I was told by the Nissan Service dept that I need to have the valve cover replaced. Is that something that I could maybe do myself? If not, what would an approximate reasonable price might I have to pay to have it replaced? Also, my Air Conditioning is blowing hot air and there is no coolant. How can I check for leaks or whatever without having to pay out big bucks?
Are you sure the Valve Cover and not just the Valve cover gasket??
Any ways go to Auto Zone and pick up the Valve cover gasket, RTV Silicone selant, Gasket Scraper, and a can of Brake parts cleaner spray.
Disconnect the battery cable from the negative battery terminal, Remove the items which are in your way: Pull the spark plug wires off the spark plugs and remove them from their brackets, remove the PCV hoses, and remove the throttle cable from its brackets and position it out of the way.
Loosen the fasteners in this order, I believe there are 11 bolts holding the Valve cover down. Remove one bolt and count to the next 5th bolt and remove it and count to the next 5th bolt and remove it, do this till all the bolts have been removed on a circular pattern. Carefully remove the valve cover from the engine head.
If your just going to replace the Valve cover gasket, Remove the gasket from the valve cover. Thoroughly clean the mating surfaces of the valve cover and the engine head. Use a gasket scraper to remove all traces of old gasket, and then use the Brake parts cleaner to clean any remaining oil from the surfaces.
If you bought a new Valve cover, Apply RTV silicone sealant to the gasket and engine head around the cutout areas of the valve cover. Note you still have to clean the heads on the engine. Lay the new gasket in the groove in the valve cover. Reinstall the valve cover with its new gasket on the engine head. Tighten the bolts in the same order you removed it in. Do Not Over Tighten the Bolts that hold the Valve Cover down, you'll crush the new gasket and will get an oil leak.
Note: If the valve cover does not come off the engine head easily, use a block of wood and a hammer to bump it in an attempt to jar it loose. If absolutely necessary, you may slip a flexible putty knife between the head and the cover to break the seal.
If you purchased a valve cover gasket kit, don't forget to replace the small rectangular gasket and the spark plug seals as well while you have the valve cover off the car. You may buy some Brake cleaner to clean off all the oil which has leaked all over the engine.
DO NOT attempt to pry the cover off the head using a screwdriver or chisel. Be very careful not to introduce foreign matter into the engine. If you get anything (dirt, metal shavings, bits of old gasket) into the engine.
DO NOT over-tighten the valve cover fasteners. On the engine, the fasteners need only 17 to 34 in-lbs of torque.
Your A/C system has a leak in it. all system has a slow leak and common, You can get a re-charge kit at Auto Zone to save some money, but if your A/C needs charging again in 2 weeks or less then there is a larger leak due to a bad seal and is cheaper to have a A/C shop locate the leak and replace the seal that has gone bad.
Good luck and hope this help. keep me posted, be glad to help.
I concur with erickahoona advice, but also keep in mind, that the only time you should be replacing the valve cover is because it have become damaged beyond repair. I would recommend that the mechanic who advised this to you show you why the valve cover needs to be replaced. Perhaps you just need to replace the valve cover gasket, which is probably the same amount of labor time, but cheaper to replace the gasket as opposed to replacing the valve cover. Please rate this if you found this advice helpful
Yes you can do the valve cover yourself, not hard to do. best info is a Haynes repair manual and it will show you how to do it.
As for the A/C, you can buy a kit at your local auto parts store that has the tools to check and refill your A/C. If you've never done this before ask the sales person at the parts store to show you how it's done. You can buy a can with dye in it which will show up at any leaking spot in the a/c system. If that happens you'll have to repair these leaks before you'll be able to fill the system properly.
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