Cam Plate Leak Repair

[exE36M3]

Thanks for your reply. Sooo... the 3rd try was successful. I tightened down the bolts until the RTV met the surface and slightly squished out. I let it sit for 24 hours, then tightened down. Dry as a bell.

BUT... turns out, a big part of the leak is/was the valve cover. :\
And THAT is still leaking.

2 weeks before Subaru can look at it.

ArghX2

[fx1mark]

Originally Posted by exE36M3

Thanks for your reply. Sooo... the 3rd try was successful. I tightened down the bolts until the RTV met the surface and slightly squished out. I let it sit for 24 hours, then tightened down. Dry as a bell.

BUT... turns out, a big part of the leak is/was the valve cover. :\
And THAT is still leaking.

2 weeks before Subaru can look at it.

ArghX2

well, glad you got it fixed. it sucks the valve cover is leaking though.

[DarkSunrise]

I installed the Raceseng cam plate yesterday. Not cheap but a high quality part. I also considered the Velox plate (also nice) but the Raceseng one has indentations to align the three bolts for exact fitment. Probably overkill but I love that kind of attention to detail and I'd rather just do it right the first time.

The instructions call for two dabs of RTV so I used Permatex ultra synthetic oil resistant RTV (purple tube, black color goo). Very easy to install. When cleaning the surface area, I first tried a gasket remover (essentially a plastic razor blade) but it was much quicker using a finger nail. After that it was simple. Torqued to 12 lbs-ft, let it sit 1 hr, torqued to 14 lbs-ft, then let it sit 20+ hrs to be safe.

Today I went for a drive and checked the plate with a rag. No more leak! Good job Raceseng.

[TMF]

First, thank you for the how to.

Here's a few of my pointers:
1. Don't take it to the dealer. They had no idea now to fix it properly.
2. I skipped the popsicle sticks.
3. My first attempt failed, because I don't think I used enough red rtv and it was not a very good continous bead. I think I only let it sit for about 5-6 hours at finger tight before torquing to spec.
4. My second attempt was successful, and I think the big difference was that I put down a better, slightly thicker, almost continuous bead of red rtv. The hole in the tip of the rtv applicator was about 1/4". I also let it sit for about 30 hours at finger tight before torquing to spec.

This attempt survived four 20 minutes track sessions, so hopefully no more leakage issues!

[eddieflyinv]

Permatex Ultra Grey 👌 used when resealing the cam plate, camshaft carrier & timing cover, (and put some on a leaking valve cover gasket to since i forgot to order new ones) not a drop of oil exiting the motor since I did this last year

[fungus]

Hey @Extreme86,
If you still on here, be nice to hear from you and how long the RTV fix lasted?

[TMF]

Originally Posted by TMF

First, thank you for the how to.

Here's a few of my pointers:
1. Don't take it to the dealer. They had no idea now to fix it properly.
2. I skipped the popsicle sticks.
3. My first attempt failed, because I don't think I used enough red rtv and it was not a very good continous bead. I think I only let it sit for about 5-6 hours at finger tight before torquing to spec.
4. My second attempt was successful, and I think the big difference was that I put down a better, slightly thicker, almost continuous bead of red rtv. The hole in the tip of the rtv applicator was about 1/4". I also let it sit for about 30 hours at finger tight before torquing to spec.

This attempt survived four 20 minutes track sessions, so hopefully no more leakage issues!

Update: this failed and leaked. Got the Racer x fab plate instead... Stopped for a while, but still leaks. I've given up lol.

[Opie]

Originally Posted by eddieflyinv

Permatex Ultra Grey 👌 used when resealing the cam plate, camshaft carrier & timing cover, (and put some on a leaking valve cover gasket to since i forgot to order new ones) not a drop of oil exiting the motor since I did this last year

This, clean ALL old sealant off, use Permatex Ultra Grey (no RTV) with a nice continuous bead, then torque as per service manual. Never had one leak again.

[daniloneil8]

Here is a photo of my cam plate.


Car has not been driven in a few weeks.
Drove it for 10 minutes.
Parked and opened the hood to attach battery tender
Saw white smoke. I see oil down on the exhaust

Has anyone gotten an RTV re-do to work? Which color RTV is best?
Skip RTV solutions, and get a 3rd party o-ring plate ? If so, which one?
Which brand of cam plate has become the accepted replacement?

Adding this video to this thread.

[daniloneil8]

Originally Posted by TMF

3. My first attempt failed, because I don't think I used enough red rtv and it was not a very good continous bead. I think I only let it sit for about 5-6 hours at finger tight before torquing to spec.
4. My second attempt was successful, and I think the big difference was that I put down a better, slightly thicker, almost continuous bead of red rtv. The hole in the tip of the rtv applicator was about 1/4". I also let it sit for about 30 hours at finger tight before torquing to spec.

This attempt survived four 20 minutes track sessions, so hopefully no more leakage issues!

Did you use an aftermarket cam plate, or reuse the OEM plate?
You put the red RTV around the entire perimeter of the groove where the o-ring fits?

[B-R-Z]

Last time I was at the shop (non-dealer performance shop) they found oil on the engine and lower metal plate and asked for close to $1,000 to resolve the leak, without doing investigation for where it was coming from. I am now thinking it's this and am going to do it myself.

What is the consensus, re-seal stock plate or use aftermarket? It seems like the aftermarket doesn't always work, and if done correctly, re-sealing the OEM plate works.

Edit: Just checked the lower engine-side of the cam plate and it's dry as can be. Which is good, but a bummer that oil is leaking from somewhere else.