How to: Rocker Cover Gasket

[ben-jamminn]

Seems to be an all too common for Subaru's, while searching for info on here I found lots of threads on the subject but no complete how to's so i took some pics today when I did mine, Hopefully it can help someone else out

(I did passenger side, same principle for drivers, just more s*** in the way)

Took about an hour

What you will need:

Genuine parts! (Don't bother with the generic non genuine seals, from what I've heard they are useless)

Rocker cover gasket: 13272AA063

Spark plug gasket x2: 13293AA051

'Half moon' cylinder head plug x2: 11051AA070

R/C bolt washers x6: 13271AA051

*note these part numbers are applicable for a 98 STi (EJ20K), if you drive something else it will pay to double check with the dealership

Came to a grand total of $136.85 from Armstrong Subaru in Christchurch

10mm ratchet spanner

10mm 1/4" drive socket + 1/4" driver

Oil drip tray

Degreaser and rags

Hi temp sealant (I used a copper based one)

To start with remove the battery, followed by the window washer bottle by remving the two bolts at the top and disconnecting the electrical plugs and the hoses.

Next you will come across a bracket that supports some wires, remove the bolt that secures it to allow you to move it out of your way

Now disconnect the leads from the spark plugs and unclip them from the little bracket on top of the rocker cover, and put them out of the way. Pull off the breather pipe an dput it to the side, I didn't remove the oil filler pipe when I took the cover off but I recommend doing it, Makes life much easier, just 2 bolts (10mm head)

You should now have clear access to the rocker cover, put a drip tray under the car and start removing the 6 bolts, you will need to access some from underneath, this is where the ratchet spanner becomes handy! Although I found it easier to get the bottom middle one with the socket. A small amount of oil will trickle out, nothing major though

The sealing washers may stick to the cover when you pull the bolts out, this is ok, just make sure you account for them all. Once you have the bolts out the cover should come off without too much persuasion, carefully pull it out and put it somewhere safe. Spray some degreaser on the cover and give it a good clean up, get a rag into the grooves where the gasket sits and clean out any oil/gunk so the new gasket has a good seat

The cam shafts will now be exposed, be careful not to get any dirt and contaminants into the heads, especially the oil gallerys, you will need to remove ALL the sealant left over from the last time the job was done, in my case it was just 4 blobs in the corners of the cam caps, you can see it on the left hand side of this photo. It does come off pretty easy, just be careful not to drop any of it into the heads.

Now remove the half moons, I just used a pair of pliers to grip them and pulled them out, they are held in by sealant. I am glad I didn't skimp on these as the plastic was so brittle they broke when I pulled them out so I'm wondering if it was these that caused the leak to start with.

Pick all the old sealant out of the grooves and give it a thorough wipe out to get it nice and clean, now put a bead of sealant on your new half moons and press them into place, the excess sealant should squeeze out the sides, wipe it up if it is too excessive

Fit the new washers to your bolts and the new seals into the grooves in the rocker cover, they are a nice snug fit. Put a small blob of sealant on the corner of where the cam caps are, there are little flat spots on the seal at these points.

Now place the cover back onto the head, get 2 bolts started to hold it in place, then get all 6 done finger tight. Bring them up evenly to a medium nip, you don't want to over tighten them.

Put the spark plug leads back on, re fit the water tank and put the battery back in,

I left mine to sit for an hour or so before starting the car to let the sealant dry up a little, not sure whether it is neccesary or not.

JOB DONE

Now I'm no mechanic so if anyone has any other pointers or corrections, just fire away! ;D

[johnny5]

sticky this

[toad]

good job dude. nice clear pics and easy to understand

[Koom]

Mint writeup. Have added it to the technical help thread lists.

[ben-jamminn]

Sweet, glad you like it!

[Koom]

Everyone loves photo's, genuine parts and well written reports ;D

[Navin]

You legend! I'll be doing mine next week.really Appreciate it

[DRFVDR]

The only trick i do extra is undo the 2 14mm nuts on the engine mounts,the ones thru the subframe and jack the engine up 50 mm or so

[Navin]

Quick question, is it normal for the new Subaru gasket to not sit in those 2 little grooves in the pic above? Just did my rocker cover gasket today and it's exactly like the one in your pic, is it the wrong gasket or is that normal

[scooby-wrx]

Good write up. Very handy. Thanks ben-jamminn This was the first job I did on my car mechanical wise. Good spotting Navin My covers a little different, but my gasket filled in all the gaps... ???

If you look at the pic of the old gasket (in ben-jamminn first post) it filled the gaps too... :-X

[Navin]

Yeah I have a feeling they've given me the wrong gasket. Mine's the same as the op's. I'm sure they're meant to fill all the gaps. Will go to winger tomorrow

[ben-jamminn]

Wow I never noticed that!

well it doesn't leak so meh

[Navin]

Went down to winger today to get the correct gasket and the new one fit perfectly. Correct rocker cover gasket part number for v4 & 5 STi's is 13272AA082. Not too sure if it makes much a difference or not Benjamin but I just like to be sure it fits perfectly

[Jimbob]

have you got part numbers for v3 heads with shim over bucket?

[ben-jamminn]

Contact a Subaru dealer?

[Jimbob]

I have but they have about 10 types in stock. And the heads arent from my original engine

Sent from my GT-S5570 using Tapatalk

[Guest]

Does anyone have this info for a bg5 legacy auto tt??

[Jimbob]

similar process, just getting coils off the plugs are the pain

[Andy_Mac]

Would i be correct in assuming you have to drain the engine oil before taking the rocker cover off?

[rex-leggy]

 Andy_Mac said:

Would i be correct in assuming you have to drain the engine oil before taking the rocker cover off?

I dont .... all the oil should be in the sump. I jack one side of the engine up a little to make cleaning eaiser

[ben-jamminn]

 Andy_Mac said:

Would i be correct in assuming you have to drain the engine oil before taking the rocker cover off?

Assuming the engine is cold, the amount of oil inside the rocker cover should be minimal

[stooji]

in my experience there are about as many different rocker cover gaskets as there are engine codes.

sample always helped, particularly if you are cheaping out on aftermarket

[DXROLLA]

So since i replaced my rocker cover gaskets (used genuine parts) the dam thing is still leaking on the drivers side, i replaced the half moon things, used sealer with them and new seals for the bolts. What else could be causing it to leak?

[PhatRS]

Try putting a washer behind all the bolts.

[DRFVDR]

 DXROLLA said:

So since i replaced my rocker cover gaskets (used genuine parts) the dam thing is still leaking on the drivers side, i replaced the half moon things, used sealer with them and new seals for the bolts. What else could be causing it to leak?

did you use GENUINE gaskets ? especially the wee bolt ones