Valve Cover gasket sealer

[Michael]

I have been told (sternly warned) that Right Stuff will seal the covers so tight that you risk damaging them taking them off again. I used it in like 2007 or 08 and had no trouble at all removing the covers a few years ago on my last valve adjustment. I have also been told by a DMC vendor that the gaskets that DMC sells are prone to leaking. That said, I got a set of gaskets from DPI, (if memory serves) and applied a VERY thin coat of Right Stuff sealer on both sides of the gasket.


Zero leaks!


I plan to refinish the covers this winter in wrinkle red. I'll go the same route I did in 2019

[82DMC12]

I have DPI gaskets, but I use hylomar AF on both sides of it (very thin layer brushed on). The nice thing about Hylomar is it stays fluid and doesn't set, so it's very easy to clean both surfaces next time you take it apart. No scrapers or getting RTV into the heads. Just acetone on a rag. No oil leaks either.

[dn010]

I got valve cover gaskets from rockauto (AJUSA) - apparently the 1990 Eagle 3.0 gaskets are the same as DeLorean. I also used Hylomar on both and they didn't leak. I had to remove one cover to correct and issue and tried using shellac on it that time but whatever material the gaskets are made from, the shellac wouldn't bond if you can believe it. Used Hylomar again, still good to go.

[David T]

I got valve cover gaskets from rockauto (AJUSA) - apparently the 1990 Eagle 3.0 gaskets are the same as DeLorean. I also used Hylomar on both and they didn't leak. I had to remove one cover to correct and issue and tried using shellac on it that time but whatever material the gaskets are made from, the shellac wouldn't bond if you can believe it. Used Hylomar again, still good to go.

An old "trick" I learned about valve covers is to use a gasket sealer on the valve cover but NOT on the side of the gasket that seals the cylinder head. This way when you take the cover off the gasket will stay on the valve cover and come off cleanly from the head when you adjust the valves. It usually won't leak and if you need to replace the gasket you don't have to worry about it getting stuck to the cylinder head and getting debris into the motor. On the newer silicone gaskets you are not supposed to use RTV, it attacks the gasket and will cause a leak. If you do use RTV (silicone sealer) make sure to use one that says "Sensor Safe". When I first got my Delorean and did some work on it I also used Hylomar. I was very disappointed when I had leaks wherever I used it. I no longer use it and do not recommend it.

[ChrisB]

I got the premium gaskets from Go. They are the relatively thin paper type only a bit thicker and a bit more flexible. They looked good but I wanted some thickness for compliance over the step created where the timing cover interfaces with top of the head (not perfectly in my case). The step is on the lower part of the head and where the oil will naturally pool. This where my leaks were coming from, I believe. Since the leaky gaskets came off in good shape, I decided to just clean them up with an acetone/alcohol mix and reuse them. They cleaned up nicely. Applied the smallest bead I could from a tube of The Right Stuff...(turned out to be not that small) on the bottom of the gasket and installed it on the head. Then applied a bead in the top of the gasket, installed the cover, and torqued to 110 in-lbs. Glad my AC compressor was currently out of the car. I left the muffler bracket bolted onto the valve cover and was able to maneuver the cover out and back in carefully. I let the installed covers sit overnight and test ran the engine the next day with no leaks. Inspected the hot engine again a day later with no leaks. Have not retorqued anything. It took awhile for the cat to burn off the oil that had dripped down on it. It was great to be able to remove the dry original gaskets, I hope these will come off OK in the future. I would have liked to use a brush on product. The aerosol can that forces the right stuff out may have been easier to control and create a smaller bead along the center of the gasket.

[ChrisB]

Some pictures