Cam Plate Leak Repair

[Extreme86]

Originally Posted by Frost

Is this still an issue on newer cars? Toybaru have done nothing to fix it?

They will fix it under warranty - don't know if there is a TSB on it yet. Probably the luck of the draw as to how well the original sealant was applied when engine was built as to whether a leak develops or not. Some leak, most don't....it seems. As long as the percentage remains low, I doubt they develop an alternate fix...a recall would cost big $$$. If this leak became as "popular" as the cricket issue they'd likely come up with an alternate seal approach. A circular blob of sealant vs. a better O-ring plate design (or a specific sized silicone rubber gasket) saved time and a small chunk of yen I guess!

Originally Posted by ronboogieon

I've been getting a burning smell thinking I was burning my clutch until I stumbled on these oil leak threads. Went and took a look at my cam plate and there appears to be some oil drops on the exhaust manifold. Mine is a Jul '13 build.

Put your fingers (or a paper towel) behind the lower part of the plate when the engine is cool and it'll show you a bit more evidence of whats been dripping! Mine is a Jun '12 build. Leak became apparent with smell almost a year and a half after manufacture date. Could be a lot of newer car folks have a small leak but just don't know it yet cause there is no obvious smell.

Originally Posted by 2_slo

Sorry guys, I can't help but wonder if I'm missing something...is there some reason I can't just buy a sheet of rubberized gasket material and cut out a gasket for it? It looks to me like that would be a easy permanent fix.

No apologies - crossed my mind, too. I think I saw a post by someone who did that. Makes sense to me. I would have given it a shot if I had the right rubber gasket stuff to play with!! (If anyone has done this already - please post on this thread and tell us about it.) Would sure be nice if Fel-Pro aftermarket could help us out with a specific pre-cut application but, probably not enough numbers to justify the effort!

Update: 2 weeks after the high temp red silicone RTV pooky fix (above addendum) and a spirited > 131 mile Twisted Sisters Run out in the Texas Hill Country this past Saturday...hammering the car WOT on numerous twisties - no cam plate oil leak...still dry as a bone.

[2_slo]

I think next time I make it out to the hangar I'll pull it off and make a gasket. I already bought some gasket material. Ill post some pics when I do.

[Satanasso]

hi guys,
i'd like to make my own "stopper" for this annoying oil leak , but i don't know the diameter of the hole , has anyone ever measuered it?
( unfortunately i have no chance for the moment to buy raceseng or other cam plates )

[phobos512]

Originally Posted by Satanasso

hi guys,
i'd like to make my own "stopper" for this annoying oil leak , but i don't know the diameter of the hole , has anyone ever measuered it?
( unfortunately i have no chance for the moment to buy raceseng or other cam plates )

ID or OD? I've got a Raceseng plate coming tomorrow and can measure it when I do the install, probably over the weekend.

[Satanasso]

Originally Posted by phobos512

ID or OD? I've got a Raceseng plate coming tomorrow and can measure it when I do the install, probably over the weekend.

the ID , inner part of the plate, i think that just making a stopper , something like this:

but thinner, and use the stock plate to keep it stuck ( and sealant then )
if you can, thanks a lot then

[Koa]

Originally Posted by Satanasso

the ID , inner part of the plate, i think that just making a stopper , something like this:

but thinner, and use the stock plate to keep it stuck ( and sealant then )
if you can, thanks a lot then

Have you tried cleaning the area and re-applying rtv/sealant to your stock plate?

[Satanasso]

Originally Posted by Koa

Have you tried cleaning the area and re-applying rtv/sealant to your stock plate?

i will do it tomorrow
( i have to go on holidays next week so it will be a hotfix )
just i noticed some oil leak more than "normal" in the last weeks, and so the smell now is quite strong after a long drive (50km)...

btw i would like to make a handmade stopper (when i will come back to holidays) to fix the problem once for all

[Kojiro]

Glad this showed up. After searching around a bit,
I'm going to buy the Raceseng plate. I've noticed that I do occasionally get that oil smell.

[8R6]

totally forgot about this thread. been meaning to get the cam plate taken care of. ugh

[dnieves]

Last month I kept noticing a slight burning smell whenever I hit the throttle but would inexplicably instantly disappear. Thanks to this thread I was able to determine the source of my oil leak (light coating of oil towards the bottom edge of the cam plate!). Although this repair is covered by warranty there's no point in doing it unless they change the cover plate design as cleaning it and using new RTV will eventually fail again.


I rarely stray from OEM but I found a cam cover plate from Torque Solution that incorporates a high temp Viton O-ring and made from billet aluminum (in black or silver). For an aftermarket part that that serves a purpose & isn't easily visible in the engine bay it isn't ridiculously priced (like Raceseng). http://www.torquesolution.com/product-p/ts-cam-plts.htm

Very easy install (as detailed in the original cam plate post):
1. Remove three bolts from cam plate with a 11mm socket (easy) and pry off cam plate (takes a couple of minutes but it gets a lot easier from here).
2. Remove all oil and RTV from (engine) mating surface.
3. Smear a little engine oil on the O-ring, install cam plate with supplied 6mm Allen bolts and torque accordingly.


Unfortunately before checking with Torque Solution, I followed the installation instruction for another cam plate and put a bead of RTV on the mating surface of the area outside of the O-ring (not neccessary). After I finger tightening the cam plate I had to let the RTV set for an hour then torqued it and let it cure overnight. I haven't had any traces of a leak since!
Judging from the helpfulness of Torque Solutions' staff, ease & quality of the product I plan on making more purchases with them.

[TheDanimal]

Originally Posted by dnieves

Last month I kept noticing a slight burning smell whenever I hit the throttle but would inexplicably instantly disappear. Thanks to this thread I was able to determine the source of my oil leak (light coating of oil towards the bottom edge of the cam plate!). Although this repair is covered by warranty there's no point in doing it unless they change the cover plate design as cleaning it and using new RTV will eventually fail again.


I rarely stray from OEM but I found a cam cover plate from Torque Solution that incorporates a high temp Viton O-ring and made from billet aluminum (in black or silver). For an aftermarket part that that serves a purpose & isn't easily visible in the engine bay it isn't ridiculously priced (like Raceseng). http://www.torquesolution.com/product-p/ts-cam-plts.htm

Very easy install (as detailed in the original cam plate post):
1. Remove three bolts from cam plate with a 11mm socket (easy) and pry off cam plate (takes a couple of minutes but it gets a lot easier from here).
2. Remove all oil and RTV from (engine) mating surface.
3. Smear a little engine oil on the O-ring, install cam plate with supplied 6mm Allen bolts and torque accordingly.


Unfortunately before checking with Torque Solution, I followed the installation instruction for another cam plate and put a bead of RTV on the mating surface of the area outside of the O-ring (not neccessary). After I finger tightening the cam plate I had to let the RTV set for an hour then torqued it and let it cure overnight. I haven't had any traces of a leak since!
Judging from the helpfulness of Torque Solutions' staff, ease & quality of the product I plan on making more purchases with them.

I installed my Torque Solution cam plate a few weeks ago and so far no more leaks. Thanks for the review.

[dnieves]

Originally Posted by TheDanimal

I installed my Torque Solution cam plate a few weeks ago and so far no more leaks. Thanks for the review.

Great to hear!! Which cam plate did you get the black or the unpainted aluminum? Not that you really see it, I wish I knew about the unpainted one when I ordered the black one (I found out 5 minutes after the order went through).


Such an easy fix for such a lazy OEM solution (really Subaru? a completely flat plate with three bolts and a glob of RTV?)

[Speedie]

Hi,

Noticed over the past month or so the burning oil smell and smoke sometimes from under the bonnet. After reading these posts, I checked the cam plate is the culprit with a small leak. For those that have used the torque solution cam plate does it require any RTV at all?. I note the Raceseng solution also uses an o-ring, but they also recommend some RTV as well. Leaning towards the torque version and would like to side step the RTV if possible.

Thank you.

[dj2020]

What's the best way to remove oil and RTV from the engine mating surfacing before installing the aftermarket cam plate?