FYI: My complete steps for driver side valve cover replacement on 5VZ-FE

I had to revise this as I went and was meticulous at documenting each step and labeling hoses and wires with the number of the step so that I could reassemble without stress. In the end it went well. Passenger side is a no brainer in comparison. The old gaskets were all OReilly garbage.


1. Disconnect battery

2. Disconnect 2 valve hoses from valve in front of throttle body

3. Disconnect hose from plenum to power steering

4. Disconnect hose from EGR to intake tube

5. Disconnect hose on intake tube resonator

6. Loosen clamps and remove intake tube, set aside

7. Disconnect throttle cables

8. Disconnect 3 small air hoses from throttle body

9. Disconnect PCV hose

10. Disconnect wire for middle engine coil by throttle body

11. Disconnect IAC valve wire

12. Disconnect EGR wire with brown clip

13. Disconnect TPS wire with black clip

14. Disconnect IAC air hose

15. Unbolt throttle body nuts and bolts, pull off throttle body from studs

16. Disconnect coolant hoses from throttle body, plug hoses

17. Set throttle body and gasket aside

18. Unclip wire harness above AC valves

19. Unbolt ground wire nearby on back of engine bay

20. Unclip vacuum modulator valve, remove hose, set valve aside.

21. Disconnect throttle kickdown cable from bracket clips, unbolt bracket

22. Unbolt 2 EGR pipe brackets

23. Unbolt EGR pipe on both ends, pull off studs, remove used gaskets to be replaced

24. Disconnect small upper air hose from EGR

25. Disconnect upper coolant hose from EGR

26. Unbolt EGR valve, set aside

27. Unbolt diagnostic port ground wire

28. Pull diagnostic port off clip

29. Disconnect brake booster hose from intake plenum

30. Disconnect evap hose from top of plenum

31. Disconnect large air hose next to evap hose from top of plenum

32. Disconnect valve wire with green clip

33. Disconnect top air hose from brown valve

34. Disconnect wire from brown valve

35. Unbolt bracket holding green and brown valves, pull away.

36. Disconnect lower hose from brown valve, set valves and bracket aside.

37. Unbolt 4 bolts and 2 nuts from upper plenum, lift off plenum and gasket.

38. Unbolt front valve near PCV valve from lower plenum, set aside.

39. Remove lower bolt of large black bracket, pull away

40. Unbolt 2 brackets holding lower fuel line to middle plenum

41. Remove nuts and bolts from middle plenum including horizontal bolt to plastic wire harness in rear. Pull off plenum and gasket and set aside.

42. Cover intake holes with tape and towel

43. Unclip 3 fuel injector wires

44. Repair plastic cover of wire harness with Tesa high heat harness tape, to make sure no plastic pieces will fall into engine.

45. Pull out spark plug boots, unclip wires from timing cover, move away

46. Unclip wire harness from passenger side valve cover

47. Move radiator hose clamp a few inches away from timing cover so the cover can move

48. Unbolt timing cover bolts to pull timing cover away a few inches

49. Unclip wire harness from engine mount

50. Unbolt 8 valve cover bolts

51. Remove valve cover

52. Remove cam seal

53. Remove half moons

54. Clean mating surface on engine

55. Apply sealant to half moons and reinstall. Install bolts only hand tight.

56. Apply sealant to cam seal and reinstall. Install bolts only hand tight. Do not torque yet.

57. Remove tube seals and valve cover gasket

58. Clean valve cover

59. Install new tube seals and valve cover gasket

60. Apply grease to inner surface of tube seals for spark plug tubes to slide on

61. Torque cam seal bolts when 1 hour has passed for sealant to set, or depending on sealant instructions.

62. Apply sealant to engine mating surface on required spots.

63. Reinstall valve cover. Install bolts only hand tight. Do not torque yet.

64. Work backwards from step 49 to start reassembly. Stop before reconnecting fuel injectors.

65. Torque valve cover bolts to 53 in-lb when 1 hour has passed for sealant to set.

66. Continue backwards through reassembly steps, cleaning mating surfaces as needed, installing new plenum gaskets, EGR valve gasket, EGR pipe gaskets, and throttle body gasket when you get to them.

 

J/K

Thx for taking the time to list the steps you took and putting it out there for everyone else.

Cheers

 

You're missing a few VERY important steps. I don't see any steps that include dropping the 10mm socket into an impossible to reach location, swear breaks, or scheduled time to check TW for torque specs... Other than that, looks great.

 

Yeah pics would be huge I know, but too much trouble! I wasn't sure I was going to share it or even be successful.

If someone uses this along with Timmy's video (which omits a lot of small steps and I don't think his truck had an EGR system), that should cover everything.

 

Just did this job on both sides. It's quite nice not smelling burnt oil after driving Nice write-up! I ended up replacing every vacuum line I could. That helped quite a bit.

 

It feels good to get done! Pending dry weather to leak check it. I think those cam seals were the leak culprit, just from getting old and not being replaced by the shop when doing their shitty gasket job. I managed to do it all without dropping any nuts or breaking anything except a wire harness clip.