DIY Network

Engine Dress-Up, Pt. 2: Valve-Cover and Plug Wire Upgrade From "Tricked Out" episode DTRK-106

	The valve-cover BEFORE . . .
	. . . and AFTER.

Host Andrew Totolos continues tricking out the engine area of the CRX. In this segment, to give the engine a more unified appearance, he repaints the B-16 valve cover. He also replaces the plug wires with new performance wires that are color-matched to the newly painted valve-cover. Finally, he installs a chrome sparkplug cover.

Materials:

Valve-cover gasket kit with sparkplug cover
Replacement plug wires
Aircraft stripper
Engine primer
Engine paint
Putty knife
Old toothbrush
Masking tape
Razor knife
Rotary tool
Respirator mask
Protective goggles
Chemical-resistant gloves

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Valve-Cover Makeover

Safety Alert: whenever doing electrical or mechanical work on a vehicle, always remove the negative battery terminal.

• Label the spark plug wires so that you will be able to reinstall them in the right sequence later. Then remove the plug wires (figure A).

• Remove the breather hose (figure B).

  Figure A

  Figure B

  
  

  Figure C

  
  

• Loosen and remove the eight nuts from the valve cover (figure C) -- four in the center and four on the sides.
  

  
  

• Once you get the valve cover off the most important thing is to get it clean. Using some clean shop rags, clean it thoroughly inside and out (figure D).

• The seals on our cover were in bad shape (figure E), but they'll be replaced later. Pop out the old gaskets, and take the valve cover outside for stripping and repainting.

  Figure D

  Figure E

  
  

  
  

• Be sure when using the paint stripper that you lay out several layers of newspaper and wear thick rubber gloves.

• Spray on the stripper (figure F) and allow it to soak thoroughly according to the instructions on the can.

• Scrape any stubborn paint loose with a plastic putty knife (figure G).

  Important: Always e sure to dispose of hazardous or caustic chemicals properly and responsibly.

  Figure F

  Figure G

  
  

  
  

• Dry the piece using a clean shop rag (figure H).

• Seal off any ports with masking tape, and trim the excess with a razor knife (figure I). On this particular valve cover the side ports should also be sealed to keep overspray from getting inside the cover.

  Figure H

  Figure I

  
  

  
  

• Prime the valve cover by fogging the surface with a very light coat of primer (figure J). Let that cure for a couple of minutes, then go back over it with at least two more coats of primer.

• When applying the color coat light (figure K), even coats work best. Several thin coats will always look better than a few thicker ones. Check the label, but most high-heat paints require at least one hour to cure between coats.

• Allow the final coat of paint to dry thoroughly, according to the manufacturer's instructions.

  Figure J

  Figure K

  
  

  Figure L

  
  

• When the paint has cured for at least 24 hours, you may want to sand the paint off of the raised logo areas with a rotary tool (figure L). This will give the cover a distinctive look and make the logo stand out.

• Remove the masking tape using a sharp knife.
  

  
  

• Install the new gasket kit according to the manufacturer's instructions, carefully making certain there are no leaks (figure M).

• Reinstall the newly painted valve cover. Slide the cover on over the bolts, finger-tighten the acorn nuts (figure N) and the four nuts in the spark-plug valley.

• Torque everything down to 61-ft. pounds. For a tight seal, be sure to tighten the center nuts before the outside nuts.

  Figure M

  Figure N

  
  

  
  

We also upgraded the CRX's plug wires with new performance wires with blue vinyl covers to match our newly painted valve cover.

• To replace the spark plug wires, the first step is to replace the original set in the correct order (figure O). Starting with the original wires in place allows for replacing one wire at a time. This will help in keeping from getting the wires crossed.

• With the original set back in place, remove the shortest wire first. Compare it to the shortest wire in the new set and replace it on the engine (figure P).

  Figure O

  Figure P

  
  

  
  

• Repeat for the next shortest, the next, and the longest last -- until the full set of wires has been replaced in the proper sequence (figure Q).

• Our upgrade kit included a chrome sparkplug cover. Install the new spark plug cover by sliding it on over the four center studs (figure R) and tightening down the acorn nuts hold it in place.

  Figure Q

  Figure R

  
  

  	The repainted valve-cover is at the heart of this engine dress-up.
  	Host Andrew Totolos prepares to dress up the engine's valve cover with a new paint job and install performance plug-wires.

  
  

RESOURCES :

Racing Innovations, Inc.
Website: www.racinginnovations.com

Streetglow, Inc.
Website: www.streetglow.com

Vibrant Performance
Website: www.vibrantperformance.com