Greetings all,

This is regarding my '66 122 that currently has a B-20 out of a '75 240 under the hood. The valve cover is one of the "upgraded" IPD covers.

As some of you may (or may not) know, I've driven my 122 across the USA. I'm almost home now, but I've been having a problem with the Valve cover the whole way.

Problem being, it leaks. A lot.

Right before I left Portland I installed one of the IPD rubber seals. It didn't seat correctly (it's not rigid enough) and oil got all over the place.

I've since replaced it with a cork gasket and it still continues to leak just as bad, if not worse than before.

I think I may be over tightening it, but I don't know how I can tell what is tight and what is too tight. I don't currently have access to a Torque wrench.

I'm beginning to wonder about the quality of the IPD valve cover. Has anyone else had problems with them?

How do you guys install valve cover gaskets so they don't leak?

I have one more cork gasket in the trunk that I'm hoping to install tomorrow, and I really want to make sure this one seats properly.

Thanks as always!
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http://dylans122.blogspot.com

I followed advice here and installed the gasket yesterday, cleaning everything very well and taking care not to over tighten it.

So far so good! I had clearly over tightened the last gasket (I split the cork in half down the middle in some places on the seal.)

Live and learn I suppose. I've done a lot of that on this trip.

Off to Missoula! Thanks all!
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http://dylans122.blogspot.com

You have to make sure that the surface of the cylinder head is extremely clean. I clean my surface by using a razor blade to scrape off any excess used gasket. When you tighten down the valve cover, do so by tightening one bolt finger tight, then jumping to the next bolt diagonally across from it. Then use a 5-6" 1/4"-drive ratchet and continue to tighten diagonally. I hold the wrench head in the palm of my hand so as to not overtighten. "Snug" it down. Too tight and you run the risk of breaking the bolt--which is one big headache.

When you take your valve cover off, carefully inspect the used gasket as well as the bottom of the cover. No oil should have leaked from the bottom of the gasket where it mates to the head.

I suspect that you might have tightened it too much and slightly deformed the cover at the mount holes. Check it for flatness. IPD also sells a "hold down" kit for your valve cover:

http://www.ipdusa.com/Volvo-140/Engine/Engine-Accessories/Valve-Cover-Hold-Down-Kit/p-78-311-791-3455/

Klaus
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Why are Volvos so endearing? Its just a car.

I've based my reply on Dylan saying he has the "IPD upgraded cover". I assume that is the alloy one as I'm not aware of them doing any other types.

Is your valve cover pressed sheet metal or cast aluminum?
How is your PCV system?
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George Downs, Bartlesville, Heart of the USA!

These problems can drive you dilly! A friend of mine who used to drive Mini's, which have a very similar type of sealing arrangement, used to glue his gasket to the cover and the head using a gasket sealer like Permatex, leave the screws loose for a few hours until the sealer had set or hardened and then lightly tighten it all down. It is a bit of a pain when you want to remove the valve cover to adjust the valve clearances but it at least stops the oil from leaking and making an awful mess.

I second gluing the gasket to the head.
My favorite when I had a B20 was 3M Weatherstrip Adhesive, or "Gorilla Snot".
I also agree you probably have crankcase pressure problems.

I would have advised that you just glue the cork gasket to the valve cover. Leave on a flat surface overnight with a little extra weight on it, evenly distributed. The head itself should only really need a smear of grease around the mating surface before nipping the screws down lightly but evenly. 2 fingers on a screwdriver is all you need but check after running a few hours. A film of Hylomar or a similar non setting seler will also do the trick. Wipe the surface with brake cleaner if using a sealer.
I realise that you're on the road so compromises might nhave to be made but that reduces the chance of success.
No experience with a rubber seal. The problem with the alloy cover is the mating face being too narrow to put even pressure on the gasket.

Dylan;

VC needs to seal well obviously and as a hard casting doesn't have the issue of distorted sheetmetal at the mounting screws which allows oil past...so I'm immediately thinking: Pressure in the crankcase due to clogged PCV and/or excessive blowby.

See: http://www.sw-em.com/pcv_diagrams.htm

...worse comes to worse, if blowby is really excessive, you can take the output of oil trap from intake manifold and route it into a puke can to catch any droplets (ala racecars where they frown upon dropping oil onto the track).

Did you make it to the Black Hills of SD?

Cheers