Driver side valve cover replacement

C-ya

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Aug 24, 2012
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Well, after sitting on a new style updated PCV driver side valve cover (Dorman 264-969) since January and having smoke on start up about every 3rd start, I finally decided to swap it out. (The oil consumption is a given. Hopefully the new cover helps that as well.) Watched a quick Utoob video, and since it seemed pretty darn easy, decided to get right with it. Took 20-25 minutes and only half a beer. Since it was going so quickly, I didn't drink much...

One connector - in the center for the coils, the four plug wires, five 10mm coil bracket hold downs (get the coil assy out first), the four 8mm (5/16") valve cover bolts, and the PCV hose, and she's off.

Here's the shiny new one in place.

RkXQJG7l.jpg


The inside of the old one was FILTHY!! Wow! I change my oil about every 5,500 miles, and I'm topping up with a quart or three between changes.

3RrsC8Rl.jpg
 

Mike534x

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Apr 9, 2012
894
Wow! Maybe the previous owner didn't religiously change the oil?

When I did mine 2 years ago, it didn't really have any build up when I compared it with the old one. Didn't change my oil burning though, I'm chopping that up to gummed piston rings that need to be cleaned somewhere down the line, or a rebuild in the future.
 

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C-ya

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Wow! Yours looks pristine inside. I'm guessing at least one of the POs didn't take care of her. She was burning 6 qts between oil changes for my first two changes. I got the Lime-Swap tune and it dropped to 3 immediately and is between one and 3 now. I got it with 139K and I'm at 206K now.
 
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Mike534x

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Apr 9, 2012
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According to all the paperwork she had, it had an oil change every 3k at the dealership. Not sure what they did with it, but they put 100k on it in two years if i read the carfax correctly. I was surprised as well, especially after seeing how theres always build up on these. Its a comforting thought knowing that might be a good indication that everything is okay internally.

6 qts is nuts, I was doing 4 with the my previous trailblazer until it dropped a lifter. Seems like the tune helped cut down that usage a lot with DoD disabled! Hopefully the new valve cover helps it even more.
 
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C-ya

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100K in two years is nuts. Our work van gets a lot on it, about that much actually. My tech would rather drive than fly. We're in Michigan and he has driven it to Massachusetts, Georgia. California, and Washington state and just about every state in between.
 

mrrsm

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Great Decision... In a recent thread... @m.mcmillen made the very same suggestion about the Excessive Oil Consumption problem in the 5.3L Silverado Motors and I jumped on the chance of getting the GM OEM Driver's Side Cover courtesy Amazon (No disrespect meant regarding your choice for getting the Dorman Cover...). Here is what the NEW GM Design looks like ...inside and out with a CLOSE UP view of the change they made to solve the Excessive Loss of Motor Oil:

GMLSENGINEUPDATEDVALVECOVER1.jpgGMLSENGINEUPDATEDVALVECOVER2.jpg

UPDATEDGMVALVECOVER.jpg

For anybody else with LS Engines suffering along with this problem, after swapping in the New Valve Cover:

(1) If your Motor is hitting the High Mileage Numbers right about now... performing a "Hot Oil Engine Flush" using Cheap 5W-30 Organic Oil and a Cheap Oil Filter while replacing One Quart of Motor Oil for a Quart of Engine Flush at Idle (NO Engine Racing ) for (15) Minutes ....might grab up a lot of that Gas Blow-By Debris.

(2) And after replacing the Oil/Filter combo with Mobil1 5W-30 Oil and either a Mobil1 or K&N Oil Filter would not hurt. Changing the Oil afterwards at around 3,000 or so miles and repeating the Oil Flush Oil Change Procedures above will be a good idea.

After this...your Catalytic Converter will LOVE you for eliminating having to burn SO MUCH MOTOR OIL.
 
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C-ya

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Aug 24, 2012
1,098
Good idea on the engine flush. I may do that since I now see how dirty it is inside there.
 

C-ya

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Aug 24, 2012
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Just wanted to post an update. Since the valve cover change, I have had no smoke on start up. Should have done this when I first got the valve cover but January in Michigan isn't conducive to auto work if you don't have an indoor space to do it.
 

Mike534x

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Apr 9, 2012
894
@MRRSM So when you mention gas blow by debris, I take it that's referring to carbon build up?

I purchased one of those small USB borescope cameras to inspect the cylinders for carbon build up, and I have a can of BG 44k's EPR (Engine Performance Restoration) thats dumped in with the oil (before changing it) and claims it can remove carbon deposits on the piston rings, valves and everywhere else. Do you think this method is effective, or would getting good ole AC Delco Top Engine Cleaner, and letting it do a 4-6 hour soak in the cylinders be a more effective option? I recall you mentioning it somewhere in past threads, that its good for doing that kind of job.
 

mrrsm

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Yes... When Using the Foam Style Liquid In Quantity... This Method of using ACDelco Top Engine Cleaner is EXTREMELY Effective as the Best Carbon-Busting Method Imaginable. But you should not necessarily take my word for it. The Basis for WHY using this stuff every 50,000 or so miles can be read in THIS Technical Article linked below.

But Know THIS... Whenever Gasoline Vapors laden with Black Carbon mixes with ANY Motor Oil... it forms a Greasy, Gas-Gummy Mess that is extremely adherent to each others Molecules and it is THAT Sticky Mess that will literally BAKE ON SOLID as a Lacquer in front of and in between the Very Low Tension Compression Rings on each Piston and bring about what can easily be seen inside of @Reprise 's Oil Pan and coating ALL of the surfaces of his 6.0L LS Engine. (See his Engine Build for contemporary imagery).

One Last Word... The GM TSB on this Issue recommends ONLY USE ACDELCO TEC FOR A MAXIMUM SATURATION SOAKING TIME PERIOD OF THREE HOURS.


For Visual Emphasis here... I'll use for my examples Two Juxtaposed Sets of images of the Tops of Pistons in a GM 2002 LL8 Engine (with over 240,000 Miles on the Motor) and a 2004 4.2L (with 160,000 Miles on the Motor) where all of the Pistons were completely covered in Stuck-On Carbon Lacquer Build Up:

These are the BEFORE Image Examples:

42717544524_7ede672da5_c.jpg42717544884_43fa690ebb_c.jpg42717544884_43fa690ebb_c.jpg43477133231_903287ff04_c.jpg42760383514_7797f08152_c.jpg

... and here, I can show you what these very same Pistons Tops looked like after a 3-4 Hours Soak. Mind You... These results occurred without using ANY Hands-On Cleaning... NONE! THIS is what ACDelco TEC can accomplish...Passively... and I just "Wiped Away" the Black, Burnt Dissolved Carbon Soupy Mung afterwards:

Zoom IN on these Piston Head Photos and see if you can Read any of the Tiny Stamping Numbers and Markings:


These are the AFTER Image Examples:

43477133161_d7df9abfe9_c.jpg43477133031_e8e42352a5_c.jpg43477130551_0ae196c0aa_c.jpg43430734362_9198b4e751_c.jpg42762419884_364803df00_c.jpg42762413004_a1d9d80824_c.jpg41669179500_56c10215dc_c.jpg43101817884_913ebff83c_c.jpg

Judge for Yourself, Mike...
 
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Mike534x

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@MRRSM WOW! I'm actually shocked at how clean those came out, practically looking factory fresh. 3 hours? I take it if you let it sit longer, the solvent evaporates leaving behind the reformed gunk?

I'm not looking to do a total tear down to get at the pistons just yet, but thats definitely something I wanna try in the very near future! If I were to pull the plugs, and spray some of the cleaner in all 8 cylinders that should help clear a lot of that out (assuming what I find is carbon build up)? Even if its not a total fix, I assume getting some cleaning down on that end should help alleviate the oil burning I'm experiencing, or at the very least cut it down drastically. Would the foaming agent be better for this, or the canister of it in fluid form with a rubber hose that I can feed down through the holes? Thanks!
 

mrrsm

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Regarding the Speed of Evaporation, I would say YES if your choice of solvent was Berryman's B12 Chemtool Liquid for Fuel Injector Cleaning. That stuff is a horrendously rapidly evaporating VOC that should NEVER be used in a confined space or inside of a Closed Up Garage.

In the case of the ACDelco TEC... it is just as noxious, but in the first instance of its use outdoors, I managed to contain all of the (6) cylinders during their soaking period by covering the top of the LL8 Engine Block with two overlapping clear layers of ...Saran Wrap.

The reduction in atmospheric exposure during the hours that followed contained and sustained the ACDelco Foaming TEC nicely and thus that Liquid Magic did not evaporate away and was very chemically active at dissolving every last iota of Carbon Mung... leaving what can only best be described as "The La Brea Tar Pits of SOUPS".

At the conclusion of the Soak, I used Scott Blue Shop Towels to sponge out all of the cylinders and dropped each of the Black Soaked Towel Wads into a Zip Lock Baggie afterwards to prevent the smell from overtaking everything around me.

In the case of the Gas Blow-By Problem in the GM LS 4.8L, 5.3L and 6.0L Engines... it gets a bit more challenging to access the pistons rings for their full 360 Degrees of Compression Rings Exposure... so resorting to the Foaming Version of the ACDelco TEC is a better idea than just pouring or squirting in a straight liquid.

REMEMBER TO LOOSELY RE-INSTALL THE SPARK PLUGS DURING THIS TREATMENT SEGMENT IN ORDER TO KEEP THE ACDELCO TEC FOAM INSIDE OF ALL CYLINDERS ...BUT DO NOT RE-ATTACH THE COIL ON PLUG WIRE CONNECTORS.


I used Two Complete Cans of the Foaming TEC for for each of the GM LL8 Motors I treated with the Engine Heads removed and had the identical outcomes as you can see in the above images. I would expect that treating an installed Engine with the Engine Heads still on the Block, it would be even easier to perform the Engine Cylinder Soaks on this Platform.

For the LL8 Motors, in order to prevent post-treatment Hydo-Locking of the Motor, it is important to Remove the Fuel Pump Relay and using 10-15 seconds bursts... Turn the Motor Over while having Blue Scott Shop Towels stuffed down into the Spark Plug Wells to absorb all of the contaminated Black Mung left over after the Soak Period. Then... Re-Install the Spark Plugs AND the Fuel Pump Relay.

In the case of the GM LS 4.8, 5.3 and 6.0L Engines it will also be necessary to remove the Spark Plugs holding in all of the Black Mung... AND remove the Fuel Pump Relay and Turn the Engine Over in 10-15 second Bursts to prevent Hydro-Locking the Engine on Start Up. Then... Re-Install the Spark Plugs AND the Fuel Pump Relay.

The ACDelco TEC WILL have leaked down into your
Crank-Case Oil Pan and Rendered that Motor Oil CONTAMINATED AND USELESS:

(1) If your Motor is also hitting the High Mileage Numbers right about now... This would be the time to perform a "Hot Oil Engine Flush" using Cheap 5W-30 Organic Oil and a Cheap Oil Filter while replacing One Quart of Motor Oil for a Quart of Engine Flush at Idle (NO Engine Racing ) for (15) Minutes to grab up the drain down results of all that Dissolved Gas Blow-By Debris.

(2) After Draining the Oil and removing the Contaminated Oil Filter, replacing the Oil/Filter combo with Mobil1 5W-30 Oil and either a Mobil1 or a K&N Oil Filter would not be a bad idea. Changing the Motor Oil and Oil Filter AGAIN at around 3,000 or so miles after doing these things and repeating the Oil Flush Oil Change Procedures above will also be a good idea.

I will be VERY Surprised if your Overall Engine Performance and Gas Mileage do not improve at least a little and that all of this extra effort will add many more miles of better and responsive Engine Power and Torque through Improved Compression.
 
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Mike534x

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@MRRSM Thank you for the advice! I'm bookmarking, and taking note of everything you have listed. Though I had a thought occur to me, are most TEC/Combustion Chamber Cleaners typically all the same as far their cleaning properties go by chance? I took notice of Chrysler having a
"Mopar" TEC in an aerosol can that can be sprayed directly through the throttle body, nearly the same as the TEC that AC Delco sells overseas. Pricing at the Dodge dealer puts it at about $9.00 for the can, so I began to wonder if snagging two cans, one for the throttle body/intake injection and the other for spraying down into the pistons for a top to somewhat bottom coverage.

Engine is currently sitting at 199k, I tried running Seafoam which resulted in some smoke, but not a whole lot and made a very minor difference in power. I've been running Mobil 1 5w-30 HM FS ever since I bought it, though I ran Valvoline Max Life 5w-30 HM FS once when it was on sale. I usually alternate between a Mobil 1 filter, K&N or Wix XP filter.

If extra power comes of this that would be great! If I can manage to cut down my oil consumption even better. I'm usually hitting 2.5 quarts every oil change (currently doing 3,500-4,000). I'm almost positive its a carbon problem, though I suspect my rear main seal leak is playing a part in it as well to some extent.

@C-ya Sorry for hijacking your thread! Hopefully this will help serve as a FAQ for anyone looking to do a "de-carbonizing" of their engine.
 
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mrrsm

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@C-ya ... Agree... :hijack: Sorry for moving it sideways on answering @Mike534x 's Questions. But now that I think of it, if you were not replacing your Old Valve Cover with the New, Modified One, spraying it down with the ACDelco TEC Foam and then wrapping it up inside of Saran Wrap, within just a few hours, it would have proven just how well it would have removed all that Black Carbon Mung from inside of the cover.

@Mike534x ... As much as I admire Chrysler going back to their Very First Hemi (The Chrysler Fire-Power 392 CID and later the 426 Hemi)....their MOPAR Cleaning Solvent cannot Hold a Candle to the way the ACDelco TEC dissolves Hard Baked On Carbon. I have tried BOTH and went through (3) White cans of their stuff and It might just as well have been WATER.

One Last Thought on these Solvents...

ACDelco TEC and Probably the MOPAR Spray Solvent as well are probably TOO STRONG to be Spraying inside of and around the GM 4.2L Throttle Body. Use instead the CRC Carburetor and Throttle Body Spray Solvents designated for that purpose, The same applies to cleaning the MAF Sensor on Later Model Trailblazers and Envoys...stick with using the CRC MAF-IAT Spray Solvent specifically designed NOT to harm the Sensing Elements within the MAF-IAT Units.
 
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Mike534x

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Apr 9, 2012
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@MRRSM Ahh ok! Good to know to stick with AC Delco on this front! But I have the 5.3 so do the same rules still apply, if I tried injecting it through the throttle body? I was only thinking of the Mopar CCC through the TB, unless there's a method to doing it with the Delco TEC aside from yanking the plugs and pouring a sizable amount into each cylinder?
 

mrrsm

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If this Strong Solvent were to seep into the spaces in between the Plastic Intake Manifold and the Combination Rubber "O" Ring-Press Cut-Out Metal Gaskets...it could soften and even dissolve away those seals and make for an even more complicated set of problems. I know that this will be a PITA Job to undertake ...so Plan Well and Keep an Open Mind on perhaps an even better way to deliver the ACDelco TEC into Each Cylinder... For Example:

Using the Hose with the Metal Spark Plug Threaded End from the Compression Test Kit to poke the TEC Spray Nozzle into and Fill each Cylinder to the Brim with that stuff...and then Swap in the Spark Plugs... ASAP ...afterwards.

THAT Might Just Work as well as anything!
 
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mrrsm

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If its okay with you... I'd like to "Drop the Cherry on Top of the Sundae" with this Topic by showing what the problems are that will develop by NOT Checking the Engine Oil in ALL LS Motors on a More Regular Basis and by NOT Changing the Oil and Oil Filter MUCH MORE FREQUENTLY than every 5,000 Miles or MORE., The reasons for attending to our engines more often than usual, Like Checking on a Sleeping Baby in the Crib that seems a Little TOO Quiet... is couched in this Logic:

(1) Like Human Blood... Engine Oil is a Liquid...with SOLIDS suspended within it. If a person becomes Seriously Dehydrated, their Blood Thickens and poisonous Metabolic By-Product meant to be eliminated via the Kidneys thicken soon accumulate. The Toxins build up until the Person becomes VERY SICK

This very same analogy applies within Motors with Very Low Oil Volume that will rapidly Clog the Oil Filter while this "Stuff" collects and begins to overwhelm the ability of the Oil to KEEP SOLID PARTICLES IN SOLUTION. Thus. the Build Up of SLUDGE begins to overtake the Engine.

The More Engine Oil Available... The Merrier... (Just below the point of having the Crankshaft Counterweights begin dipping into it and Churning the Motor Oil into a Useless, Compressible Brown Froth). When an Engine either Leaks, Loses, or Burns Motor Oil at Greater Rate than One Quart every 2,000 Miles on NON-Nominal, High Mileage Engines... the actions necessary to ensure that the Volume of Oil is Maintained continuously demands much closer attention.

(2) Just as Human Blood undergoes Gas Exchanges when we Breathe... Motor Oil also must suffer from the 'inhalation' of and mixture with Un-Burned Gasoline and Thick Black Carbon Residue from poor combustion properties and the inability of the Piston Rings to remain "springy" enough NOT to get buried within the grooves around each piston. The mess left behind forms a Gooey Lacquer that adheres to EVERYTHING and then gets Baked On.

The loss of all of these "Seals in Constant Motion" within all 8 Cylinders means that a substantial amount of this stuff will By-Pass the Rings as Gaseous Blow-By and soon get thoroughly mixed in with the churned Up Motor Oil.

The Loss of Lubricity that follows on Accelerates Engine Wear and Tear... and just like Homer Simpson's Cardiac Crisis can happen after he Wraps his Pancakes around One Too Many Sticks of Butter and Eats them ...Like he's 'Going to The Chair"...Our beloved LS Engines will likely follow in his footsteps.

Ladies and Gentlemen... I give you,

"The LS Sludge Monster Engine Tear Down"


....and pretty much...ALL OF THIS IS PREVENTABLE WITH REGULAR LOOKS AT THE DIPSTICK AND WITH MORE FREQUENT MOTOR OIL AND OIL FILTER CHANGES.

Contrast the above video of that "LS MUNG TOILET" with THIS Later Model LS Engine AFM Delete Teardown from around 7:44 onward to get a look at what a Well Maintained Engine SHOULD Look like after removing the Valve Covers:

 
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