I can't seem to stop my cam covers leaking, both have new gaskets and 3 bond selant applied according to service manual.

But both still drip about one drop per 2 hours, any ideas why... Originally they were torqued up and I have tried going tighter..

 

Is the casing cracked ? Overtightening May cause a crack

 

Did you use sealent in the right place and not all over also the gasket check the covers are not warped if so piece class on dining room table grinding past they use for valves the fine and rub the case in a figure of 8 motion.
Did you also seal the end caps from factory they have sealer on them

 

Cheers for replies lads, some good ideas.

First up, casing are not cracked as I checked when I had them off for the second time.

I will check for warping of the covers when I pull them off again.

As for the sealant, first time round it was applied where there service manual stated in the correct place. Second time I applied sealant all around the drivers side cover and stuck with the manual for the passenger.

It made no difference either way.....

The end caps were sealed yes. Not the sealing things seems to count for much at the moment haa

 

Bolts are murder for stretching. Buy new ones, I have this quite often. Or u could put washers on.

 

I will look at getting some more bolts, this cam cover leak is getting annoying now.

 

Sorry to butt in but where are the correct places to put sealent round as mines a import and I carnt read jap so don't know where to start as I've got a leak on my classic drivers side one

 

have yoy replaced the bolt seals , the one closest the uppipe gets hot and goes hard and leaks

 

Brian Downie did my O/S cam seal last winter and he said they are a sod to get right. He said the key to it was draining it the night before and removing all traces of oil residue before applying sealant. As mine still leaks (although much reduced) I'd say even the mighty Brian hasn't quite got it licked either :/

 

I had replaced the bolt seals unfortunately mate.

Felton you should find it in the service manual which can be downloaded online I believe or bought off ebay. It's hard to explain in writing where the sealant goes.

I had another crack at this Monday, so cam cover off and thoroughly cleaned with break cleaner. ( when removed the gasket was so well sealed to the head that it was still stuck to the head when I got the cover off. )

Checked to see if cam cover was warped or damaged, it wasn't.

Checked for damage to the bolts, all ok.

At this point I thought I'd try once more reassembling super tight with lots of sealant and if it still leaked I would buy new bolts. However this time I added sealant to the bottom bolt seals.

Its been back together a few days and I can't find any leaks from this side anymore!!! So hopefully that's cracked it, so nice to be able to drive without smelling the oil burning on the up pipe

 

Have you checked/changed the half moons on the corners of the head?

 

Going to have to attack mine again then but I must admit I'm not looking forward to it :S if just for the fact that it may well be wasted effort