The zip tie trick that finally fixed my leaky valve cover gasket

I spent three weekends fighting a slow oil leak on my 2004 Sonata. Replaced the gasket twice, torqued everything to spec, still had drips. Finally a buddy who used to work at a Hyundai dealer told me to put a zip tie around the gasket at the half moon spots before seating the cover. Sure enough, the rubber was bunching up in those curves and leaving a gap. I did it on my third try with a dab of rtv on the corners and it's been dry for two months now. Has anyone else run into this kind of trick for keeping gaskets in place on these older engines?

3 comments

3 Comments

olivia_rivera8828d ago

That zip tie trick is genius, honestly I wish I'd known about it back when I was fighting my old 2000 Camry. The half moon spots are the worst, they just never seem to seat right no matter how careful you are with the gasket. Did you have to cut the zip tie flush after it was seated or did you leave a little tab on it? I've seen some guys say leaving a tiny bit of the tail helps keep tension on the rubber over time, but I worry about it vibrating loose and causing issues.

sandra_anderson228d ago

Wait, are you telling me I could have avoided three weekends of cussing at my Sonata with something I already had in my junk drawer? No offense, but that's both amazing and INFURIATING at the same time. I bet if I had known that trick, I could have saved myself a whole lot of skinned knuckles and maybe one thrown 10mm socket. I leave a tiny nub on mine because I'm paranoid, but honestly I think the zip tie is more about keeping the gasket from wanting to dance out of those half moons than anything else.

walker.max27d ago

That little nub you leave is actually doing more harm than good in most cases. The zip tie trick works best when you cut it completely flush with the valve cover, because any leftover tab can create a high spot that pulls the gasket out of its channel slightly. Those half moons are tricky enough without adding a hard plastic wedge into the equation. I learned that the hard way when I left a tiny nub on my old Civic and ended up with a slow leak right at that corner. The gasket needs even clamping pressure across the whole surface, not a point load from a piece of zip tie.