Valve stem seals, coolant pipe & coolant hoses replaced - some pointers

[Doru]

Originally Posted by admranger

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Which valve seal is which in your pic? Is the reddish one the good one?

What kind of time commitment are we talking about here? I'm guessing if you have all parts and tools, and don't mess anything up it's a solid 12 - 16 hours for an amateur doing it for the first time. Definitely not a summer project in Vegas!

Thanks again for the great write up! Look forward to the torque values.

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The updated valve seals are red. There are also some OE updated valve seals which have the same color as the old ones (dark brown), and probably the same bad rubber (no Viton). The only way to distinguish the updated ones from the old style is to look inside. The new style have a longer rubber "neck" clearly visible in pic #7.

It took me a long time, I was in no rush. I also did a complete cooling overhaul and the cooling pipe. I did a few screw-ups, and had to retrace my steps and re-do a few things.

You will also need a step stool or a small step ladder. Working on the last 2 cylinders / bank won't allow you to work otherwise, even if you're tall.
Cylinders #4 & #8 are the worst - especially the closest valves to the firewall. You will have restricted access, restricted movement and restricted visual. Also, very taxing on the back.
I cannot set a guesstimate on time. If tackling this job, one should start with cylinder #1 to get familiar, and where is good visual, and very little effort to work on. Once bank 1 (or 2) is done, and you move to the next, you can start with the hardest (rear cylinder #4 or #8).
Some valve stem seals can be changed in less than 15 minutes, some take considerably longer. I had a few where the frustration level grew and took me close to 1 Hr/seal, but these were only 2 or 3. Also the quick ones were the ones where I had good visual, and good working position. So I cannot commit on the time.

I updated my original post, and torque values are posted.