tiptopEBPcivc

hey noticed today that my wifes car is leaking around the area of the vtec parts.

i was wondering can i just remove it and replace the gasket,
or do i need to remove the valve cover too?
and any place online that is good to buy parts off of for cheap or just do autozone for this fix?
and can i use permatex high temp RTV silicone for it?



its a b16a2

SI_frankenstein

Do you have pictures of the oil leak?? The distributor o-ring could be replaced as well as the vtec solenoid gasket. You can get those from Honda but I dont think autozone carries the vtec solenoid gasket.

tiptopEBPcivc

well i just found out that you should not use sealent of any kind because of the threat of it getting into the solinoid and clogging it up. is this true?

and i also found out i just need to undo the 3 10mm bolts but i have an extra Password:JDM cam seal so i might replace that as well.

tiptopEBPcivc

i will get the camera on the charger tonight and take a picture, its not bad at all, but i can smell burning oil from a mile away so i saw a slight mess of oil. but Vtec still engages so its not too bad, and it cant be the cam seal i did that on my si ((not the wifes which we are talking about)) that **** leaked out every where and there was barly any oil pres.

SI_frankenstein

Yea you should not use rtv gasket maker unless you cant afford new gaskets. I think you should just buy new gaskets or a cam seal if you need one. The pictures will help.

tiptopEBPcivc

how do you replace the distributor O-ring?

also i hear there is a screen in the vtec housing. is this true? and what can be used to clean this?

SI_frankenstein

you mark your distributor position at the top post, then just remove three bolts and you will see the o-ring. Yes there is a screen its part of the gasket, you can spray it with brake parts cleaner or just get a new gasket and it will have a new screen/filter on it.

tiptopEBPcivc

thanks for the info, i will just go ahead and replace the v-gasket, O-ring in the dis. and go ahead and get new cap and rotor (hell why not) and replace the cam seal sense i have it already

SI_frankenstein

Sounds good, good luck.

tiptopEBPcivc

what can i use to clean up my engine bay? and can i directly shoot water into my engine bay? i know i have to block my short ram filter i can do that will a few bags from walmart but anything else need blocked?

BrownDx

Without seeing it I'd say it could be one of the following.

Cylinder Head Seal
Part number A8036-62180



Valve cover gasket
Part number A8030-52135

aasarsak

iTrader: (2)

Never use anything other than OEM Honda gaskets and seals. This is just from personal experience. You do what you want, but I would rather pay more and get it done right the first time than to have to go back and fix it again when it doesn't seal properly because you used cheap parts.

Oil leaks can be tricky, but to answer your question, no, you should certainly NOT remove your valve cover.

I don't think pictures will do this justice. Oil leaking near the VTEC solenoid could be from the solenoid, cam seal, valve cover gasket, or dizzy. Auto zone sells a dye kit for $45. You clean your entire engine with degreaser, rinse and dry it off. Then you pour the dye in the oil and run the car for awhile. Plug in the UV light (included) and shine it wherever you see oil. The leak can be found by looking for the highest point of the glowing oil.

Good thing about this kit is it will save you tons of time and money because it enables you to pinpoint the exact location of the leak without any guesswork...

Hope this helps.

tiptopEBPcivc

gotta read what i said, i have replaced the cam seal before i know what it is, and the valve cover gasket. its not those, i checked her car out. ((talking about my wifes car leaking now)) but i believe its from the vtec area, im getting a new gasket on monday and pulling it off. i found a thread on here and my leak kinda looks like this

https://honda-tech.com/forums/honda-civic-del-sol-1992-2000-1/leaking-oil-head-gasket-2371968/

and i do not i repeat it does not smoke oil at all, no white smoke, no sweet smell, mpg is still up around 34mpg its not my head gasket, ive gone through that bullshit before.

aasarsak

iTrader: (2)

do not allow water to touch your alternator or air filter. Other than that, everything else will be fine. Just do not spray the motor while it is running. Make sure the engine is cool, and use engine degreaser to clean off all the oil first, then rinse it down with the water. Make sure you use the kind that says "sensor safe"

tiptopEBPcivc

nice thanks for the info on the cleaning.

trustdestruction

If the VTEC solenoid is leaking, just replace the gasket on it. Don't use RTV, do it right.
You can buy the gasket from inlinefour.com for like $12. It's in the OEM Honda category.

tiptopEBPcivc

thats trustdestruction, i will see if honda will price match i have a few hook ups there.

trustdestruction

correction to my last post... it is $15.55

aasarsak

iTrader: (2)

Yes, definetely reaplace the gasket if it is leaking, but make sure that you have properly identified the source of the leak first. The leak detection kit is a one-time investment that will save you a ton of money. It will pay for itself after one use. Any service shop will charge your at least $45 just for a diagnosis, and guess what. All they're going to do is use the same kit you could have used and done it yourself.

I'm just saying because one time I thought my head gasket was leaking, so I replaced it. I still saw oil there and couldn't see it coming from anywhere else, so I pulled the head, had it resurfaced, replaced the head gasket again for a second time, and it still looked like it was leaking.

I bought this kit, and used it to figure out where it was coming from. It turns out it was coming from my VTEC solenoid the whole time, so I did 2 head gasket jobs for nothing. Each time was 8 hours and $100 per gasket. While it was good experience and I think I could probably do it agian in less than 6 hours, I completely wasted so much time and money when I could have just bought this kit and been done with it in 20 minutes.

In any case, make sure you properly torque down your VTEC solenoid (if that is where the leak is coming from) using a torque wrench. Improperly torqued oil seals will cause leakage.

93delsoljbm

all b series engines are prone to the timing cover seal leaking shown above my suggestion to use a after market seal str makes one that has a double seal and is metal not plastic and reusable to. it's a problem solver and want ever have to worry about leaking. make sure when u use beads for valve cover gasket to use a ultra grey silicone or my preferance honda bond

93delsoljbm

or they call it a cam seal seal to