ok so i bought a valve cover and painted it, I have been waiting to put it on but I'm not sure if i can swap it out without changing the gasket as well. I dont know how old the gasket it or what condition it is in. So do you think i can swap in the new valve cover while still using the old gasket? do you think it will leak? or am i better off just waiting and buying a new gasket? thanks

oooh yeah its going on a d16y8 if it makes a difference.

 

honestly I would wait and put all new gaskets on the valve cover before installing it. I would do it just to be on the safe side and plus its one less thing you have to worry about down the road.

 

how would we know with out seeing it better to put a new one

 

yeah i figured i should wait, I'm down at school and need the car and there isn't a honda dealer within 60 miles so I'll just wait.

 

dude, reuse the the same valve cover gasket, ive used the same one for three years, took of valve cover like 20 times, just add hondabond to the corners where the cam caps are.

 

There is no way we can tell how good your current gaskets are, you are better off replacing your old ones. Why would you want to go through the trouble of not replacing them only to have your valve cover leak later on?

 

Most definately replace the valve cover gasket. These leak quite commonly and are cheap to buy. It is a quick replacement and since you are removing the valve cover anyways, might as well change the gasket. Make sure when you do to keep an eye on the part that goes over the cams as these areas tend to slip. There is tack that is frequently used to keep the gasket in place in these areas during installation.