I changing my timing chain (first time attempting this so I'm a little unfamiliar with the products) and was wondering about the covers. I see that the search engine is down on the site so I had to ask rather than search. I've seen cover kits from Spectre for $16 that include everyting and I've seen very expensive ones. Should I just reuse the original (it looks kind of ratty and has oil stains around the seal) and just get a Felpro gasket kit? Can I use a chrome Spectre kit for $15 and have no ill effects? Or is this a recipe for disaster (doing the job all over again)? Is aluminum a must? I'm leaning towards a new aluminum and a new felpro gasket set. This way I don't have to do any cleaning of my original one. This seems to be the logical way, unless the original cover is an inherently better piece. Thanks for the help.

 

There is no point in using an aluminum one on a typical street engine.

Original ones are often damaged during removal or whatever. If the front seal is not held in perfectly straight, it will leak. For that reason I don't like re-using an unknown timing cover, especially if there were signs that the front seal leaked before. It could be warped or bent.

There's nothing wrong with the Spectre one, in fact I have one on the old beater El Camino (78 305 with 345,000 miles on it) that I'm driving today, that I put on because the original timing chain wore a hole in the original cover in the process of stripping the plastic teeth off the original chinesium cam sprocket. Be aware though, you may have issues with the timing mark; you may not be able to have one at all, or it may be grossly inaccurate. Check it and mark it accurately before you put the motor in the car, while it's still easy.

 

OK, thanks. Also, is the oil pan gasket rubber or paper? My guidance-mechanic told me that I should be able to lower the pan enough to seat the cover. Then I can bolt up the pan (reusing the old seal) and silicone the seal at the front. I trust this guy implicitly but I am leery of the condition of a paper gasket once I drop the pan. BTW, my motor is still in the car.

 

It's rubber. You should be able to do that, and put the silicone on the edges of the timing cover where it meets the pan gasket. It needs to be clean so that the silicone can bond to the edges and not leak, so clean off any oil that is there.