Front and rear valley oil leak from intake manifold.
February 9th, 2016, 10:01 AM
#1
CF Beginner
Thread Starter
Join Date: Feb 2016
Posts: 1
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Front and rear valley oil leak from intake manifold.
When I built my engine I used some aftermarket aluminum heads that were made and drilled to accept both vortec and non-vortec intake styles. My first manifold was a victor jr. 4x4 (non-vortec) and it always had a small persistent lead from the passenger rear of the valley (where the intake meets the block). It was installed using the gasket-maker as the sealant in the valleys (from everything I have read this is preferred to the rubber gaskets in the kit). Late last summer I re-installed the intake the same way and while the rear was sealed I started having a small oil spray leak from the front of the valley at high RPM's.
At this point I decided to try an use another new in box intake that I had around. The Victor was used, and I really had no idea how worn it may be or if it was warmed in some way. So late last week I installed this new intake (non-vortec style as well) and once again used the sealant for the valley gaskets. Yesterday I fired it up and at idle everything seemed perfect. However, as soon as I took it out for a spin and got back I saw that it was leaking from both the front and rear...bad!
Just wondering if anyone has ran into this problem before and has a solution. I know that there are going to be some to say get the vortec intake and go that route, and honestly, I may have to end up doing that. However, I would like to find a solution if I can, I mean the heads were made to take both intakes so it has to be possible. To me it seems that the intake itself is sitting too high off of the valley area causing it not to seal. I am using regular old fel-pro gaskets and I was thinking maybe they are too thick. I looked it up though and angle of the head doesn't change between vortec and non-vortec, so that may not be the answer either. I have also thought about redoing it and essentially putting a "great wall of sealant" on the valley areas to having it squeeze out real good when I put the intake on. Unfortunately, this seems like it may lead to trouble as well. Just looking for some insight.
At this point I decided to try an use another new in box intake that I had around. The Victor was used, and I really had no idea how worn it may be or if it was warmed in some way. So late last week I installed this new intake (non-vortec style as well) and once again used the sealant for the valley gaskets. Yesterday I fired it up and at idle everything seemed perfect. However, as soon as I took it out for a spin and got back I saw that it was leaking from both the front and rear...bad!
Just wondering if anyone has ran into this problem before and has a solution. I know that there are going to be some to say get the vortec intake and go that route, and honestly, I may have to end up doing that. However, I would like to find a solution if I can, I mean the heads were made to take both intakes so it has to be possible. To me it seems that the intake itself is sitting too high off of the valley area causing it not to seal. I am using regular old fel-pro gaskets and I was thinking maybe they are too thick. I looked it up though and angle of the head doesn't change between vortec and non-vortec, so that may not be the answer either. I have also thought about redoing it and essentially putting a "great wall of sealant" on the valley areas to having it squeeze out real good when I put the intake on. Unfortunately, this seems like it may lead to trouble as well. Just looking for some insight.
Last edited by mr_han_solo; February 9th, 2016 at 10:04 AM.
February 9th, 2016, 10:17 PM
#2
CF Veteran
Join Date: Feb 2012
Location: nebraska
Posts: 1,428
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
how long do you let the rtv set before you ran it? Make sure you clean it really well on both sides with brake cleaner and that its dry before you put the silicone on, I usually put a pretty good amount when I did those then I would let it set atleast 24hrs depending on the temperature before running it.