PCV Valve LEAK

[clintorino]

My car was running fine. Then about 2 months ago, ever since i got an oil change at jiffy lube, I had them replace my pcv value, and since then, my car has been hesitating. I thought it was a vacuum problem but after carefully reviewing the car, i could not find any holes or cracks in the system.

I took it to a shop for a diagnostics test and they said it needed a major tune up (replacing the plugs, wires, ignition, dist cap, and rotor). NO VACUUM LEAK. Since they pushed me in the direction that the problem was a spark issue, I have replaced the plugs and wires myself, but it resulted in no improvement in performance.

I am about to start playing with the distributor cap and rotor button, BUT now I am thinking before investing more of my time and money in this car, perhaps the clowns at jiffy lube did not install the PCV valve correctly or they cracked the grommet resulting in the vacuum leak.

How do I effectively review and diagnose the potential PCV valve problem (which may be allowing the vacuum leak)? And how do i correctly replace the PCV valve and Grommet to avoid future vacuum issues?

[batstiva]

Okay, here's what my Hayne's says. Start the car, with the engine running, warmed up to normal operating temp, pull the valve out at the VC. Put your finger over the opening, and you should feel vacuum. If you don't feel vacuum, says to check the hose for blockage. Shut off the engine (so you can hear what's going on) and shake it. If you don't hear a little rattling, then the PCV is bad. Also says you should take the old one with you to buy the new one. Make sure they are exactly the same. Always possible, I suppose, that JL used the wrong one on your car. Be hard to tell at this point, since you don't (I'm guessing) have the original.
And if the valve is bad, or wrong, make sure you send a bill over to the boys at JiffyLube.

Pretty straightforward, Unless they tore up the top of the VC, that's about all there is to checking it for vacuum leaks.

[clintorino]

Awesome. Thank you so much for this information. So, while the car is running for 5 minutes, any recommendations on how i should pop off the PCV cover? I am assuming that it is on there pretty good. Also, once i pop off the PCV valve, should i cover the hole in the engine or wouldnt that be a problem? I just dont want to overlook something and cause any more problems. And if the PCV cover seems ok, how would i remove the grommet to inspect it for cracks?

Thanks brother!

[miami man]

spray some gumout around the hose while running and see if the rpm changes and if it does you have a vacume leak.

[eurotiva]

The valve cover has a baffle(plate) that keeps oil from squirting out so it will be fine. And the grommet is only a couple of bucks at any parts store. So you may want to just replace it. To get the pcv out just pull up. The grommet just pulls out too. If it's old tho it might put up a bit of fun. You can tell by how soft the rubber is. FL guy in the house.

[batstiva]

Yep, the valve pulls out of the grommet easily. Just cause I'm a nerd that way, I went ahead and checked mine since the car was already warmed up. Must have good vac on mine, can definitely feel it. Took it off, shook it, and it rattled, so I guess I'm good.

You guys sure that grommet will pop right out? Mine's fairly soft, but it didn't want to pull out, and I didn't want to yank on it too much since I don't have a replacement here. If yours pops out easily, then go for it. If not, I'd settle for a visual inspection. Unless you already have a new one. Best of luck.

[Mike McKown]

First off, a pcv valve is a "controlled" vacuum leak. The leak is calibrated in the valve itself. That's why there's different valves for different applications.

If you pull the valve straight up out of the grommet, the idle rpm should stay either the same or pick up slightly. With the valve "in car position" stick your finger over the end of the valve. There should be a noticeable drop in idle rpm.

You can put a piece of tape over the pcv opening and go for a drive and see if your problem goes away.

[clintorino]

well i warmed my car up, pulled out the pcv valce and covered it with my finger and wow what a suction!! I then covered it with some electrical tape and drove it but still hesitation. When i mean hesitation, just one big hesitation when i slowly press on the gas.

I then parked the car, removed the pcv value and shook it to hear if it made any noise and it did. Therefore can we say that it isn't a pcv valve problem?

I also removed my distributor cap and noticed when opening it, on the area futhest down, there was some oil. I cleaned it out and still, hesistations.... what do you suggest next?

[Mike McKown]

I know you have at least three threads going on this problem. To avoid confusion and duplicate posting, you may want to start a new thread and consolidate everything.

Your symptoms you describe are somewhat confusing. You say you have a hesitation, then it runs fine, then a shop tells you your engine is bad and causing your ignition to misfire intermittently. Need a clarification of what your engine is actually doing and when.

That said, your problem started with the oil change? Maybe somebody crossed a vacuum hose on either your air cleaner or your distributor vacuum advance control?