz valve cover seal and the engine block below is bone dry once this diaper is placed to suck up the leaking timing cover gasket/seal. It is held in place with a stiff wire that loops around to the other side of the cylinder head. Valve cover area is also dry. Hope this helps others.
 

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#10 · (Edited)
If it helps any, I've been using 0W-40 here. The low oil light comes on, inconsistently, when the oil level is within the markers on the dipstick, but towards the middle or lower half. If I fill to near the upper line it goes away. No noticeable significant leaks @ around 120k miles.

Sent from my MT2L03 using Tapatalk
 
#12 ·
The owner's manual for my E63 says only use 0W-40. I tried to request/verify this is the weight they would put in last year at service and they put in 5W-40. Grumble grumble, and charged me for the oil separate as well! Luckily BEVO says 5W-40 is okay.....

It's good stuff, and I'm glad to read you've been happy with it! [emoji4]

Sent from my MT2L03 using Tapatalk
 
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