Valve cover oil leak

[hotdog71]

A few years ago I had a valve spring break and had Ford dealer replace and all was good, but I few weeks later I noticed a little oil pooling toward the back of the valve cover around 1 and 2 bolts counting forward from cabin. I took back Ford dealer they replaced with another gasket and said they fitted wrong one for my year (03 GT) all was good or so I thought and I forgot about it.

I got busy with life etc, and a couple years on I still have leak in same area wondering what experts here think might be issue?

 

[Shuttleman83]

Loose torque on the bolts (Try tightening each one but not too tight, just a notch to make sure they're securely tight) - sometimes they untorque themselves from heat and hot / cold variances. Possibly, but not gauranteed.

 

[stormsedge]

Check upstream of where the oil is pooling as well...sometimes the culprit is not the bolt heads sitting in the obvious oil.

 

[wmburns]

+1 on all of the above. Add to this the warning to not over torque. The torque spec for the valve cover bolts is 10 Nm (89 lb-in) which is not much.

The other warning is the need to apply a bead of sealer to the seam between the front cover and head.

1. NOTE: Apply an eight millimeter bead of silicone gasket and sealant at the intersection of the engine front cover and the cylinder head.

In my experience the gaskets used are very good when used per the service manual. That means surface prep and clamping torque. If they still leak after being correctly installed consider the possibility:

• the sealing surfaces are not flat and smooth.
• the bolts have been over torqued.
• the leak is not coming from the valve cover. Suspect first the PCV system.
• There is a crack in the valve cover.