Technical Tips are provided as a service from the club. Most of them are given to us by members or they are copied from other publications and are not a proven fact. Use of these Tips become the sole responsibility of the user. The Metropolitan Club of California, Ltd. and its officers shall be held harmless.

TIPS FOR ADJUSTING VALVES:

COLD ENGINE:

(1) Loosen the bolts holding the valve cover.

(2) Rock the valve cover back & forth (gently) to pop it free. If necessary, slip a sharp putty knife under the cover and gently pry it loose. Try not to damage the gasket - you can re- use it if is not damaged.

(3) Remove the Valve cover.

(4) Turn engine over (by hand) to activate the Rocker Arm Assembly.

(5) Valves should be set at .015 when the valve is closed.

(6) As you turn the engine over, watch the Rocker Arm. When a valve is pushed down, it is open. At this point, set the other valve of that cylinder. It doesn’t matter where you start - just keep track of the valve you have set.

(7) Repeat step six until all of the valves have been set

(8) Re-install the valve cover.

Note: For convenience, start at one end of the HEAD and move to the other end until all of the valves are set.

HOT ENGINE:

1. Warm engine to operating temperature.

(a) Idle the engine for 10 - 15 minutes at a fast idle - do not rely on the temp. gauge as it only shows cylinder head temperature. An engine is not thoroughly warmed until all metal parts have expanded to their maximum. If you adjust the valves before everything reaches operating temperature, you may set them too tight and burn the exhaust valves.

(b) Set the engine back to slow idle speed. Don’t idle it back too far because the cylinder walls won’t get enough oil and this may damage the engine.

(d) Loosen the bolts holding the valve cover.

2. Remove the Valve cover.

(a) Rock the valve cover back & forth (gently) to pop it free. If necessary, slip a sharp putty knife under the cover and gently pry it loose. Try not to damage the gasket, you can re-use it if is not damaged.

3. Adjust the valves.

(a) Shoot a little oil on the valve stems to make sure they are not sticking.

(b) Re-start the engine

(c) Adjust all of the exhaust valves first (set to .013 hot) Valves are set right when you can slip a feeler gauge of the right thickness between the tip of the Rocker Arm Adjuster and the Valve Stem, but the next thicker gauge wont’ fit.

(d) Adjust all intake valves as shown above.

(e) Double check all settings before proceeding.

Note: A British Mechanic suggests that because of the age (condition) of our car, you may want to set the valves less than what the specifications call for.(i.e.: .012 Hot) This is up to you and unless you are familiar with your engine, you should follow the specifications.

4. Re-install the valve cover.

(a) If the old gasket is in one piece, and it is not nicked, torn or brittle, you can re-use it.

(b) Make sure that the head surface is clean. Scrape it clean before continuing.

(c) If using a new gasket, clean all portions of the old gasket from the valve cover channel. Coat the valve cover channel sparingly with a silicone sealer or Permatex, then press the gasket into place. (Do not use any sealer on the mating surfaces between the cover gasket and the block)

(d) Clean off any excess sealer off the edges of the valve cover

(e) Place the valve cover back into position and tighten the bolts evenly. Do not overt tighten them as you could warp or compress the gasket & a leak may result.

(f) Start engine and idle for 3 - 5 minutes. Check for oil leak around valve cover.

(This information was copied from a magazine & changed to provide the Specifications for the Metropolitan. Like all other Tech Tips, it is only a suggestion and can only be used as a guide.)

Updated: 07/19/2009