Sound advice right here. That lip gasket will help draw the VP gasket down and into place. And the RAVE actually does call for sealant around the corners of the lip gasket.

Buzz, no offense but this has got to be THE longest HG job ever. LOL. The last time I did a HG job it took 12 hrs start to finish and that included pizza/beer breaks and replacing the belt tensioner pulley bearing. Good luck!!

 

I can only put an hour or less a day on it, and I had to be away from home for almost a week. Work two jobs and spend too much time on the forum, plus rain delays (no barn).

 

Have heads on, with new bolts. 15 pounds + 90 + 90. Not wanting to take that apart to wriggle heads around to fit valley gasket.

As for Rovah Farm, good prices, great guy, I just can't get an answer when I call, and don't wish to leave credit card info on a site without security. I called 5 times. Had I purchased his $89 Elring set, then I would have an Elring valley pan gasket, not the Unipart.

My concern with gasket surgery is removal of the embossed part, but it may come to that.

I have asked the AutohausAZ folks to compare one of their Rentz valley pans with the Elring. Too late to tinker with tonight, and I'm not in the mood as I hit a coyote on the way home from second shift job and took out the head light on my Mercedes - again (hit a pig several months ago, got grille, bumper, and head light). Something else to fix.

I'm betting this is something else dumb that I have done, and perhaps in the bright sunshine I can see what I did wrong.

 

I have the kit from Rovahfarm and it is the Allmakes kit.

 

Well, then another idea up in smoke.

Found this link from Cannibal with pix about their way of sealing the valley pan. Valley Pan Gasket & End Seals

 

Looks like a good write up, though I've never used sealant anywhere other than the end seals. I'm pretty sure the RAVE goes over this pretty thoroughly.

 

Here's the best I've been able to get this morning, chased inside four times by rain. Wondering if I should enlarge the bolt holes in the gasket so it will start out a little flatter.

 

Don't lose faith Savannah. It's looking better. I don't even remember this when I did mine, maybe I was just lucky. It just seems like maybe you could punch it down in the middle to take up some slack. But, here's rootin' for ya.

 

Thanks. Got rained out multiple times today, have 11 bolt holes cleaned out, ready to drill out, re-tap, and helicoil one tomorrow, then start slapping it back together.

 

Looking forward to seeing the end result and how much better it runs now.