i look'd at my valve cover and on the top bolting side the side tht is facingup well theres alot of oil and build up and crap and i ran my fingure along the edge of it and theres a GAP between the edge of the valve cover and the whatever it's supposted to sit flush on...

my question is there supposted to be gap of any kindat the base of the valve cover?

 

No. Should sit flush on the head.

 

do u know how this gap could have got there....???

 

I just when and looked at mine. No gap between the head and the cover, as far as mating surfaces. There is a lip on the cover that goes around, which may give the feeling of a gap. If there is a distinct gap (as you felt), you may need to tighten the cover bolts.

 

what is the effect of having a loose or some how not sitting flush valve cover...

 

Oil leakage.

 

so thts it just oil leakage...

 

That's all I can think of. I guess it's feasible for something to get in the cover, if the gap is big enough.

 

thanx for the input o2stangt


huh...ya idk how this could have happen...i mean it would explain the oil build up in the vally and all but someone else said there might be a gap cause the gasket but idk...i tried tighting the valve cover bolts and they wont really tightin anymore...

it does'nt look tht hard to take off just gotta get tht damn engine lift bracket at the back outta my way so i can get to the last bolt on the back of the valve cover then clean the old gasket off and put a new one back..

anyone ever dont this before on a 2000 3.8

 

You don't necessarily have to remove it. When I had to remove the covers on mine, I got a 2-3 foot piece of angle iron and a hammer. You can bang it back far enough to get at the bolts. If you decide to do this, be careful as there are heater hoses back there. I would hate for you to damage one of those. If you don't want to do that, then it will take some work, and maybe some bloody knuckles. There are two bolts holding the bracket in. One you have to remove the nut holding on the auto trans dipstick (only if you have an auto...), then you can remove the bolt. The other one has nothing attached to it. They are on pretty tight, so good luck. Here's a link to help you out... http://home.comcast.net/~grayman99/liftbracket.htm

You shouldn't have to clean any gasket. The gasket is just a big "rubber band", that sits in a recessed area in the cover and in the head.