jeff_blake

iTrader: (1)

Hey all, the driver side valve cover gasket was shot in my 83 trans am, leaked out quite a bit, and i kept putting some oil in her until i got time to do them. i did them middle of the week, filled the oil up to full. it still smells horribly like burning oil from under the hood. oil levels have stayed the same. would the oil that leaked out stay on there that long enough until it all burns off? after you shut the engine off the pass side smokes a tad and reaks. kinda embarrasing.

InfernalVortex

iTrader: (4)

If you get oil on something hot that will burn it off, the smell will be there for a long time. Could be months. Those spots dont really get cleaned often so it just sits there and cooks.

jeff_blake

iTrader: (1)

thought about getting some degreaser and try cleaning it up a bit to see if it helps any, thanks for the quick reply. ill continue to run it and keep my eyes on the oil level and hopes it goes away

sofakingdom

iTrader: (1)

YOu can DEFINITELY de-grease it; will improve the overall environment under there immensely.

Just head to the quarter car wash with at least $5 to spend on the wash. Take a screwdriver that fits the dist cap, just in case. Stop at the parts store and pick up about 3 cans of engine degreaser, the kind that's diesel fuel in a spray can; and a can of WD-40 to go with the screwdriver, just in case. When you get there, shout it off, pop the hood, remove the air cleaner, and wait about 10 - 15 minutes for stuff to cool down; then drench the motor with degreaser from every possible angle in every possible crevice, from the top, bottom, front, sides, underneath, through the wheel wells, from behind the wheels so you hit the transmission, etc. Should take AT LEAST one full can. Wait 10 minutes, drench again. Hit the air cleaner housing while it's sitting off to the side. Wait a coupla more minutes. Feed some quarters with the thing set on engine/tire cleaner and blast everything, just like you did with the diesel fuel, except avoid spraying directly at sensors and of course the dist cap and down the carb bores. (outside of the carb is OK) Hit the air cleaner too. Spray the AC condenser from the front and the radiator from the back. After the funk dripping off the motor starts being not quite so black and filthy, crank up the motor and spray the moving parts on the front, being careful to avoid the fan blades. If it won't crank, pop the dist cap off, shoot it and the rotor w WD-40, and try again. With it running, switch to rinse, and clear off the soap, making sure to blast the radiator out as well as possible without getting into the fan. Finish with a coat of "wax" to keep it from rusting too easy.

Should take care of it. If the aroma returns, you still have a leak; but NOW you'll actually be able to see it, find it, and fix it without wallowing in 30 yrs of funk.