torque hex vc bolts?

[cry4me_sky]

real quick question.

i just got a set of those hex vc bolts from club mr2. Dunckel told me to make sure i find out what to torque them to. I texted him back and asked how to tell what the torque is with an allen wrench.

neither of us know. so any help would be.....helpful :icon_bigg
and if you know what to torque them to off of the top of your head that would be cool to. otherwise i can just look that up:naughty:

 

[MassSupra89]

You can buy hex sockets.

 

[cry4me_sky]

well i guess thats what i need.

so the vc gasket does have to be torqued to a certain specific.... weight?

 

[jdub]

22 in/lbs...not ft/lbs

 

[cry4me_sky]

thanks for specifying... that might have saved a lot of trouble.
lol .

 

[Dunckel]

I will be at the shooting range all day on Saturday, but Sunday I think I'm free. Gimme a call if you want some help.

 

[Dan_Gyoba]

I don't have a torque wrench that goes that low, but I've never had a problem with the gaskets leaking... Well, not until they start getting crusty, anyway, then they leak, 'cause that's what they do.

The thing is that the gaskets have enough give and are soft enough that they seal fairly well with a reasonably light pressure, so undertightening is probably NOT a problem when using new gaskets.

Overtightening, on the other hand, is a big problem, as this is almost guaranteed to cause an issue. It's tempting to re-use an old pair of gaskets, and just torque 'em down a bit more... This is a bad idea. The gaskets aren't cheap, but they're a lot cheaper than new valve covers AND new gaskets.

 

[Supracentral]

The thing is that the gaskets have enough give and are soft enough that they seal fairly well with a reasonably light pressure, so undertightening is probably NOT a problem when using new gaskets.

Overtightening, on the other hand, is a big problem, as this is almost guaranteed to cause an issue.

Dan is correct. This is why they are Phillips head screw from the factory. It's harder to over torque a Phillips head.

 

[cry4me_sky]

thanks guys you are probably saving me a bunch of money.

hey also today i noticed.... ive been smelling burnt oil lately because of the vc gaskets.... but today it smelled a little worse than just oil...

there has been a mouse in and out of my engine bay stashing dog food near the oil cap and who knows where else. i thought i caught it but there is another one now..........:nono:

 

[Dunckel]

This is why they are Phillips head screw from the factory.

Why do the stock screws tend to back themselves out over time? Not just a little, but to the point where I can turn them freely with my fingers. Maybe two full turns or so. (<--estimate.) I noticed this on my car, and on cry4me_sky's car as well.

 

[jdub]

Not if you use star washers under the head of the fastener, between it and the grommet

 

[Dunckel]

Not if you use star washers under the head of the fastener, between it and the grommet

Thank you sir.

 

[jdub]

The internal tooth type is better for this application.

 

[GrimJack]

thanks guys you are probably saving me a bunch of money.

hey also today i noticed.... ive been smelling burnt oil lately because of the vc gaskets.... but today it smelled a little worse than just oil...

there has been a mouse in and out of my engine bay stashing dog food near the oil cap and who knows where else. i thought i caught it but there is another one now..........:nono:

Yup, they like the warmth. I had an entire skeletal family in there when I bought my car - they'd died somehow, and the little skeletons were soaked in (and probably preserved by) oil leaking from the gaskets.

It was a PITA to clean. It's the biggest reason why I started out changing plugs and ended up tearing off the head to do a head gasket. That way I could get a shop to clean the head by itself!

 

[Dan_Gyoba]

Yeah, I had a mouse family make a nest in my AC. That was an expensive fix, having a shop rip the dash apart, but I didn't have the time to do it myself.

I use a litle dab of loctite on my VC screws, though I have hex head cap screws in there, now, just becasue I like the look better, and they don't get stripped as easy. I tighten them with a regular allen key, but I use the long end in the screw, and tighten it with the short end. It's easy enough to tighten them enough that way, and not easy to loosen them.

I find though that as the gasket hardens, it also shrinks a bit, which makes the fasterners seem looser, even though the loctite has prevented them from moving.

The shrinking I attribute to the heat expansion of the head and the valve covers. Of course they're cool (smaller) when you look at the fasteners, so they seem loosest then.