# Valve cover oil leak on 1.8 liter LUW



## plano-doug (Jul 1, 2015)

I was looking under the hood of my daughter's 2012 Cruze 2LS (~60k miles, 1.8 liter LUW) and noticed oil leaking. It appears to be coming from around the valve cover.

Reading the forum, I've learned the 1.4 turbo is known for leaking there, with the PCV being the underlying cause.

Is the 1.8 liter LUW known for valve cover leaks as well? Or is this unusual?

Looking at the pics, in the driver's end view (2nd pic) I can see the oil dripping down. 

But in the front view (1st pic), it appears to be spreading upwards. I attribute that to the airflow from the fan? Interestingly, there doesn't appear to be any residue from it dripping down there.

Removing the panel from atop the valve cover (3rd pic), I see small amounts of oil there as well.

I checked the bolts near the front-left corner, and all appear to be quite snug, so that's not the problem.

Diagnosis: Is a new valve cover gasket all that's required here? Or something else as well? 

Repair: Any gotchas to be aware of in removing and replacing it? Is there an upgraded gasket to ask for?

Thanks.

Doug
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## SeansCruzeLS1.8 (Sep 8, 2021)

plano-doug said:


> I was looking under the hood of my daughter's 2012 Cruze 2LS (~60k miles, 1.8 liter LUW) and noticed oil leaking. It appears to be coming from around the valve cover.
> 
> Reading the forum, I've learned the 1.4 turbo is known for leaking there, with the PCV being the underlying cause.
> 
> ...


Hey Doug I have a 2015 1st gen 1.8 Cruze LS and I noticed the same kind of issue a lot less than the first pic but I was also getting a p1101 reading for the variable valve timing. I replaced both vvt solenoids and replaced the cover they have a few different kits on Amazon that come with the gasket and the new head, I changed both because the PCV valve is inside the cover and they’re known for going bad if you take the cover off and hold your finger over the little hole left side, it you can feel air coming out it’s time to change it. It was pretty simple only thing I would mention is be very careful when you tighten down the bolts with a torque wrench finding the right schematics and bolt pattern was a pain in the butt, I had to eventually watch a mechanic on YouTube and follow his pattern and I only had to tighten them to about 68/ In/Lb online people where saying 70 ft/Lb Lol would of broken every bolt on the cover. Anyways after I changed no more check engine light after driving for about an hour and I can still see some “wetness” but it’s even and around the middle no leaking from under where the new gasket is. im not sure why it does it all I know this engine runs really hot. 
goodluck it was easy to do took me a 2/3 hours


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