The other day I got my car back from the garage where I had them look it over and do a seal job (cam, crank, front main, etc.). Well, the 'funny' thing was that I drove to a friends house to show him what was done and I discovered that they had forgotten to re-connect the two hoses that are attached to the drivers side valve cover. On the cover there's the fill tube and these two hoses. One of the hoses connects to the air intake through a couple smaller tubes and I couldn't see where the other went. The entire engine comartment had oil sprayed all over.
I've been staying with a friend for a couple days so I don't have access to my Haines manual to see what these hoses do. Any info would be welcomed, thanks.
Valve cover hoses
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Valve cover hoses
--Scott--
1991 - Rio Red SS
1991 - Rio Red SS
-
vrg3
- Vikash
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They're part of the PCV system. If you just drove for a short time with them disconnected, and didn't push the engine hard, it probably didn't hurt anything (assuming nothing fell in!).
http://www.graphics.cornell.edu/~v/vacuum/
http://www.graphics.cornell.edu/~v/vacuum/
"Just reading vrg3's convoluted, information-packed posts made me feel better all over again." -- subyluvr2212
Well, I drove it for about 30 miles like that and I pushed it a little because I just got it back and wanted to see how it drove. What could happen? It would help to know so I'm armed when I talk to the garage. Thanks Vikash, you've given me so many tips and help I wish there was something I could do in return.
--Scott--
1991 - Rio Red SS
1991 - Rio Red SS
-
vrg3
- Vikash
- Posts: 12517
- Joined: Sun Nov 03, 2002 2:13 am
- Location: USA, OH, Cleveland (sometimes visiting DC though)
- Contact:
Hmm, even if you pushed it a little it's probably okay. I don't have a full understanding of the PCV system (http://bbs.legacycentral.org/viewtopic.php?t=16496) but...
The larger nipple is, I think, a fresh air inlet. It usually gets metered filtered air from the intake tubing. So you had a small vacuum leak (unmetered and unfiltered air was entering the system), which could affect idle quality and fuel trims in general. There is also the slight risk of the engine ingesting something bad through the leak.
The smaller nipple helps crankcase vapors move between the crankcase and head. So you might have had higher crankcase pressure than would be ideal (but still not much above atmospheric, since it was exposed to atmosphere), so the engine's volumetric efficiency might have been a teeny bit lower than normal, and the piston rings might not have been sealing quite as well as they should. I doubt it would be enough to actually cause any permanent changes though.
I don't think you need to worry about damage... I wouldn't stress potential damage too much when you talk to the guys at the garage (they also know it's probably not a big deal); I'd instead express concern with the potential lack of attention they gave your car. Hopefully it just slipped their mind at the very end (that sort of thing has happened with me, to be sure), but they did have your cambelt out...
Thanks, I try to be helpful
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The larger nipple is, I think, a fresh air inlet. It usually gets metered filtered air from the intake tubing. So you had a small vacuum leak (unmetered and unfiltered air was entering the system), which could affect idle quality and fuel trims in general. There is also the slight risk of the engine ingesting something bad through the leak.
The smaller nipple helps crankcase vapors move between the crankcase and head. So you might have had higher crankcase pressure than would be ideal (but still not much above atmospheric, since it was exposed to atmosphere), so the engine's volumetric efficiency might have been a teeny bit lower than normal, and the piston rings might not have been sealing quite as well as they should. I doubt it would be enough to actually cause any permanent changes though.
I don't think you need to worry about damage... I wouldn't stress potential damage too much when you talk to the guys at the garage (they also know it's probably not a big deal); I'd instead express concern with the potential lack of attention they gave your car. Hopefully it just slipped their mind at the very end (that sort of thing has happened with me, to be sure), but they did have your cambelt out...
Thanks, I try to be helpful
."Just reading vrg3's convoluted, information-packed posts made me feel better all over again." -- subyluvr2212