[tamathumper]

Much appreciated re: the AFPR. Unfortunately bigger fish to fry at the moment. Seals for the valve cover are on the way from Sunset.



This is why I do not (correction, CAN not) take my car to "the experts" here... it is a veritable wasteland when it comes to expertise on our cars and it always costs me dearly and causes me way more headaches than it solves. Case in point "<acronym title='dual mass flywheel'>DMF</acronym> debacle when the shop actually got the balance shaft upside down", or "vacuum hoses mis-routed" or "sheet rock screw used in air cleaner cover" on my previous car...



They just do way more harm than good.



So, does anyone recommend Permatex Ultra Black for the RTV dabs on the camshaft cover gasket? And does anyone use Permatex Gasket Sealant?

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[flash]

i use the copper RTV stuff, and in the corners only

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[tamathumper]

Just thought I'd post a picture of the VarioCam pads while I have the top open. I don't know how brittle they might be, but there's so little wear on the pads I can't even really feel it with a fingernail or scraper. I don't know what worn cams or sprockets would look like, but those are smooth too. I don't plan to do anything major this time, as I'm troubleshooting a vacuum leak and don't want to get in to a serious "while you're in there". But I'm happy all the long bolts broke loose with no breaking OFF.

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[flash]

all looks good from here, but admittedly it's a limited view

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[Cloud9...68]

Yeah, at your mileage, if the car has gotten regular oil changes, I'd be surprised if you'd be seeing a lot of wear of these parts. Nice to confirm, though.

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[DaveN]

+1 on the Copper RTV. Pads may look ok but they do get brittle. Mine had very light score lines on rebuild #1 but when they were removed you could see little chips missing from the plastic. That was at about 128,000 K (80,000 old school).

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[tamathumper]

Just to verify for everyone, the cam gauge in the popularly-available PDF version of the manual does not fit, it is the wrong scale (much too small).

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[flash]

it's possible your pdf is not scaled correctly. unfortunately they don't give a reference dimension for rescaling

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[tamathumper]

Yes, hence my request(s) for the actual width, but nobody is biting.

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[flash]

i have a hard copy of the manual. tomorrow i'll pull it down and measure it.

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[tamathumper]

Many thanks. Could you measure both the horizontal and vertical dimensions of the rectangle? That would give me the correct aspect ratio, and I could scale it accurately with that from any size.

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[DaveN]

Again a vague recollection, I seem to recall my mechanic having tape in the middle of the gauge. I think he cut it and inserted an extender slice of paper.

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[MB968]

[quote name='tamathumper' timestamp='1375995262' post='146833']



So, does anyone recommend Permatex Ultra Black for the RTV dabs on the camshaft cover gasket? And does anyone use Permatex Gasket Sealant?

[/quote]



I've used Permatex Gasket Sealant or their Aviation Form a Gasket for decades. But, I normally only use them for surfaces that use fibre gaskets. For any polymer soft gasket like the valve cover, I'll use one of the RTV types. I always make sure it is O2 safe kind just to insure if any of it should get into the exhaust stream.

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[tamathumper]

Put the valve cover back together with all new gaskets and rubber seals. Used gasket sealant (not RTV, but a thick rubber-cement like purple stuff) on all surfaces to make sure it seals 100%. Used RTV Ultra Black in the four corners.



Went through the procedure again to set the fuel pressure to 53 pounds, as the variable fuel pressure regulator was leaking a bit around the lock nut - (the pressure was actually 50 pounds so it needed adjusting), then LocTited the nut.



Lost the @!#%$! ball bearing in the fuel rail cap nut while trying to put it back on. Luckily I had just purchased a handy dandy magnetic retriever, so I was able to locate it under the intake manifold and fish it out after a few minutes of searching. And cussing.



I removed and re-torqued all of the spark plugs, just to make sure they weren't a source of leakage either.



Vacuum is still at 15 inches.

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[tamathumper]

Re-pressurized tonight and confirmed that the camshaft cover is tight. More hissing from down under the intake manifold, in the area around the oil filler neck - I could feel air moving with my fingers!



So, off comes everything again, this time on the intake side. Is it possible to get that throttle body off without making a coolant mess?

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[kwikt]

I crimp the coolant hoses with a small needle nose visegrips wrapped in tape. Hey I also noticed that the center port is plugged on your throttle body. Should have a hose connected from the throttle body to the air oil separator.

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[tamathumper]

Kwikt, thanks for the tip - I'll have to pick up some more vice grips but that should work.



The plug is part of the D1R Supercharger installation - that port gets plugged, and as you might be able to see from the yellow/brass coupler the hose is still there but it is extended forward and (not shown in the picture) it enters the intake at the metal elbow (just before the supercharger head unit).



My guess is that's so it will keep suction on that line at all times and not put boost into it.

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[tamathumper]

Verified all of the vacuum components from the FPR back, including the climate / heater / reservoir hold vacuum. Pumped them to 20 inches and they fall to 19 after one minute, so that's good enough for me.



Ordered all of the seals and gaskets for the intake manifold, air-oil-separator, and the throttle body just for good measure. Still have all of the new vacuum lines to install in and around there, too.

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[Cloud9...68]

You may have said it somewhere in this thread, so my apologies if I'm asking you to repeat something you're already said, but how exactly are you pressurizing your system when you're checking for vacuum leaks?

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[tamathumper]

For testing with vacuum, I'm using a MityVac kit and plugging it into various points in the system, then using the gauge on the MityVac to monitor how long it holds.



For testing with pressure, I'm removing the K&N and using a silicone adapter/reducer to a PVC cap with a ball valve threaded into the end of it, then an air hose quick-disconnect fitting. I plug a Boost/Vacuum gauge into the system to monitor PSI, usually near the fuel pressure regulator as it's easy to get to.



Here's an older picture of it. I've since removed the rubber gasket in the intake snorkel hole.

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