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I had the same problems on my '01 LS430 and in addition to the bolts being slightly loose, unevenly, the previous owner never replaced the PCV valve, grommit, and hose and I had 117,000 miles on it when I bought it. I was getting back pressure, forcing oil out anywhere it could go. Once I replaced all the PCV stuff and tightened my bolts, all went away. Just something to consider in your diagnosis.
To the OP and others, you may also want to check the PCV valve (positive crankcase ventilation)...it's on the driver's side valve cover near the front and is an easy fix once the engine cover is removed. Using all Lexus parts, the grommet and valve run about $12-17 depending on where you get them, but make sure you get the Lexus OEM PCV valve (it's kinda purple-bluish). The PCV gets clogged over time and starts to promote pressure within the valve covers, thus pushing out on the valve cover gaskets and causing leaks. Remember, our cars are built to some pretty impressive tolerances and even though they can take a lot, they can be 'sensitive' with regard to certain things, and the pressure built up from an overly clogged PCV valve is one of those things. If the vehicle has over 60K on it, you may want to change it to establish a baseline, then swap it out maybe every 20K or so...it's cheap insurance and you'd be surprised at the positive effects it has on the valve cover gaskets and idle quality too...hope this helps
How are we supposed to lift the engine 2"? Can we jack it up from below? Won't there be problems with all off the other things mounted to it like the exhaust?? If anyone has any more advice on getting access to the pan bolts, I could use it. I'm about to put oil back in and drive it to the shop. I might be in over my head here. Great design Lexus!
I jacked my engine up from below using a wood block on the lower oil pan. Folks here say that method will create leaks from the upper oil pan. The better way would likely be to lift the engine from above. There are two nice steel engine hooks (installed by Lexus) on the top of the engine. Hoist on the hooks using a beam that spans the engine compartment, or I suppose an engine puller (cherry picker) would work too.
I found out (in a bad way) that you can lift the engine quite a bit, maybe 3-4 inches without any damage to exhaust, or any connections. The only thing I noticed hitting was the heater control valve on the firewall started hitting a rubber heater hose.
Well, I learned (the hard way) how to destroy a new valve cover gasket. The driver's side valve cover is really tight to remove and replace due to the proximity of the engine oil dipstick tube and the transmission distick handle. I wriggled the valve cover back into place with my new gasket tucked into the valve cover groove. ONE bolt sticks up out of the valve train and it snagged the gasket on the lower edge. It looped over the bolt (out of sight) while I blindly tightened all the cover bolts. So about 6 inches of gasket was pretty much sheared by the cover when I tightened it down. Needless to say it leaked like mad - lost a quart of oil in 2 miles driving.
When I did the job over I had to reach through the sparkplug holes in the valve cover gasket to flick the valve cover gasket off that pesky bolt, where I could tuck it into place properly. Of course NONE of this is visible. You have to tuck the gasket into place by feel alone.
So there's a hard learned tip. Check that the gasket is not snagged inside the cover. Use a mirror and bright light. Check it twice before you start tightening the valve cover bolts.
And doing this job requires every universal, flex drive, extension and adapter I owned. Pic below shows how I had to reach the aft-most valve cover bolt.
I did notice that the valve cover bolt washers are made with a metal cup, with a rubber base built in. Not sure what the purpose is for this, but looks to me like that rubber will harden and compress allowing the bolt to lose it's clamp up. Which would explain why the bolts all feel loose when folks check them.
I had the same problems on my '01 LS430 and in addition to the bolts being slightly loose, unevenly, the previous owner never replaced the PCV valve, grommit, and hose and I had 117,000 miles on it when I bought it. I was getting back pressure, forcing oil out anywhere it could go. Once I replaced all the PCV stuff and tightened my bolts, all went away. Just something to consider in your diagnosis.
Does the 2001 LS430 really have a PCV (Positive Crankcase Valve)? I thought that was old technology.
Never a good idea to add any sealant when installing valve cover gaskets. Just think what might happen if any of that crap falls into an oil valley?
I'm not talking about covering the entire gasket. The factory put a small bead where the head meets the front bearing cap at a 90 degree angle. The factory service manual says to do this as well. Even has a diagram.
Does the 2001 LS430 really have a PCV (Positive Crankcase Valve)? I thought that was old technology.
I clean the PCV valve in my 2002 every time I change my engine air filter (48000km), which is when I clean the MAF and throttle body as well. No problems with the grommet breaking and falling in (yet?). The 2004-2006 uses a metal-threaded PCV valve. See below links for pictures.
05-15-15, 06:31 PM
