Tappet Cover Gasket

medicnick83

medicnick83

Paramedic
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Hi guys,

So I sent my car in for service at Renault and the one part they couldn't sort out was the "Tappet Cover Gasket" because they didn't have stock.
The lady at DTM Renault told me that it's not vitally important to repair just now - I could leave it for my next service (just did the 105,000km)

I don't know much about cars and thus my question(s);

Is this something to worry about...
What is it?
What does it do?

Thanks! :)
 
Only stop's the oil leaking out so if it ain't leaking it shouldn't be a problem.
The tappet cover is the blue cover - the gasket just sits at the base of that.
Restauration-109.jpg
 
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Tun@ said:
Only stop's the oil leaking out so if it ain't leaking it shouldn't be a problem.
Click to expand...

Okay, so if I can correctly assume the following; If I haven't had problems with 'oil leaking' since I got the car - I don't have a 'oil leaking' problem? (I check the oil whenever I fill up the car, but can't even remember the last time I put oil in - that is a good thing I assume)
 
It forms an oil tight seal between the tappet cover and the engine top end, I would have told her to have the mechanics make one, you can buy the paper from auto zone for R60 per square meter
 
Segg said:
It forms an oil tight seal between the tappet cover and the engine top end, I would have told her to have the mechanics make one, you can buy the paper from auto zone for R60 per square meter
Click to expand...

That would probably work on older cars but modern cars use either a rubber or cork-like tappet cover gasket.
 
Segg said:
It forms an oil tight seal between the tappet cover and the engine top end, I would have told her to have the mechanics make one, you can buy the paper from auto zone for R60 per square meter
Click to expand...

Something so simple and they want to charge;

R231 for the Tappet Cover Gasket and R520 for removing and refitting the tappet cover gasket.

:mad:
 
Segg said:
It forms an oil tight seal between the tappet cover and the engine top end, I would have told her to have the mechanics make one, you can buy the paper from auto zone for R60 per square meter
Click to expand...

Something so simple and they want to charge;

R231 for the Tappet Cover Gasket and R520 for removing and refitting the tappet cover gasket.

:mad:
 
Replacing the gasket yourself should be easy even if you only have basic mechanical skills.

What car is it?
 
gdiza said:
Okay, so if I can correctly assume the following; If I haven't had problems with 'oil leaking' since I got the car - I don't have a 'oil leaking' problem? (I check the oil whenever I fill up the car, but can't even remember the last time I put oil in - that is a good thing I assume)
Click to expand...

As the others have mentioned, the gasket forms a seal between the engine head and the tappet cover.

As it gets older the gasket - made of a 'spongy' material - gets harder, with the result that:

  • The gasket no longer seals perfectly; also
  • The gasket is liable to crack.
Either will result in oil leaking past the gasket.

In addition, as a result of the engine heat the gasket frequently becomes heat welded (i.e. sticks) to the engine head, with the result that the gasket is damaged when the tappet cover is removed.

The solution is therefore to replace the tappet cover gasket - a relatively cheap item - when the tappet cover is lifted.

Incidentally, you should not be paying for removing / refitting the tappet cover gasket if the 105,000 km service specified removing the tappet cover to examine / reset the tappets.
 
It's not something to be overly concerned about, even if it leaks it won't major. You can verify this by checking if any oil is escaping past the gasket.

R750 for that job is why they are called stealerships, as mentioned above you should also not be paying for this if it part of the service/inspection ;)
 
Yoh!
Now I see what I can do in my retirement - replace tappet cover gaskets and charge 750 a pop! :p

Bloody con artisits.

Don't worry about it, most tappet covers will "weep" as they get older, the oil loss is so slight, that you won't even notice it on the dipstick. Let it wait until the service.
 
Fazda said:
Yoh!
Don't worry about it, most tappet covers will "weep" as they get older, the oil loss is so slight, that you won't even notice it on the dipstick. Let it wait until the service.
Click to expand...

In most cases it wont weep but like you said if it does it's not serious
.
 
They wanted to charge me R5000 to replace it for my OPC - to be fair, it is the steel covering over the tappets. I asked what difference does it make if I don't replace it - they looked at each other and shrugged, "If you are not losing oil then you are fine". That was 7 months ago and I have white tiles on my garage floor - no oil noted.....
 
Spunkywunky1 said:
They wanted to charge me R5000 to replace it for my OPC - to be fair, it is the steel covering over the tappets. I asked what difference does it make if I don't replace it - they looked at each other and shrugged, "If you are not losing oil then you are fine". That was 7 months ago and I have white tiles on my garage floor - no oil noted.....
Click to expand...

If a car has a TCG that is leaking it wouldnt necessary be leaking on the floor, because you are only in the garage for a few moments it wont spill on the floor because it needs pressure to leak out.

gdiza said:
Something so simple and they want to charge;

R231 for the Tappet Cover Gasket and R520 for removing and refitting the tappet cover gasket.

:mad:
Click to expand...

If you send it in to a mechanic will it void your warranty?
 
Rickster said:
If a car has a TCG that is leaking it wouldnt necessary be leaking on the floor, because you are only in the garage for a few moments it wont spill on the floor because it needs pressure to leak out.
Click to expand...

But if it leaks under pressure you will still have oil leaking down the engine block; and when you park, oil would still drip off for a couple of minutes. Hence - no leak worth talking about.
 
If you do happen to ever replace it, clean off excess rubber and silicone on the head with a piece of hard plastic as metal to metal can score the head. And always remove the tappet cover when the engine is cool to prevent the cover from warping. But as stated above, no leak no worry :).
 
I've done this on an old car and the gasket had turned into a gunky mess. Bought some gasket maker from the local spar and just wrenched it close. You are supposed to use a rachet wrench. The car gave up in a bad way about 3000km later, but apparently it was an electrical fault.
 
I think I'll wait till the next service or, I start noticing any oil related issues - simply because just doing the tappet gasket thing at Renault will set me back close on R2000. :(
And that is mostly the bloody labour!
 
gdiza said:
...simply because just doing the tappet gasket thing at Renault will set me back close on R2000. :(
And that is mostly the bloody labour!
Click to expand...

That's nothing but daylight robbery! I don't know which car you've got but I doubt the job will take more than 30min at the most!
 
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