Re: [Chrysler300] Valve Cover gasket install for 1970 Chrysler 300 Hurst

[John Nowosacki <jsnowosacki@xxxxxxxxx>]

Valve cover gaskets come under the catagory of 'normal wear items' when it
comes to the Hurst I'm afraid.
Those factory 'high performance' headers on the 440 are simply designed to
be too close to the valve covers, which is why there is also usually some
discoloration to the orange paint on the sides of both valve covers on a
Hurst.  When you add in the fact that today's gasoline with up to 10%
ethanol burns hotter than 'real' gas, you have a situation of a very hot
exhaust manifold within an inch of a cork gasket.  Over time, the gasket
gets cooked and very brittle, and begins to crack and leak.  I've seen some
exhaust manifold gasket sets that include a 'heat shield' type of flap that
comes up between the exhaust manifold and the valve cover to offer some
protection for the gasket and the paint on the side of the valve cover.  I
don't think it's a stock part for 1970, but it does work to protect the
gasket and the paint.  I can't believe this wasn't an issue with these
cars/motors from day one, but certainly now with hotter burning fuels it is
more of an issue.
I once experienced a slight 'skip' in my Hurst engine, and found it to be a
cooked rubber boot on one of  the  plug wires.  The boot was so hard and
dry that it developed a crack which was allowing an arc to the manifold
instead of firing the plug!
If anyone out there has any better ideas on how to work around this issue
I'd love to hear it.  I did finally find some high temperature paint that
seems to be standing up to the close proximity of the manifolds, but it's
not the exact right orange.  Of course, the exact right Mopar orange
doesn't stay orange for very long before turning more of a brownish orange
color on the side next to the manifold anyway, so I haven't let it bother
me.  There is a lot of heat under the hood of a Hurst.  My radiator water
temperature always stays right where it should be and never overheats, but
the heat from those exhaust manifolds is just brutal when you get to the
show or cruise on a hot summer day and open the hood for the first time!

On Tue, Aug 21, 2012 at 8:52 PM, stephen schieser <sjschry70@xxxxxxxxx>wrote:

> **
>
>
> Dear 300 Club Member, My 70 300 Hurst with 440 cu in., 375 HP engine,
> leaks oil from the passenger valve cover, when I run the engine; causing
> some smoke in the engine compartment - an obvious concern.
> I removed the valve cover and it had cork gaskets with some orange color
> sealant ( likely some kind of permatex) on the gaskets. The very old cork
> gasket was in bad shape. My questions are:
> 1. Should I use cork again or rubber gasket on the valve cover?Some say
> that rubber is better.  I bought FelPro rubber gaskets from NAPA but have
> not used them yet.
> 2. Should I use sealant on the gasket between the gasket and valve cover?
> 3. Should I use sealant on the gasket between the gasket and engine head.
> As you likely know, the surface on the head is just smooth casting ( it is
> not a very smooth machined surface).
> One friend of mine said the manufacturer of rubber valve cover gaskets
> said you should not use any sealant on a rubber gasket?
>
> Any advice you can give me will be greatly appreciated. Steve Schieser,
> Chrysler 300 Club member in Columbus, Ohio.
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>
>  
>


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]



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