Chevrolet Tracker Valve Cover Gasket Replacement Costs

Estimate price near me

Service Location

Customer Ratings

Included for free with this service

Online Booking

Mechanic comes to you

12-month / 12k-mile warranty

Free 50 point safety inspection

Our certified mobile mechanics can come to your home or office 7 days a week between 7 AM and 9 PM.

See availability

Customer Ratings

Valve Cover Gasket Replacement Service

How much does a Valve Cover Gasket Replacement cost?

On average, the cost for a Chevrolet Tracker Valve Cover Gasket Replacement is $194 with $54 for parts and $140 for labor. Prices may vary depending on your location.

Car	Service	Estimate	Shop/Dealer Price
2003 Chevrolet TrackerL4-2.0L	Service typeValve Cover Gasket Replacement	Estimate$364.18	Shop/Dealer Price$420.08 - $579.66
2000 Chevrolet TrackerL4-2.0L	Service typeValve Cover Gasket Replacement	Estimate$355.17	Shop/Dealer Price$409.30 - $567.56
2002 Chevrolet TrackerL4-1.6L	Service typeValve Cover Gasket Replacement	Estimate$262.13	Shop/Dealer Price$293.02 - $381.52
2004 Chevrolet TrackerV6-2.5L	Service typeValve Cover Gasket Replacement	Estimate$1016.76	Shop/Dealer Price$1146.25 - $1519.67
2000 Chevrolet TrackerL4-1.6L	Service typeValve Cover Gasket Replacement	Estimate$253.57	Shop/Dealer Price$283.80 - $366.98
1999 Chevrolet TrackerL4-2.0L	Service typeValve Cover Gasket Replacement	Estimate$355.17	Shop/Dealer Price$409.46 - $567.85
2003 Chevrolet TrackerV6-2.5L	Service typeValve Cover Gasket Replacement	Estimate$1016.76	Shop/Dealer Price$1146.31 - $1519.77
1998 Chevrolet TrackerL4-1.6L	Service typeValve Cover Gasket Replacement	Estimate$253.57	Shop/Dealer Price$282.32 - $364.40

Show example Chevrolet Tracker Valve Cover Gasket Replacement prices

What is a valve cover gasket and how does it work?

Each cylinder head on your car’s engine has an aluminum or plastic valve cover bolted to it. Between this valve cover and the cylinder head, there is a gasket that keeps engine oil from leaking out. The valve cover bolts keep the gasket compressed, thus preventing leaks. Over time the gasket becomes brittle from the engine’s heat or the bolts loosen, creating an engine oil leak.

When to consider replacing a valve cover gasket?

Look for these signs of oil leakage at the valve cover gasket:

Oil seepage or dripping. Should the joint between the valve cover and the cylinder head fail, oil often becomes visible on the valve cover or cylinder heads. Usually, the oil will attract and hold dirt.
Oil accumulating inside the spark plug well. The spark plug tube seals are part of the valve cover sealing system. If the tube seals are leaking, you will see oil on the spark plugs or wires. The valve cover gasket and tube seals are all replaced at one time if either fails.
Oil leakage at the rubber grommets. The bolts holding the valve cover to the cylinder head sometimes have rubber grommet seals under the bolt heads. If these seals are leaking, you will see oil seepage around the bolt heads.

How do mechanics replace a valve cover gasket?

Remove engine cover. Some engines have plastic covers over the entire top. The plastic engine cover is removed to access the valve cover(s).
Remove components. On 4 cylinder engines, the valve cover is usually readily accessed once any electrical components and emission control tubing are removed, plus any accelerator linkages that might be in the way. On 6 or 8 cylinder engines, depending on which valve cover gasket is leaking, removal of the air intake plenum might be required, as well as additional steps.
Remove valve cover. Once the valve cover(s) is accessed, the cover retaining bolts are removed and the cover pulled off. The valve cover sealing surface is checked with a straight edge to be sure the cover is flat and thus reusable.
Install new gasket. The new valve cover gasket is applied along with new rubber grommets under the retaining bolt heads. If there are spark plug tube seals, these are replaced as well. In some applications, oil resistant RTV (room temperature vulcanization) sealant must be applied to specific segments of the sealing surface, along with the new gasket, to ensure a complete and effective seal. The cover is bolted back on, using a calibrated inch pound torque wrench, and all other components are restored to their original position.
Check for leaks. Finally, the car engine is run and a visual check is made for oil leaks.

Is it safe to drive with a valve cover gasket problem?

Yes, as long as the amount of oil leaking is small, and there is no leak onto hot engine parts such as the exhaust manifold, it is safe to drive your car until you have an opportunity to fix it.

If you notice oil leaking on to the ground beneath your car after it is parked, you do not have a small leak, and it needs to be found and repaired as soon as possible. Any leak, of course, means your oil level is dropping as you drive the car. If you have a leak, be sure to check your oil more frequently than usual so you do not run low on oil and damage the engine.

When replacing a valve cover gasket keep in mind:

The mechanical components of a car engine will typically outlive the gaskets used to seal the engine. However, many of these gaskets, including the valve cover gaskets, are relatively easy to replace.
Never add stop leak type products to engine oil or other vehicle fluids. Not only are these materials not approved or specified by the original equipment manufacturers, but they also can create additional problems that may be costly to repair.
Often, if a car is old enough to have a valve cover oil leak, there will be oil leaks elsewhere on the engine, so you should request a complete leak inspection. It may be more cost effective to repair multiple leaks during one service call.
Often, the PCV (Positive Crankcase Ventilation) valve is inserted into a rubber grommet in one of the valve covers. An old rubber grommet is a potential leak source, as well as connections to the PCV valve. These components should be inspected and considered for replacement while there is access to the valve cover.

Fast and easy service at your home or office

Backed by 12-month, 12.000-mile guarantee

Meet some of our expert Chevrolet mechanics

Real customer reviews from Chevrolet owners like you.

Excellent Rating

(4)

Rating Summary

4

0

0

0

0

4

0

0

0

0

SEE REVIEWS NEAR ME

Andrew

0 years of experience

351 reviews

Andrew

0 years of experience

by Tiff Matthews

Tracker 2002 - Valve Cover Gasket - Ellicott City, MD

Great service and quick!!

Kevin

20 years of experience

478 reviews

Kevin

20 years of experience

by Tarin Glenn

Tracker 2003 - Check Engine Light is on - Stone Mountain, GA

Kevin was pretty cool! He explained things to me in a way I could understand and was able to offer me some good options to fix my car problems! Very professional and knew his stuff! Excellent experience

Marco

24 years of experience

157 reviews

Marco

24 years of experience

by Allen Henry

Tracker 2002 - Starter - Fontana, CA

Good work marco, u were fast and efficient!

Johnathon

6 years of experience

122 reviews

Request Johnathon

Johnathon

6 years of experience

Request Johnathon

by Chuck Goosic

Tracker 2001 - Adjust Drum Brakes - Fresno, CA

Jonathon was very pleasant and friendly and did a good job. He was on time as well.

Excellent Rating

(4)

Rating Summary

4

0

0

0

0

4

0

0

0

0

SEE REVIEWS NEAR ME

Recent articles & questions

P0571 OBD-II Trouble Code: Cruise Control/Brake Switch A Circuit Malfunction

P0571 means there is a problem with the switch that that deactivates the cruise control system which causes the cruise control to not function.

How to Replace a Fog Light Relay

Fog lights assist the driver's visibility when driving in dense fog. Clicking sounds and malfunctioning lights are signs of a bad fog light relay.

5 Essential Things to Know About the Defrosting System in Your Car

When When you are driving in the colder months of the year, one of the most important systems in your vehicle is your defroster. When you turn on the defroster, it clears the windows, which can help to increase your...

Driver's seat not working properly.

The switch on this seat is a multi-position switch and would need to be tested to see if it is sending power to the roll back motor. Depending on availability, the seat bottom is not serviceable and would need to...

Failed compression test

Hi there. First, a compression test (https://www.yourmechanic.com/article/how-to-do-a-compression-test-by-robert-tomashek) will only check the cylinder for pressure build up during cranking and test the rings. To verify that the valves are really leaking, hook up a leak down tester to the engine and...

My 2003 Saturn Vue is having clutch issues

Hello - most likely your clutch hydraulic system has worn out. If fluid leaks on the ground under front driver side of the car (clear fluid, but oil film on the fingers), the clutch slave cylinder has worn out, or...

How can we help?

Our service team is available 7 days a week, Monday - Friday from 6 AM to 5 PM PST, Saturday - Sunday 7 AM - 4 PM PST.

1 (844) 997-3624 · hi@yourmechanic.com