All,
When I did the WP, hoses, belts...all that stuff on my 97 a few months back, I got all my parts from Rock Auto. The valve cover gasket I used was a "Fel Pro VS50364R".
The box clearly stated to install the gasket dry, which I did, with the exception of putting dots of sealer at the six bearing cap corners. I torqued all of the bolts to spec, whatever the factory service book called for. 7-10 ftlbs maybe?
Fast-forward 700 miles or so. I have leaks from both side of the valve cover, but no leaks, ironically, at the front or back where the sealer was placed. I cleaned everything meticulously, and when I took the VC off to do all the work, it had not been leaking and was, as best I could tell, the factory gasket.
Needless to say I'm a little miffed. Anyone else had this happen? Do I need to get a dealer gasket to chase the drips away? Or maybe I should send a letter to Fel-Pro and complain.
Chris (....does not like oil leaks.....)