Valve cover gasket?

[scotth]

Hi. New here. Just bought a 2011 Audi A4 Quattro and 2 weeks later I got issues... P0300-4 codes indicating all cylinders misfire. P2177 (system too lean off idle bank 1) andP2187 (System too lean at idle bank 1). I changed all spark plugs and ignition coils, and during work found 3 cylinders had pools of oil in them. I bought this valve cover gasket to replace: https://www.autozone.com/external-en...23_224219_6534 but from what i found in another thread, this car doesn't even have a gasket (uses special sealant). I tried to take valve cover off this morning and got stuck. I took off PCV unit and all bolts on top of valve cover. I only got it up about 1/4" on drivers side. Can someone tell me how to get this damn thing off? Any DIY videos/walkthroughs out there that I haven't been able to locate?

[elscotto80]

The valve cover also serves as the cam hold downs, so you might want to stop where you are before you go any further. You run the risk of knocking the timing off which is not good.

There are a few threads here that show you how to replace the sealant.

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[Theiceman]

Hi. New here. Just bought a 2011 Audi A4 Quattro and 2 weeks later I got issues... P0300-4 codes indicating all cylinders misfire. P2177 (system too lean off idle bank 1) andP2187 (System too lean at idle bank 1). I changed all spark plugs and ignition coils, and during work found 3 cylinders had pools of oil in them. I bought this valve cover gasket to replace: https://www.autozone.com/external-en...23_224219_6534 but from what i found in another thread, this car doesn't even have a gasket (uses special sealant). I tried to take valve cover off this morning and got stuck. I took off PCV unit and all bolts on top of valve cover. I only got it up about 1/4" on drivers side. Can someone tell me how to get this damn thing off? Any DIY videos/walkthroughs out there that I haven't been able to locate?

ok STOP RIGHT NOW >>>>> PUT BOLTS BACK ...

or at least until you understand what it is you are doing.

This car has no valve cover in the traditionl sense. what your are unbolting is the upper cam cradle. as it is part of the cover. this is some what tricky work as when you will take the cover off , at least one of the cams is going to pop right up on you as the back of it is not held in place.
the cover if i remember actually tucks under the fuel pump housing and that will have to be backed off. This is not a small feat you are attempting. I hope you also purchased specialized aneroboc sealant ...

when you take the cover off this is what it will look like..



i would put it back until you do some thorough research into what you are doing. you will also likely need a new cam plug for the back of the intake cam area.


all that aside i think it has nothing to do with your issue ....

not sure why you rushed to change the coil and plugs when the car told you it has a lean condition . you have too much unmetered air coming in or you do not have enough fuel. I would back away from the tools and hit the books.

[bb-tt]

ok STOP RIGHT NOW >>>>> PUT BOLTS BACK ...

or at least until you understand what it is you are doing.

This car has no valve cover in the traditionl sense. what your are unbolting is the upper cam cradle. as it is part of the cover. this is some what tricky work as when you will take the cover off , at least one of the cams is going to pop right up on you as the back of it is not held in place.
the cover if i remember actually tucks under the fuel pump housing and that will have to be backed off. This is not a small feat you are attempting. I hope you also purchased specialized aneroboc sealant ...

when you take the cover off this is what it will look like..



i would put it back until you do some thorough research into what you are doing. you will also likely need a new cam plug for the back of the intake cam area.


all that aside i think it has nothing to do with your issue ....

not sure why you rushed to change the coil and plugs when the car told you it has a lean condition . you have too much unmetered air coming in or you do not have enough fuel. I would back away from the tools and hit the books.

This !!!!!

A simple search would have been smart before starting. After my daughter's warranty replacement of the intake for runner flap issues dealer called and said leaking oil and quoted some ridiculous price. I said no thanks just did timing belt on my 1.8 in the TT think I can handle a valve cover gasket. They responded no valve cover gasket on this engine vary different from 1.8. so I came and searched the forum, there are multiple threads on how to diy, it is definitely not a simple valve cover gasket in the traditional sense. Not saying it can't be done at home, but you really need to be research before you end up doing more harm than good.

[scotth]

So is it ok to bolt it back together, or is the sealant bad now that ive opened the cover slightly?

[Smac770]

Yeah, you're seal is probably shot. But you can't take it apart to correct things until you have the right process.
Probably best to leave it unstarted until you can do the dismantle/reassemble correctly and know it's sealed up properly.

[scotth]

Could anyone point me to a thread that explains how to do this? I searched and didn't find it. Any help would be appreciated.

[Smac770]

I imagine if I were doing it, after dismounting and disconnecting all the relevant equipment on the cylinder head cover that you can find, -

remove the N205 valve on the intake cam shaft in the upper chain cover
remove the upper chain cover
mark a line across the cam, chain, and cover edge on both sides so you know exactly where the cams and chain were, hell, make several lines
remove the inspection hole cover in the lower chain cover
at the bottom of where the upper chain cover sat on the head, there should be four bolts, remove the two middle ones
across the top row of the lower chain cover, there should be four bolts, remove the middle left one

(I'm going to assume you have the newer style tensioner)
set T40243 down through where you removed the bolts under the upper cover, at the position where you removed the bolt in the lower cover, to set the end of it on the chain opposite the tensioner
squeeze the prongs on the tensioner locking ring together (so the piston can be pushed back in) and leverage the T40243 to press the tensioner piston back in (push right on T40243 handle to press tensioner piston to left)
let go of squeezing the locking ring and use that hand to put T40267 lock on the tensioner piston (ie, looks just like the securing pin that comes on a new tensioner)

unbolt the vacuum pump (three bolts) and back it off some
unbolt the cylinder head cover (six rows of bolts, two in the front, then five rows of four), unbolt each row in order (front front row, then rear rear row, then front second row, then rear second row, then front inner row, then rear inner row).

I don't know if, when not running, if pressing the tensioner back in so it can be locked will release the chain around the crankshaft enough for it to be a concern. I'd probably have a handful of friends keeping the chain pulled upwards on both sides at all times to make sure it's never slack around the crank cog. Though I note that the manual never offers any concerns or recommendations on this.

Apparently, there's a groove in the cylinder head cover, that must be cleaned out.
sealant bead is to be 2-3mm thick, certainly not thicker; head in place within 5 minutes

tightening sequence is opposite the removal sequence, but is in three stages (make sure cover it not tilted):
hand-tight all, then 8Nm all, then extra 90° all (so all new bolts since they are TTY)

and as Theiceman mentioned, you'll need a new cap for the hole at the back end of the intake camshaft; manual says install without sealing using T10174 (ie, just pound it in; the lip should be 1-2mm deep)

make sure the chain is on the cam as expected, pull the T40267, put the bolts and inspection cover back (the inspection cover it technically replace if removed; but if you've not bent it up, it should be fine).
As you can imagine, there are torque specs for all the bolts, and a tightening sequence for the upper chain cover and the PCV. Joy joy working on Audis.

[gregbeene]

Theiceman, I'm in the final stages of prep for my timing/cam cover job on my 2012 A4 Quattro. Looking at the AllData info I was only able to obtain cam cover info through the camshaft replacement header. It says that the pistons CANNOT be in TDC when installing the camshafts. Do I need to worry about this while just popping the cover off? I'd really like to not have to worry about resetting timing if unneeded. I'd like to address the cam cover leak while the timing chain is off but the new balance shaft chain is installed and in time.. any input?

[Theiceman]

I would do these as completely seperate jobs. Doing them together will make it way harder and more confusing.

I would do the cover first leaving all other timing components in place. Take it off tdc or whatever you need to do. When that is done and wrapped up I would do timing job. You need to rotate the cams to do this and you dont want to do it with the cover off.

I dont remember the order but you do have to take a couple other things off to do the cover.
I wish I had taken more pics when i did that

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[Depthcharge]

I imagine if I were doing it, after dismounting and disconnecting all the relevant equipment on the cylinder head cover that you can find, -

remove the N205 valve on the intake cam shaft in the upper chain cover
remove the upper chain cover
mark a line across the cam, chain, and cover edge on both sides so you know exactly where the cams and chain were, hell, make several lines
remove the inspection hole cover in the lower chain cover
at the bottom of where the upper chain cover sat on the head, there should be four bolts, remove the two middle ones
across the top row of the lower chain cover, there should be four bolts, remove the middle left one

(I'm going to assume you have the newer style tensioner)
set T40243 down through where you removed the bolts under the upper cover, at the position where you removed the bolt in the lower cover, to set the end of it on the chain opposite the tensioner
squeeze the prongs on the tensioner locking ring together (so the piston can be pushed back in) and leverage the T40243 to press the tensioner piston back in (push right on T40243 handle to press tensioner piston to left)
let go of squeezing the locking ring and use that hand to put T40267 lock on the tensioner piston (ie, looks just like the securing pin that comes on a new tensioner)

unbolt the vacuum pump (three bolts) and back it off some
unbolt the cylinder head cover (six rows of bolts, two in the front, then five rows of four), unbolt each row in order (front front row, then rear rear row, then front second row, then rear second row, then front inner row, then rear inner row).

I don't know if, when not running, if pressing the tensioner back in so it can be locked will release the chain around the crankshaft enough for it to be a concern. I'd probably have a handful of friends keeping the chain pulled upwards on both sides at all times to make sure it's never slack around the crank cog. Though I note that the manual never offers any concerns or recommendations on this.

Apparently, there's a groove in the cylinder head cover, that must be cleaned out.
sealant bead is to be 2-3mm thick, certainly not thicker; head in place within 5 minutes

tightening sequence is opposite the removal sequence, but is in three stages (make sure cover it not tilted):
hand-tight all, then 8Nm all, then extra 90° all (so all new bolts since they are TTY)

and as Theiceman mentioned, you'll need a new cap for the hole at the back end of the intake camshaft; manual says install without sealing using T10174 (ie, just pound it in; the lip should be 1-2mm deep)

make sure the chain is on the cam as expected, pull the T40267, put the bolts and inspection cover back (the inspection cover it technically replace if removed; but if you've not bent it up, it should be fine).
As you can imagine, there are torque specs for all the bolts, and a tightening sequence for the upper chain cover and the PCV. Joy joy working on Audis.

This, smac is right on.

[gregbeene]

So let me get this straight, you do not need to remove the HPFP or even separate it from the vacuum pump to reseal the cam cradle? Just the 3 vacuum pump bolts then push the whole assembly back off of the exhaust cam?

[Smac770]

Very first text under "Vacuum Pump, TSI 4-cyl" in the Brake System repair manual:
Before removing the vacuum pump, the fuel high pressure pump must be removed,

[jaydoll]

Hi, Just doing the head cover reseal. I understand that the cover is holding the cams in place. My question is this- if you are not doing the anything with the timing chains, is there still a concern that you can alter the timing? With both cams connected to the timing chains, wouldn't you just be putting them back into the head saddle as you put the cover back on?

[Smac770]

Not sure the question. The Audi process to remove the cylinder head cover doesn't require messing with the timing per se. But it does require you to release the tension on the timing chain by locking the tensioner in its retracted position. The alternative is to say f it and just take the cover off and deal with whatever happens. As long as the chain stays tight (so it can't shift on the crank sprocket) and the peg on each cam sprocket goes back in the same link on the chain, it's all the same to the engine when it's all put back together.

[A4Qwattro]

I've heard anecdotally that many don't bother releasing the chain tension since you have to pull the timing covers and all that nonsense. It's a stupid design from Audi, but it must have saved them a lot of money to integrate the cam bearings into the valve cover.

Personally, I'd release the tension on the chain.

I wish I could put the 1.8T from by B5 into my B8. On the 1.8, a valve cover is just a valve cover. A valve cover gasket has a part number. No stupid caulk jobs.

[Smac770]

You have to remove the upper timing cover anyway. But then you remove two of the bolts and mount a lever and use that to leverage the tensioner back, which you pin by simply removing the inspection port cover. So you don't mess with the lower timing cover at all. People just don't want to pay for the lever bar.

The reduction in engine height afforded by integrating the bearings was a bullet point for pedestrian safety requirements. The costs and compromises these manufacturers are having to make to increase the hood to engine space is ridiculous.