Cliff note: Leaky HKS, Black piece in third pic wont seal on inner ring. How to get a better sealing surface or rather raise the inner ring to get a tighter fit?
I've been doing a lot of researching and finding countless people with issues with the HKS SSQV. Whether they it be because they accidentally bought a knock off or surge issues or just plain leaking like mine.
Why am I upset with the SSQV, I have two utterly useless BOV's. Both leak in the same fashion, out the vent in the front (not the oring to the flange) and if others at home would test it more often, you may come across the same issue. I can literally blow through mine with my mouth with ease, just imagine how much boost that is leaking. My recent contact with HKS has been far from acceptable. So far I've had one of their representatives accuse me of owning knock-offs and they can't help, and the other refuse in any way to make the customer happy; to make me happy all I wanted was a new seal, but instead I'd have to send it in, pay $120 for the to 'look at it' and then replace the actual assembly (which costs almost the price of a new one) when all i need is one seal.
Here is the general layout of the SSQV, take notice to the front end 9left side in pic) where the round end meets the flat darker surface, this is what makes the seal:
Here's the real thing with the front cover/seal off. Not only is the black piece plastic (this makes the seal), its actually separated from the piston itself, requiring now two sealing surfaces (this can be seen in the second pic below) These are 10+ MP pics so feel free to zoom in and take notice how rough the surface is for the plastic sealing piece:
The culprit, a rubber seal with metal core to prevent any flex. You can see the raised area on the inner ring, this is what is supposed to seal with the PLASTIC piece. Why the heck wouldn't they use metal, it blows my mind. To get this piece you MUST buy the entire assembly which is just shy of the full cost of the BOV. Again, stupid, who in their right mind would not think a rubber seal exposed to the elements like this would not wear out over time. Oh, sorry, according to both HKS representatives, they've been "selling these for 10 years with no problems", I find that hard to believe:
Now for the question: Any ideas on how to essentially raise the inner sealing surface so its more snug up against the plastic piece so it seals? I've thought about silicone on the rubber piece and oiling the plastic piece so as it dries it would make a great sealing surface as close as possible without sticking to the plastic piece. I've also thought about using a thin oring and attaching it to the rubber or plastic piece. Its also crossed my mind to use some type of rubber to stick to the plastic piece to raise its thickness and fill the gaps but not sure how to go about getting it smooth unless somehow its dipped into a liquid rubber for a thin smooth coat.
I've been doing a lot of researching and finding countless people with issues with the HKS SSQV. Whether they it be because they accidentally bought a knock off or surge issues or just plain leaking like mine.
Why am I upset with the SSQV, I have two utterly useless BOV's. Both leak in the same fashion, out the vent in the front (not the oring to the flange) and if others at home would test it more often, you may come across the same issue. I can literally blow through mine with my mouth with ease, just imagine how much boost that is leaking. My recent contact with HKS has been far from acceptable. So far I've had one of their representatives accuse me of owning knock-offs and they can't help, and the other refuse in any way to make the customer happy; to make me happy all I wanted was a new seal, but instead I'd have to send it in, pay $120 for the to 'look at it' and then replace the actual assembly (which costs almost the price of a new one) when all i need is one seal.
Here is the general layout of the SSQV, take notice to the front end 9left side in pic) where the round end meets the flat darker surface, this is what makes the seal:
Here's the real thing with the front cover/seal off. Not only is the black piece plastic (this makes the seal), its actually separated from the piston itself, requiring now two sealing surfaces (this can be seen in the second pic below) These are 10+ MP pics so feel free to zoom in and take notice how rough the surface is for the plastic sealing piece:
The culprit, a rubber seal with metal core to prevent any flex. You can see the raised area on the inner ring, this is what is supposed to seal with the PLASTIC piece. Why the heck wouldn't they use metal, it blows my mind. To get this piece you MUST buy the entire assembly which is just shy of the full cost of the BOV. Again, stupid, who in their right mind would not think a rubber seal exposed to the elements like this would not wear out over time. Oh, sorry, according to both HKS representatives, they've been "selling these for 10 years with no problems", I find that hard to believe:
Now for the question: Any ideas on how to essentially raise the inner sealing surface so its more snug up against the plastic piece so it seals? I've thought about silicone on the rubber piece and oiling the plastic piece so as it dries it would make a great sealing surface as close as possible without sticking to the plastic piece. I've also thought about using a thin oring and attaching it to the rubber or plastic piece. Its also crossed my mind to use some type of rubber to stick to the plastic piece to raise its thickness and fill the gaps but not sure how to go about getting it smooth unless somehow its dipped into a liquid rubber for a thin smooth coat.
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