Rocker cover gasket replacement question

[Cooper]

Hi,

I will be replacing the rocker cover gasket tomorrow and I know how to do it but........ in thew last two videos that I have watched there was no additional gasket glue or sealant [of some type] applied to the 'humps' and near the back of the cover but I do remember seeing it recommended somewhere.

Do I need to use some type of additional sealant for this gasket and if so, what is it called?

I have the 2.2 2001 model.

Cheers, Cooper

 

[BMBabe]

@Lee is a good person to ask

 

[jonco]

I asked the same question in this post https://zroadster.org/threads/m44-cylinder-head-cover-leak.4051/#post-49815
The TIS says `Drie Bond 1209' - hight street equivalent is Loctite 5910 which over here we can get in Halfords. HTH

 

[GazHyde]

I removed the rocker cover off mine several months back to have a look and see if the top of the engine was gunked up. I took the cover off and the seal came loose, but I just put it back down again and it all sealed up fine. I'm guessing it may be more useful to use some kind of sealant to help a new gasket fit better to then put the cover back on again? As far as I know it's the original gasket and showed no signs of deterioration.

Not the cleanest in the world, but hope yours is as wear free as mine looked once you are in there! Take plenty of pics so we can compare

 

[Cooper]

Thanks @Gaz.. I will take pix like I said I saw two vids and they did not use any sealant. I am note sure how to gauge wear but I will look regardless. When I took off the Oil filter housing there was no buildup or gunk so I was happy about that. Thanks for the well wishes!

 

[jonco]

......... I took the cover off and the seal came loose, but I just put it back down again and it all sealed up fine. I'm guessing it may be more useful to use some kind of sealant to help a new gasket fit better to then put the cover back on again? As far as I know it's the original gasket and showed no signs of deterioration.

When I did mine it was due to a leak - but as Gary says the profile gasket looked fine when I took the cover off. I suspect the leak was due to hardened mounting bolt `vibration washers'. Also the spray ring seal had hardened and was more like bakelite than rubber! Having said that it was few years older than yours.
I recall the TIS said to put some small blobs of sealant on the shoulders of the rear cut-outs in addition to a general thin film around perimeter. I could fire up my old laptop and root a copy out if you need it ( let me have your VIN for correct document ident)

 

[Cooper]

Looked at the Bavarian auto DIY videos and they use the sealant and there is also some small gap areas at the front near the vanos unit that need a dab, so I will drive into town to get some. It's not worth the hassle if they leak.

 

[jonco]

@Cooper TIS info for M54 attached.

 

[t-tony]

When I replace a rubber gasket the only place I use any sealant (silicon) is at the corners of any rounded shapes, ie over the cams etc. Really that is to lubricate the rubber gasket so that it slips down into place to allow a good seal.

Tony.

 

[Cooper]

@GazHyde Well it is done after 3 hours! Replaced all the spark plugs with quality ones. Started first go and doesn't appear to leak after the test run. The gasket was pretty well stuffed with 10@\% rubber and 90% ridiculously hard.... and spark plug cylinders 1, 4, 5 had some oil leak in them. Took a long time to get the crystallized gasket out. Below are the pix. NO sludge or buildup and there was little evidence of moisture above the CCV breather tube!

 

[GazHyde]

Looks pretty much the same as mine does under the cover so that's a great start. No issue with the rubber degrading on mine, wonder if that's more to do with your extreme high temperatures?

More importantly how does she drive now she has had a good service?

 

[Cooper]

She drives really well, but also did before the repair - I reset the computer and that always does the trick! In about 1 month I will change the oil, oil filter, fuel filter and air filter and reset the computer again. Usually after I do all of this car runs so well I can't even feel it idling when at the lights!

Cheers,