So I recently did a full service on my A4 2.4 V6, upon doing so I noticed the plugs had oil in with them, so I promptly ordered two rocker / valve cover gaskets and when they arrived I got to work getting this done! I also had a few ask me how it was done so I thought I’d take some pictures along the way, so here goes for everyone!
Disclaimer – Follow this guide at your own risk, it’s only what I did and worked for me, I cannot guarantee the same results nor can I be held accountable for anything you may or may not do when working on your own engine. If in doubt, get a mechanic along to help or drop it to your nearest local garage to help.
So I started this job at 11:30 pm, and I was done at 1:30 am, so should take around 2 hours, I did a lot of cleaning so with no cleaning of parts it could be done in 90 minutes. It’s a relatively simple job but if you’re unsure, then get a mechanic to do it or help!
Firstly, the tools and parts you will need;
Valve Cover Gaskets X2
Black Silicone (Suitable for constant contact with oil)
Some rags
Brake cleaner
Oil for a top up if yours is low after leaking
10 MM Socket and appropriate ratchet
Phillips screw driver
First things first, you need to remove the engine covers, there’s 4 screws on the top, and two on each side as highlighted in the photo. A big flat blade is helpful here but can be done with a Philips. ¼ turn is all that’s needed the screw will pop up. Lift the covers and place to one side.
You’ll need to remove the airbox, to do this you first need to remove the cold air intake, shown in the same photo below are the two screws hold this in, the rest pulls out / lifts up, no force required but they might be snug if they’ve not come out for a while. It will separate into two pieces
Once you have covers off and air intake out the way it’s time to get shot of the airbox cover and the filter also, two screws out, and then pinch the secondary air intake pipe and pull and it’ll come off. You’ll want to disconnect the MAF and tubing highlighted. The airbox lifts straight up and out, then just pull the filter out, may want to change yours at this point.
Your bay should look something like this (I removed my filter after taking the picture when I realised it was more in the way than I thought). At this stage I would remove the PCV tubing that connects both sides of the engine. Pinch the sides and it’ll slide off. Be careful, these get very brittle with age and lots of heat, so they are easily broken. Once they leak they can cause nasty misfires. I would recommend replacing it. Mines broken so I’ve ordered one from China, £10, Audi want £40!
You’ll also want to take out the coil leads, this is easy enough to do but again are delicate. You lift then straight up and they’ll ‘pop’ out. Don’t use tools, you’ll likely break them.
Yellow arrows shows the PCV tubing, and red the coil leads.
Next up is to remove the crank case. To do this there are 9 10MM bolts, 4 on the top (or the right) 3 on the bottom (or the left) and two in the middle. The yellow arrows show location for securing bolts for the cover, the red one holds a bracket. Remove the screw and twist the bracket upwards, it’lthen be out the way. Once all the bolts are out the way (and PCV and coil leads, I removed these after this photo) you’ll then be able to lift the cover off. My dipstick tube was stopping the cover coming up high enough to slide out the way, I bent the tube slightly so I could get enough room, I was very gentle with this but it is quite robust.RED AND YELLOW SIDE NGINE PIC
Once the cover is off you’ll see this, it’s worth cleaning the outer edges as much as possible, I used some brake cleaner sprayed onto a rag and razor blade.
I then did the same on the other side bolts are all in the same position, there are only 8 though, no bolt holding a bracket on. To get this cover off the coolant reservoir is in the way. One screw holding this in, so I took that out and wiggled it out the way just enough to slide the cover out. Easy enough to do but slightly fiddly.
Once you’ve done that you’ll have an engine bay looking similar to this
I then removed the old gaskets, they had gone hard and brittle, as expected really, one even had split!
I then cleaned up both my valve covers, I did this with brake cleaner and rags, if you’re brave and have enough time I hear the dishwasher does a good job! Here are some before and after photos.
Now to replace the gaskets and put the covers back on I put the gaskets in the covers to ensure the fit was correct, I then used the silicone paste to paste a thin layer on the underside of the gasket (photo doesn’t show gasket sealant on there as once applied I wanted to work quickly)
As I say, thin layer of gasket seal on each side, I applied it to the underside of the gasket and placed this on the engine, then a thin layer of paste on the cover itself, placed the cover back on the engine and tightened it all up, remember to tighten up in a criss cross pattern and torque each bolt to specification.
Once you’ve done that everything is a case of putting back in the order you took it off, pop the engine covers back on and make a brew! All done!
Disclaimer – Follow this guide at your own risk, it’s only what I did and worked for me, I cannot guarantee the same results nor can I be held accountable for anything you may or may not do when working on your own engine. If in doubt, get a mechanic along to help or drop it to your nearest local garage to help.
So I started this job at 11:30 pm, and I was done at 1:30 am, so should take around 2 hours, I did a lot of cleaning so with no cleaning of parts it could be done in 90 minutes. It’s a relatively simple job but if you’re unsure, then get a mechanic to do it or help!
Firstly, the tools and parts you will need;
Valve Cover Gaskets X2
Black Silicone (Suitable for constant contact with oil)
Some rags
Brake cleaner
Oil for a top up if yours is low after leaking
10 MM Socket and appropriate ratchet
Phillips screw driver
First things first, you need to remove the engine covers, there’s 4 screws on the top, and two on each side as highlighted in the photo. A big flat blade is helpful here but can be done with a Philips. ¼ turn is all that’s needed the screw will pop up. Lift the covers and place to one side.
You’ll need to remove the airbox, to do this you first need to remove the cold air intake, shown in the same photo below are the two screws hold this in, the rest pulls out / lifts up, no force required but they might be snug if they’ve not come out for a while. It will separate into two pieces
Once you have covers off and air intake out the way it’s time to get shot of the airbox cover and the filter also, two screws out, and then pinch the secondary air intake pipe and pull and it’ll come off. You’ll want to disconnect the MAF and tubing highlighted. The airbox lifts straight up and out, then just pull the filter out, may want to change yours at this point.
Your bay should look something like this (I removed my filter after taking the picture when I realised it was more in the way than I thought). At this stage I would remove the PCV tubing that connects both sides of the engine. Pinch the sides and it’ll slide off. Be careful, these get very brittle with age and lots of heat, so they are easily broken. Once they leak they can cause nasty misfires. I would recommend replacing it. Mines broken so I’ve ordered one from China, £10, Audi want £40!
You’ll also want to take out the coil leads, this is easy enough to do but again are delicate. You lift then straight up and they’ll ‘pop’ out. Don’t use tools, you’ll likely break them.
Yellow arrows shows the PCV tubing, and red the coil leads.
Next up is to remove the crank case. To do this there are 9 10MM bolts, 4 on the top (or the right) 3 on the bottom (or the left) and two in the middle. The yellow arrows show location for securing bolts for the cover, the red one holds a bracket. Remove the screw and twist the bracket upwards, it’lthen be out the way. Once all the bolts are out the way (and PCV and coil leads, I removed these after this photo) you’ll then be able to lift the cover off. My dipstick tube was stopping the cover coming up high enough to slide out the way, I bent the tube slightly so I could get enough room, I was very gentle with this but it is quite robust.RED AND YELLOW SIDE NGINE PIC
Once the cover is off you’ll see this, it’s worth cleaning the outer edges as much as possible, I used some brake cleaner sprayed onto a rag and razor blade.
I then did the same on the other side bolts are all in the same position, there are only 8 though, no bolt holding a bracket on. To get this cover off the coolant reservoir is in the way. One screw holding this in, so I took that out and wiggled it out the way just enough to slide the cover out. Easy enough to do but slightly fiddly.
Once you’ve done that you’ll have an engine bay looking similar to this
I then removed the old gaskets, they had gone hard and brittle, as expected really, one even had split!
I then cleaned up both my valve covers, I did this with brake cleaner and rags, if you’re brave and have enough time I hear the dishwasher does a good job! Here are some before and after photos.
Now to replace the gaskets and put the covers back on I put the gaskets in the covers to ensure the fit was correct, I then used the silicone paste to paste a thin layer on the underside of the gasket (photo doesn’t show gasket sealant on there as once applied I wanted to work quickly)
As I say, thin layer of gasket seal on each side, I applied it to the underside of the gasket and placed this on the engine, then a thin layer of paste on the cover itself, placed the cover back on the engine and tightened it all up, remember to tighten up in a criss cross pattern and torque each bolt to specification.
Once you’ve done that everything is a case of putting back in the order you took it off, pop the engine covers back on and make a brew! All done!
lol.
