Valve Cover

[JT ZR-Won]

Hi guys, I am new to this forum. I pulled both my valve covers off my 88 and repainted, re installed on a Saturday. It was a PITA but well worth the effort. The gaskets seem to give me a little trouble staying in place. But all is well now.

Paul, welcome to the CAC
Glad to hear they turned out well

Jay

 

[The Car Whisperer]

Great advice, but does any one out there know if there is a factory color code for these valve covers? I tried to get information on it from my local PPG auto paint supplier, no help there.
I removed mine, degreased and sandblasted them down to bare metal (Magnesium?) Used a self etching primer and then sprayed them with a spray can of Valve cover color from MidAmerica. They looked fantastic after they were re-installed but now they have developed pits in the paint and are already beginning to look shabby again after only about 5000 miles.
I mean if your going through all the work of removing the valve covers then you want to make sure you use a paint that will last.

 

[JT ZR-Won]

The only thing I can recommend is powdercoating. This is what I want to do to my ZR-1 intake and cam covers. Powdercoating should last you a while

Jay

 

[69MyWay]

Great advice, but does any one out there know if there is a factory color code for these valve covers? I tried to get information on it from my local PPG auto paint supplier, no help there.
They looked fantastic after they were re-installed but now they have developed pits in the paint and are already beginning to look shabby again after only about 5000 miles.
I mean if your going through all the work of removing the valve covers then you want to make sure you use a paint that will last.

The trick is to clear coat them after the grey paint has dried. Powder coating also works great, and is the longest lasting solution. However, it is tough to get the right texture that way. If you sandblasted yours, you lost the texture anyway.

I use a cheap spray paint called Steel Wheels, then chase it with high temp engine clear gloss paint. We have over 30,000 miles on the 90 since this application (the car is a daily driver) and they look perfect. The clear coat washes off better and stays cleaner than the straight grey paint. I had my buddy do the same on his 89. After over 50,000 miles they look excellent.

BTW, Steel Wheels can be bought at nearly any auto parts store for about $4.00 a can. I also use steel wheels paint on other aluminum brackets and accents followed with the clear coat to get that same clean look. You can paint the air pump, alternator bracket, and other small brackets with this application in the event your aluminum is getting dull and stained looking.

On the ZR-1, I would settle for nothing less than the power coating--ceramic coating for that almost chrome look on certain parts.

 

[Ken]

Yo Chris, thanks for the tip on "Steel Wheels".

I just realized something as I typed that; "Steel Wheels" = "Rolling Stones" = "Old" = "ME!" :L