There are many things that you as a vehicle owner can do to
prolong the life of your engine. The most
important thing is to perform all maintenance at the time or mileage suggested
in your owner’s manual. I suggest that
you change your engine oil and filter every 3,000 miles no matter what your owner’s
manual says. If you own a newer Chevy
the owner’s manual may tell you to change the oil every 5,000 to 7,500
miles. If you are doing a lot of highway
driving and very little city driving you could allow 4,000 miles between oil
changes. Engine oil protects the
internals of your engine, once the oil is dirty or not golden colored anymore
it will not perform like it should. It
is important to let your engine warm up, especially in the winter before you
drive the vehicle, most internal engine wear occurs before the engine gets to
operating temperature. Another thing
that I recommend is that you flush your antifreeze coolant when necessary. This is important because when antifreeze
breaks down it eats engine gaskets. If
you don’t change your antifreeze coolant it may cause a leak at the water pump,
thermostat, or worse yet the intake gaskets.
There is always coolant in your engine so it is important to always keep
fresh coolant flowing through the engine.
There are many other techniques that are suggested but I feel that these
are the most important.
Small Block Chevy Engine
Thursday, May 10, 2012
How to Replace a Power Steering Pump
How to Change Valve Cover Gaskets
The first step is to pop the hood and remove valve covers
from engine. It is necessary to first
remove air box and tubes going to the throttle body. This will make the job a lot easier because
it will expose the valve cover bolts, and make them more accessible. Remove anything else that is necessary so
that you can get a socket on all of the valve cover bolts and so that you can
remove the valve cover from the engine.
Remove all bolts from the valve cover and pry the valve cover off the
engine. Be very careful not to bend the
valve cover if prying is required. Once
the valve covers are removed from the engine the gasket must be taken out of
the valve cover. Sometimes the gasket is
really stuck in the valve cover. If this
is the case you can either scrape the gasket out of the valve cover or use a
torch to heat the gasket. Once the gasket
is warm it will usually pull out of the valve cover much easier. If you choose to use the torch be careful not
to light the gasket on fire or if there is oil on the valve cover or
gasket. Be sure to remember that engine
oil is extremely flammable. Always use
torch with cast-iron. Once the gasket is
removed from the valve cover then place the valve cover on engine and start all
bolts before tightening any. Look up
torque specifications to see how tight to make the bolts. One the valve covers are installed, reinstall
anything that you disassembled to remove the valve covers. Once everything is reinstalled, before
starting the engine for the first time make sure that the oil is full. If necessary you may have to add some. Then start the engine and let it run for
about 15 minutes to make sure that everything is okay.
How to Replace Intake Gaskets
How to Install a Camshaft
The first step to installing a camshaft is to do research
and find out what all is involved because every model of Chevy is
different. For example to install a
camshaft in your small block Chevy engine if you are a F. Body car such as a
Trans Am or Camero from 1982-2002 you have to pull the engine out of the
vehicle to replace a camshaft. This varies
greatly from older Camero’s or Firebirds because removal of the engine is not
required. Also, in a Chevy pickup truck
removal of the engine is not required. This
is why looking up what is required is extremely important, the last thing you
would want to do is pull the engine out if you don’t have to. Basically what you have to do to install the camshaft on a small block Chevy is
to remove the timing chain, water pump, clutch fan if equipped, and serpentine
belt. You must first drain the engine
oil and antifreeze coolant. If you are
installing a performance camshaft it is necessary that you pull the heads off
the engine, and it may also be necessary to change pushrods and/or valve
springs. When using a performance
camshaft it is usually recommended to use a stiffer intake and exhaust valve
springs. Once the camshaft is removed
install the new camshaft and reassemble all of the parts that you took apart.
How to Replace a Water Pump
How to Get More Torque
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