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Got an oil leak which we've found out to be a split rocker cover gasket. I've got myself a genuine Audi kit. Was looking changing it today but it was getting late and didn't have all the proper tools to do the job.

Leak between these two points (gasket looks split)


Do these pipes need to be removed to get the cover off?




Thanks in advance, Adam

In theory, that rocker cover is an engine out job. As far as I can tell that's because those pipes you've highlighted are a bugger to get to to move out of the way.

It can be done with the engine in, though. You might need to drop the engine and subframe a bit to get access though. Not a job to start just before tea-time.

The rocker cover gasket was changed on mine by the previous owner - Swindon Audi charged the guy £97.50 +vat in labour to do it and about £110 +vat in materials. This was a couple of years ago. Certainly not a job that I would take on, let alone after tea time.

Shoppinit wrote:Not a job to start just before tea-time.

Are there any of those on this car?

bam_bam wrote:

Shoppinit wrote:Not a job to start just before tea-time.

Are there any of those on this car?

Yeah, changing the other rocker cover.

There you go, OP. Just change the other rocker cover.

That's why we didn't continue any further as it looked a lot more intense than changing one, on say a run of the mill 4 cylinder. Whilst i often joke that everything is an engine out job, its becoming clear just how much stuff is an engine out or at least dropped. Hey ho, the engine noise and power make up for the aggro.

Got a genuine kit from Audi for £37 including VAT with 20% discount (which i was shocked at the cheapness considering a pattern one was like £30 delivered)

But the other head is a brand new one, that got replaced under warranty so i shouldn't have to worry about that one for a while.

I'll rope my brother into helping me out if it does need dropping. On that note, how much of a faff is it to drop the lump and sub frame? (done engine swaps and the like, before but only FWD cars) Gear box needs lowering as well, i'm assuming?

Thanks again

Talleyman wrote:The rocker cover gasket was changed on mine by the previous owner - Swindon Audi charged the guy £97.50 +vat in labour to do it and about £110 +vat in materials. This was a couple of years ago. Certainly not a job that I would take on, let alone after tea time.

£97 a couple of years ago will probably be an hour labour. They would not have dropped the engine in that time. Are you sure you can't get the pipe loosened and lifted slightly. I had the same issue with a similar pipe on the b5 rs4 when I did the rocker covers but managed to fiddle them up a little and sort it.

Been reading that you can just slightly bend that black coolant pipe out the way (say slightly as they say that wield you can see is weak) as long as the two bolts holding it onto the block aren't siezed. The oil breather pipe looks like there a rubber section at the back of the block that got a clip on that that's fine.

So its just the damn coolant pipe, which is the problem