Ford Crown Victoria Valve Cover Gasket DIY Driver's Side

Welcome to Garage Denali! In this video, I show how to perform the valve cover gasket DIY on the driver's side cylinder bank! This DIY applies to the Ford Crown Victoria, Mercury Grand Marquis/Marauder, and Lincoln Town Car. There is a part 2 of this two-part video series. Check it out!
Big thanks to KZbin artists!
Topher Mohr and Alex Elena - Garage
Check out my channel for other videos!

[@orvillemitchell6326]

a tip I read in my manual was a small dab of rtv gasket sealer applied where timing chain cover meets the head as you look down on the timing chain sprocket you will see a hairline crack between the block & timing chain cover, that where the rtv goes on, once applied you have 5 minutes to attach your valve cover with gasket on, it's insurance of a possible leak in that area. you may have done this, I didn't see it on your video. hope this helps, orv

[@al-mubdizahir8704]

thanks. gonna make sure i do that. really appreciate it

[@tinytattoomike7943]

Don’t forget new grommets!

[@freddyhollingsworth5945]

Great video. I change these all the time with out touching the brake booster or the air box. It is super tight, but you can for sure do it... Definitely clean the top of the engine super good first.... 09:00 remove those two old globs of RTV where the timing cover touches the heads on the top of the engine. Those old globs of RTV can easily fall down into the engine and help to clog the oil pump pickup screen.. RTV gets old and brittle after 10-12 years.

[@gregdcross]

Several notes. You do not have to remove the entire airbox. You can unclip the box lid and remove it with the intake hose. Second, those washers where the rocker cover bolts go through are technical called isolators. Lastly, on both banks the cam gear cover and head are two separate parts. You will see a slight assembly line where the two meat. Factory shop manual says to apply gasket sealant where the part meets then install the rocket cover with the gasket. If you don't, you will eventually get an oil leak at that point and get to do it again.

[@buffuniballer]

gregdcross I see my work here is done. No need to disconnect maf wire either, just rotate it. Did the very same when changing plugs 5-8

[@SalandFindles]

What do you mean "where the part meets?" I don't get it.

[@Xxmeca421xX]

@@SalandFindles I wish I had a picture of what area needs sealant

[@eyesofagemini7715]

The front side cover around the chain requires the sealant or it will tend to leak depending on the temperament of the engine lol Basically every vehicle has a personality depending on how it was raised lol

[@j.t.cooper2963]

Only if you remove the front cover, otherwise the join lines and little gap are still sealed from when the engine was first put together.

[@andrewmullen5770]

Great attitude and great job 👍 You can be proud of your work. I love your outlook on taking advantage of the learning experience.

[@adams071]

at first i was afraid to replace the intake manifold on my 03' CVPI at first but i watched a video on it and it was not too hard. but seeing this video for the valve cover gasket, I am ecstatic to do mine! It looks so easy to do! funny that your video came up because it was in my recommended. I look forward to another crown vic repair!

[@sillywillie5076]

Yeah mine started leaking just now oil, got to do this repair soon.. looks easier when pros do it

[@noconsentgiven]

Dude, you have one of the best instructional video styles out here❤️! Thank you👍👍!

[@garyhood9992]

Thank you so much Jake from garage Denali this is the best video ever to to get to passenger side valve cover gasket this saved me so much money from going to a mechanic

[@fantasma.b]

Doing gasket on the same side today on my LTC. Appreciate the content.

[@penguru21]

Thank you so much for your videos! You gave me hope i can do this without needing to disconnect motor mounts and drop the engine

[@KryptoWooks]

thank u so much for the bolt thing i forgot where they where u saved me so much time

[@stevenpowell1274]

Very useful information.Thanks!

[@fbh31118]

Thanks for the video! Great job 👏

[@88county]

Great video! Thanks.

[@Ares4thgow]

I'll be doing this to my 2000 very soon I'll be saving this vid to my favorite vids 👍🏽👍🏽

[@AndyFromm]

I'm doing an a 2001 and cant get the drivers side off..

[@alb12345672]

@@AndyFromm Service manual says to remove the break booster :lol:

[@AndyFromm]

@@alb12345672 thats what i ended up doing :-/

[@nancieventers3791]

Thank you. great video

[@jayh4582]

Great video. Str8 to the point.

[@al-mubdizahir8704]

amazing video. this is some real step by step shit here. i love it. im a new subscriber. i have a 05 crown vic

[@jackiechan_wtf4041]

Watched this video this morning, 4 hours later, just finished with the driver side. Kinda pain in the ass to remove and install, overall wasn't too bad.

[@infinity3jif]

i have to do this in the near future to my 08 crown vic, finally a good vid on the entire process, thaanks for sharing

[@HarryHov]

trigga ville how’d you make out there guy?

[@michaelreece458]

You move faster than greased lightning when that music plays!

[@08_crown_vic]

Can you show how to do the spark plug tubes/gaskets? I found oil on a sparkplug when I was replacing them

[@markmcmahen9442]

It all depends on the year model to determine if you have to remove brake booster.

[@alexplowski552]

"Be sure to plug in all connectors" proceeds to forget the MAF sensor. 😆

[@garagedenali]

Lol when I started the car back up, I saw that it wasn't running right and remembered the MAF sensor

[@catchdaweasel]

gotta do this soon on my 09

[@danielarriaga1143]

Hello have my crown vic for 10yrs never had problems till now had a bad injector which burn the spark plug .I change everything but it still bucks at 30mph and 40 ..have you had any problems like that ..some say I might have a bad cylinder

[@serenityalexander5397]

I have an 06 an my spark plugs are getting oil on them would it be the valve cover as well

[@jakethebarber1]

what would it cost do u think if i had a shop do this..replace both driver and pass. gaskets?

[@danielarriaga1143]

Thank you

[@wrjeezy15]

On my dads 02 Mercury Grand Marquis I had to pull the brake booster and the power steering bracket is up front but other than that pretty simple to do

[@MrWeathers17]

Use plastic to remove gasket so you dont score the valve cover, metal flat head will cause grooves and future leaks

[@ShaqBrown2x]

Doing this on my dads vic soon

[@zekeholloway4413]

mine needs new valve cover gaskets too.

[@ezralord4901]

Great videos, my son and I are going to do his valve cover gaskets today. What did you use to clean the valve cover? (in the spray can)

[@PlymouthVT]

choke cleaner.

[@ezralord4901]

Since it is plastic, we ended up using dish soap at first, then rubbing alcohol to make sure all of the water was gone. They look like new now :) I was going to use carb cleaner, but didn't want to mess up the plastic.

[@logicalrationalfishing7481]

Need help bad. I got a shaking car at idle, diagnostic said it was a cylinder 6 misfire. Changed the coil and all plugs, about 4 plugs had oil on top of them, 2 on each side. Cleaned and replaced them and car drives like brand new. Did I overflow oil or what should I look for? The valve covers are oily and dirty looking but don't actively seem to be leaking...

[@garagedenali]

Could be one problem or a few problems. Bad spark tube seals, bad gaskets, bad valve guide seals, bad piston rings, etc.

[@KevinLopez-kz9pp]

what’s the torque sequence for the bolts which one do i start with or doesn’t matter?

[@aaronrodden8121]

If you can't find it, I always start from the middle and then work either right or left but start in middle work all the way to left, then back to middle and work to your right! You get the idea. Kinda like putting a decal on you work from the middle out to push the air outwards and get an even seal.

[@silicon212]

You have a 2006, don't you. You can get the valve covers off without removing the brake booster or the evap box ... I use a 1/4" u-joint with 1/4" drive 8mm to get to those tough bolts. The biggest thing is 'threading' the cover past the wiring harnesses. I've found that by disconnecting the coils and injectors, you will have a much easier time of this.

[@yodaddy6845]

I really wish you would’ve shown how to remove the house for the blower motor & the brake I can’t get my covers out, it’s too much of a tight fit

[@julievan8757]

My valve cover gasket has started the white smoke on the driver's side. Is their a risk of an engine fire?

[@garagedenali]

Jelly Belly depends how bad it is. I was getting a small bit of white smoke from time to time from the oil burning off the exhaust manifold. It can definitely be a fire hazard if enough oil sweeps through but overall it’s not a hard job to do

[@DTB2.0]

Doing this right now on 94 model. Looks way different.

[@triip0d]

You rock thank you for this detailed video. I had my crown vic put in the shop and they told me the "Left side Valve Coper gasket was leaking oil" would this mean the driver side?

[@triip0d]

Also what was the torq spec that you did on these bolts for the gaskets?

[@garagedenali]

Christopher Martinez I’d ask the shop for clarification. They may refer to the passenger side since you would be looking at the engine from the front

[@ninemilliondollars]

I just found oil pooling in the engine valley. Could a bad valve cover gasket cause that?

[@garagedenali]

If it is very bad it might, but I think your oil leak is coming from somewhere else. Oil is only up in the heads when the engine is running

[@ninemilliondollars]

@@garagedenali I ended up taking my 2000 Ford Mustang GT 4.6L in and it turned out to be a worn gasket where the plastic intake manifold meets the head. And $956 later I have a new one and gaskets. There was a class action lawsuit Ford settled on cracking manifolds. A replacement one was designed with some aluminum to prevent cracking. Mine hadn't cracked, but the new one was the only one available so I had it installed now to avoid tearing it all apart later if the old one did crack. :D

[@chrischery2733]

Huge engine and huge transmission, and this is a semi-truck and I really those cars

[@AndyFromm]

What year is this? I can't get my drivers side valve cover off my 2001 no mater how i move it around...

[@garagedenali]

Andy Fromm this is a 2006. What is the valve cover hitting?

[@AndyFromm]

@@garagedenali vacuum booster, i got the passenger side after some bending of the heater box but the drivers side wont go. I'm tempted to pull the engine to do the head gaskets.

[@robertshivers3420]

Would this apply to the 98-02?

[@kjr8290]

No it does not. You will be stuck n furious when u get all the bolts out and it’s still stuck

[@germanshepard3586]

Did that solve the oil smell in your car?

[@garagedenali]

German Shepard yes it did

[@satanic6stringbender]

Would a new gasket fix oil on the spark plugs??

[@garagedenali]

A bad gasket may be responsible for oil on spark plugs but it is not the only possibility

[@silicon212]

Oil on the plugs won't cause a misfire, as it is dielectric (an insulator). If you have a misfire and have what I'll call an 'oil like substance', there is a very strong possibility you have a coolant leak from your intake manifold and will need to replace it. The coolant looks like old oil when it gets down in the plug holes.

[@ford9365]

Hey was wondering was the vacuum line right on top of the valve cover replaceable?

[@garagedenali]

Replaceable? I didn't replace it when I did this job, just removed it for laying the valve cover flat.

[@ford9365]

@@garagedenali Right, I know you didn't have to replace it because you replaced the entire valve cover. My question is for the vacuum/breather on top of the cover was it replaceable? Because at the moment i have an empty hole on top of my cover with a hose connected by throttle body and other side stops right on top of cover as if i needed a plastic elbow or something on the cover thanks. Your right hand was on it 13:58...

[@garagedenali]

Charles Ford that part should definitely be replaceable. I suggest checking out TascaParts.com for the OEM part of you don’t have that tube/hose

[@ford9365]

@@garagedenali Thanks again, just checked on the diagram and it seems like that part isn't for sale. So, in order to get that little breather elbow that connects on top of the driver side valve cover I'm more than likely have to buy and replace the entire cover. So glad for your video I will be watching when it's time to put on my new one lol.

[@garagedenali]

Charles Ford you shouldn’t have to get an entire valve cover. I’ll look around and see if I can find the part number

[@quesstar2600]

what is the music on both videos?

[@garagedenali]

It's some copyright-free rock music. I can find it if you like

[@LoeNateDogg]

At 3:36 what hose is that ...it’s disconnected. It’s not the pcv which is on the other side. What hose is that called. Mine looks brittle and don’t know the name of the part. It’s at 7:57. You touched it

[@garagedenali]

I believe the part number for that hose is 5W7Z-6758-BA

[@LoeNateDogg]

Garage Denali so the crown Vic has 2 pcvs??

[@charlesmayes8279]

How do you know the tightnees is 10 torque

[@garagedenali]

I looked it up. Also, the valve cover is plastic, so anything more can crack it

[@crownvicnick2]

Did you ever see oil all over the pan underneath the engine? I see signs of oil leaking from one of the valve cover gaskets, but the majority of the oil is where the pulleys and pan are.

[@garagedenali]

I saw the exhaust manifolds were covered in some oil. Practically dry though. There was some oil on the valve covers and cylinder heads, and every now and then some oil would drip out onto the exhaust manifolds while the engine was running, burning off and producing an odor

[@silicon212]

Check your oil filter adapter gasket.

[@richardd.7479]

Does not work for 2004 Crown Vic base model. Booster in the way. Now I have to figure out how to get it back in without ruining the already leaky seal.

[@silicon212]

The proper tools for the job are an absolute must. You need a U-joint for your socket. I'd recommend a 1/4" drive setup with a U joint and 8mm sockets in both standard and deep.

[@Anthonythesider]

What year is the car

[@garagedenali]

2006

[@JuanRodriguez-fz6px]

That's only for that model, but in you have a 99 to 2001 you have to remove the brake booster. There is no way to change it as easily as shown here.

[@kurtiscal3msetccdwell618]

Did an 01 Grand Marquis today at work and can confirm this. After 30 minutes after watching this video of wrestling with it I took the 4 bolts out of the booster and bam it slid right out.

[@philloso1426]

This method doesn't work on the 2000 LX model. You gotta remove or at least move the brake booster around a bit

[@UQRXD]

Strange front of cam area discolored and back is not.

[@ronaldtrump7370]

02 Grand Marquis drivers side is no problem. The passenger side is a job. remove drivers motor mount, engine will tilt and give you clearance, sucks but is the best way.

[@trailerparkgarage6574]

In my 06 I have almost no room to get it out

[@Xxmeca421xX]

Mine is just burning up in the engine I think. Maybe I need new Rings

[@garagedenali]

Check the PCV valve

[@silicon212]

Could be PCV valve, could be valve guide seals. This was the case with my 260k mile engine that I swapped for another one when it started smoking ... cylinder bores still looked close to new & the engine was clean - bad valve guide seals the culprit. It is, after all, a mod motor.

[@CG-iu1nq]

2000 p71 are completely different you had to remove brake booster almost everything

[@PlymouthVT]

Drivers side is easy. The back bolt on the passenger side is a bitch.

[@tinytattoomike7943]

You lost me when you didn’t install new grommets @ 11:37 😞

[@infinity3jif]

the passenger side is hell, took me 4 hours just for the passenger side

[@AngelGarcia-iq7sp]

This doesn't work on a 2001 Mercury Grand Marquis

[@jackiechan_wtf4041]

You'll need to remove the brake booster.

[@capri8225]

You have got to be doing something wrong because you have made this look the easiest on KZbin

[@PlymouthVT]

Bolts on the ground. Go to walmart buy a fold out plastic table for $30 it will hold your tools the parts etc. Craigs L sometimes too. I use it almost everyday. Putting parts on the ground is ridiculous.

[@justinsands1760]

in a 98 grand marquis its 2x harder fml

[@yavarhamishehmomen6964]

If you telling the truth why don’t you put the taking off the cover on regular motion. Instead of fast motion.

[@MonteLeeMyPOV]

It's so we dont have to watch the tedious process of removing each bolt? What are you, 10 years old? Why would he lie?

[@yavarhamishehmomen6964]

There is no way. he is not telling you the truth. In order to get the valve cover off you have to take the windshield wiper and what ever is under it off otherwise you won’t be able to take the valve cover off. Do listen to him Is B.S.

[@garagedenali]

This is the truth. As I said in this video or the other one, there is a slight variation of model years where the procedure is different. This procedure was done on a 2006 CVPI which I believe is the same for model years around this time. I think the job is harder on early CVPIs from the 90s because of engine layout.

[@yavarhamishehmomen6964]

@@garagedenali my car 2011 Lincoln towncar is the same engine as CV. I tried all the tricks it didn’t come out.

[@garagedenali]

It's more or less the same engine but between 1998 and 2011 I believe the layout under the hood was changed 2 times. You also have to factor in the shape of the body/trim as well. In the video, the valve cover was easily accessible. On the passenger side, I had to remove ignition coils and hold a hose out of the way in order to have enough clearance for the valve cover to come out

[@markchimmy]

I did get mine off was a struggle for about 20 minutes 11 town car passenger side literally 1 minute to pull out after all bolts are removedand and all wires disconnected and out of the way including coils trust me it can be done! Just stop and concentrate and get a picture in your head of what will be getting in the way and I think its the top where you don't have enough room where the wiper motor is located that's what's getting in the way the most that bulge! if it was literally 1/4 of an inch less bulged it would come out in no time it takes twists in different directions and gently pulling it while lifting it up at the same time! Good luck! If I've done it anybody else can too it's not a magic trick lol. or anything like that!

[@thepawchoe2749]

Yeah They're not all the same, bro. I did a Lincoln town car and neither would come off at all. The gaskets had to be finessed in.