aries

Took some pics of my ride. Let me know what you guys think.

http://www.imagestation.com/album/pi...?id=4291882657

Still pretty stock, but I'm working on it slowly... Found out my Sport Exhaust shipped on Thursday so I should get it soon.

Greddy917

Nice...

Always nice to see a fellow Pure White...

Good luck on the wish list...

aries

Greddy - Thanks. I haven't seen another white one around my area - I think they look sweet. Nice and clean (though they get pretty dirty quick).

You've got quite a lot going on with your ride. WOW! Maybe someday I'll have half the mods you do

protetype

looks good so far... i like the engine bay. although i wish someone would do something other than red!!!!!! hehe. keep up the good work. :]

Identity_X

Nice......looks clean.....

If I were you, I'd add WHITE RIMS to the wish list ......they would go with the car and will make it look even better.....

Greddy917

No joke...I notice every little bug splatter

protetype

ahh, don't they always? lol

dewey

How'd you paint the valve cover? Did you take it off? Or just tape it up? Or some combination of the two?

Identity_X

I know right

aries

I took the cover off, degreased and sanded it, then used plastikote high-temp paint.
I put a base layer of white first, then several layers of #206 Ford Red.
After it dried overnight, I sanded the raised letters back down to the aluminum and polished it with Mother's polishing compound.


Be sure to clean the valve cover very well before putting it back on!

-aries

dewey

Is it difficult/dangerous to take off the valve cover? I don't know anything about engines, except that I wouldn't mind painting mine. I'm willing to try taking the valve cover off, but I don't want to do anything risky.

Am I going to break any seals? Void any warrantees? Do something that can't be easily undone? Or is it pretty simple nuts and bolts stuff?

aries

Dewey - It was a pretty easy little operation. I too am not a master mechanic like some of the folks on this forum

You'll need to loosen a bolt that holds one of the engine's winching points (not sure what they call this, but you use it to lift the engine out with a winch) to get to the bolt on the upper right corner of the valve. You'll notice that the bolts are not very tight on the valve itself - if you have a torque wrench, use it. Not sure what the torque specs are for these. I just tightened them by feel.
Another pieec of advice - don't over tighten the bolt for the probe on the left side of the valve cover! You will strip this! I did and ended up swapping with a slightly longer bolt and a washer to keep it tight. I was surprised at how easy it was to strip - the bolt was fine, but the hole was toast.

As for seals, there are no seals to break. A rubber gasket is on on the inside of the valve cover and should go stay on.

You should unscrew the bolts holding the plug wires and pull the wires from the plugs - they pop right out with a careful tug. It's pretty hard to mix up which wire goes to which plug, but remember how they go back in anyway

I don't think you'll void any warantees by doing this since you're not making any modifications to the engine itself. However - when in doubt, consult the proper individuals - call your dealer.

Have fun! Remember to let the valve cover completely cool off before painting and clean it VERY well. Good Luck!

--aries