Valve Seals

How hard is it to install new valve seals in a 2000 4cyl. I am getting puffs of smoke when I start after setting 7-8 hours or so. The car runs great at 180000 miles but I can't justify buying a new anything during this time of engineering chaos. Thanks for any and all answers.

Took me about an hour on my 93 and as I recall the 2000 model although different is straight forward. Do you have a compressor and a compression tester hose you can use to pressurize the cylinders? How about a tool to compress the valve springs while you pull out the keepers?

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How hard is it to install new valve seals in a 2000 4cyl. I am getting puffs of smoke when I start after setting 7-8 hours or so. The car runs great at 180000 miles but I can't justify buying a new anything during this time of engineering chaos. Thanks for any and all answers.

Thanks for the reply Hugemoth, I have a compressor, no valve spring tools but could pick something up. Would like to hear your approach to this. Thanks!

There's probably a tutorial somewhere on the web. Basically you move the rockers out of the way, pressurize the cylinder to prevent the valves from dropping down, remove the valve spring, pull the old seal off, put the new seal on, etc.. I made my own valve spring compressor out of a piece of steel bar stock.

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Thanks for the reply Hugemoth, I have a compressor, no valve spring tools but could pick something up. Would like to hear your approach to this. Thanks!

I have the same smoking problem with my 4 cyl '99 metro. I was all set to do the valve seal replacement, bought a spring compression tool (KD 2078) and rigged up a spark plug adaptor for my compressor. I removed the valve cover and the cam shafts to access the springs, but discovered there was no way the spring compressor would fit. There just isn't enough room. If the heads still on the engine I don't see how this tool will work. Anyone else with experience with this?

You probably have the tool that is made to be used with the head off. The one that you need is basically a little lever with a hole in it. It hooks under the rocker arm shaft, you put the hole over the valve stem, push down, and pop out the keepers. It's easy to make one from a piece of bar stock if you have a vise, a drill, and a grinder.

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