PCV Valve

[mike561]

I was poking around the hood and i noticed that after i got the car back from the shop, they re-routed the line that went from the round air filter to the valve cover. now they ran a line from the pcv valve on the valve cover to the bottom of the carb. but i noticed they blocked off the pcv valve with electrical tape, the car runs good but why would they block it off like that? heres a pic of what im talking about. should i remove the tape? why would they do that too??????

[silicon212]

Can you give us some shots of more of the engine? I like the closeups but want to see more of the immediate environment. Take the shots without the air cleaner. Shoot the whole engine, both valve covers.

[mike561]

Yeah here are some overview pics

[silicon212]

I can see a few issues here.

#1, aftermarket valve covers, where is the PCV valve? If I am looking at it right, your valve covers are installed upside down, which could have a clearance issue.

#2, don't ziptie your plug wires together. This can induce "crosstalk", where the power running through one can induce power in an adjacent one, causing that cylinder to spark out of time. This can either be harmless, or potentially lethal to the engine. Use plug wire separators.

Those are the two real glaring issues.

[mike561]

The pcv valve is on the passenger side of the engine, i know a couple of people telling me too that the valve covers definetly arent original too. as far as the tape on the pcv valve though, i just took the tape off, i felt suction under where the tape was on the pcv valve so thats good. also can i get plug wire separators at an autozone or something?

[CD Smalley]

Just working from memory here... But that PCV should go inot the valve cover in place of that breather on the driver's side. They probably cover it with tape to seal it and prevent a huge vacuum leak that would make the car run like crap. I'd suggest finding someone else to perform your work...

[mike561]

Yeah i am, should i put some tape back over it then? i just dont want the tape falling into the engine or anything.... will it do alot of harm if i leave the tape off? whats the pcv line for anyway?

[silicon212]

Originally Posted by CD Smalley

Just working from memory here... But that PCV should go inot the valve cover in place of that breather on the driver's side. They probably cover it with tape to seal it and prevent a huge vacuum leak that would make the car run like crap. I'd suggest finding someone else to perform your work...

I agree on that last statement 100%. It certainly seems to have been done by someone who's not that adept.

[silicon212]

The PCV system (Positive Crankcase Ventilation) removes blow-by gasses from the crankcase. It then burns them within the engine. This is an emission control, but it also prevents a sludge buildup within your engine. It is necessary.

[hotrod_chevyz]

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a367/pctvman/pcv.jpg

Just below the fuel line....vac leak left over after the thermal regulated vaccum switch was broken?

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a367/pctvman/c002.jpg

Look at the center of the carb. Whats missing?

Capped egr, and a few other small issues i noticed.

The line they rerouted is the blowby filter. The reason they did that is instead of using the air fliter to house the blowby filter, the aftermarket valve cover uses a filter element inside of the oil cap. wich eliminates the need to use your original blowby filter.

As for the PCV valve, thats pretty ignorant. Get a new PCV valve and stick it down the hole without tape. You might need a new oil cap, or try to clean out the old one.

[mike561]

yeah ill check out the oil filter cap and get a new one. i took the tape off and noticed no difference in the way it ran.

[bobss396]

First off, get a new set of valve covers, they're real cheap at the dealer even. Find good reference material and get your EGR valve back on line, put the PCV valve where it belongs, check the rest of your emissions routing, but most important, get a new mechanic. If you paid your bill with a credit card, contest the payment. Offer up those pix as proof.

Bob

[mike561]

yeah the guy i took it to was a refferal from a neighbor and not the person who i normally take it too because he was out of town. ill show my other guy everything though and see what he says.