Changing the Valve Cover Gaskets Tomorrow

Sherwood4Runner

Sherwood4Runner

New member
Hey guys,

Took the runner to the Stealership on Saturday to get an overall idea of what maintenance had been neglected by the last owner. Among many things was that the valve cover gaskets are starting to leak. I have tomorrow off of school so I'm going to try and tackle it. Dealership wanted 500 for the job, but I can get all the parts for under 100 dollars and do it myself.

I'm equipped with the FSM to follow for correct removal of parts to get to the valve covers but wanted to see if anyone had tips for the process that they found helpful??

Here is the parts I'm going to pick up tomorrow:

2-Valve Cover Gaskets (both the L & R side are the same part), Part #11213-62020
6-Spark Plug Tube Gaskets, Part # 11193-16010
2-Intake Plenum Gaskets (both the upper & lower are the same part), Part # 17176-62040
16-Washer Seals (for the valve cover bolts) Part # 90210-05007

Anything I'm missing?

While I'm at it I'm going to change the spark plugs and clean the throttle body. I didn't find a write-up on this so I am going to try and take pictures along the way and post sometime afterward.
 
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Just a heads up, the plastic junk that covers the wire loom for the fuel injectors thats stuffed under the intake plenum is probably gonna be very very brittle and will snapand break with ease, just be aware and not let any break off and drop into your valvetrain, i made this mistake and never thought i would find it much less get it back out.
 
New intake plenum gaskets aren't really necessary. Most important I think is to have an Inch/Pound torque wrench to put everything back together properly. The wire harness makes sliding the drivers side valve cover in and out pretty difficult, especially with the brittleness of the cover that YC was talking about. There are only a few places it clips in downstream that if you can unplug you will have tons of extra room for play.
 
man had to do this years ago what a PITA! make sure you seal off real good with some RTV so you'll never have to change it again
 
Thanks for the heads up on the flaking plastic. I may try to find a way to wrap the wiring harness in something to keep things from flaking off. The more I read into replacing these the more time consuming it sounds haha. Replacing the valve cover gasket on my 2000 Celica a few years ago was much less time consuming.
 
Its not that bad of a job. The toyota gasket design is a good one and won't leak if you get just a little RTV in the corners where the cam seals are. The harness cover will break up regardless of care. You'll spend a lot of time trying to wrap it up. For the most part it breaks into fairly large pieces that are easy to see if you know its going to happen. Everytime you hear the crack just watch for a piece falling and remove it. You should definitely do the work yourself and become more familiar with your motor.
 
Any type of high heat engine RTV sealant should suffice, and yes this job is a PITA especially when you spend 4.5 hours changing them and putting everything back together only to find out that one of your valve covers is now cracked and still leaking oil......like me, i may be the only 4runner owner with a self oil changing engine haha
 
Black. That is the color for motors. Permatex is pretty common brand. A lot of guys on here will say Toyota black is the only way to go, saying that it handles the higher reving of import motors better. Its just valve cover gaskets though, you are only trying to fill four tiny little cracks with it, not creating an entirely new gasket with the stuff, I say spend the $5 at your local parts store and not the $16 at Toyota. Thats what I did and its holding fine.
 
Sherwood4Runner said:
Hey guys,

Took the runner to the Stealership on Saturday to get an overall idea of what maintenance had been neglected by the last owner. Among many things was that the valve cover gaskets are starting to leak. I have tomorrow off of school so I'm going to try and tackle it. Dealership wanted 500 for the job, but I can get all the parts for under 100 dollars and do it myself.

I'm equipped with the FSM to follow for correct removal of parts to get to the valve covers but wanted to see if anyone had tips for the process that they found helpful??

Here is the parts I'm going to pick up tomorrow:

2-Valve Cover Gaskets (both the L & R side are the same part), Part #11213-62020
6-Spark Plug Tube Gaskets, Part # 11193-16010
2-Intake Plenum Gaskets (both the upper & lower are the same part), Part # 17176-62040
16-Washer Seals (for the valve cover bolts) Part # 90210-05007

Anything I'm missing?

While I'm at it I'm going to change the spark plugs and clean the throttle body. I didn't find a write-up on this so I am going to try and take pictures along the way and post sometime afterward.
Click to expand...

I also need to replace my gaskets which i will be doing fairly soon here.
Would you mind posting the prices for all of these stated above?
Also are you spark plug tube gaskets shot or is this something i should also replace when doing this along with the Washer seals?
Thanks for any help.
 
I really think the only thing you probably need is the valve cover gaskets. My friend is a toyota tech and he has done the valve cover gaskets on mine and several of my friend's trucks and the only thing he had us buy was the valve cover gaskets. I guess you could buy the other things but it probably isn't really necessary.
 
chris360hawks said:
I really think the only thing you probably need is the valve cover gaskets. My friend is a toyota tech and he has done the valve cover gaskets on mine and several of my friend's trucks and the only thing he had us buy was the valve cover gaskets. I guess you could buy the other things but it probably isn't really necessary.
Click to expand...

Alright thanks for the input. Ill skip on the other things for now and just get the intake gaskets. I can always go back and get those gaskets if I come across them and they are worn out.
 
Would there be any difference for the gaskets from 98 to the 99? i cant imagine that there would be but by any chance? I will change my spark plugs though for sure while im down there since idk when is the last time they have been changed.
 
Nope part #s for the gaskets does not change from 98-99 just went and bought mine and got robbed... Part # was also 22123-62020
Payed 24.52 ea. :-/

They asked if i wanted to buy the spark plug gaskets but i said no and then mentioned about changing spark plugs trying to see if i was stupid enough to buy them there and i was like ehh i think ill get those later... I think they understood what i meant :jump:

Hope that helps anyone else wondering if gaskets change during the years, you would think they wouldnt, but they did change a few things between the two years so ya never know.
 
yeah my wiring cover did break in bits... I had to remove my charger , but it wasn't too bad. Just take your time so it won't leak oil. :thumb3:
 

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I recomend the toyota gasket. The replacment gaskets that the previous owner put in a month earlier were leaking(I tried tightening first). They were definately different in molding design. The toyota fit much better and was smooth and flush with valve cover. They were more expensive but this job can take some time and I would hate for you to do it twice. I did not use any sealant. Mine do not leak anymore. Also, I used masking tape to label all the hoses and one of the spark plug gaskets ripped during the removal of the cover. Easy to replace though.
 
Well boys todays hard work payed off!!!

Got up at 9:00 and went to the dealership to pay through the nose for two new valve cover gaskets. Then went to my local hardware store to get the extra tools I didn't have yet for the project.

Got to work on the 4runner about 10:30am and finished working with her about 8:00pm. When I got down to the gaskets they were both starting to deteriorate so its a good thing I replaced both while I was down there. Then I changed out the spark plugs while I was there and was in for a surprise. Whoever changed the plugs last somehow failed to see the sticker on the timing belt cover that says not to use single prong spark plugs and to only use the double prong ones. So I put the new NGK's in there and started to work putting her back together. When I got up to the Throttle Body I cleaned that out with some throttle body cleaner because it was DIIIIIIRTY. Then cleaned off the MAF sensor and put the last few things back in place. Adjusted the throttle cable, transmission kickdown, and cruise control; poured the anti freeze back in her and I was ready to go.

After letting the 4runner sit for about 5 minutes with the ECU fuse out popped that back in and started her up. Taking my runner out for a drive felt like it was a new vehicle!! I think the combination of everything, aside from the new gaskets, improved the combustion and responsiveness. Before the tune up my pedal was loose, throttle was less responsive, power felt lacking, and transmission shift points were 300-500rmp too high.

I couldn't be more impressed with todays results considering the dealership wanted 1000 dollars for the work I did today for about 100 dollars.

Thanks for all the tips guys!
 
I wonder if everything is a $1000 at the dealer called to get my valves adjusted and they told me a 1000
 
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