Source for valve cover bolt o rings?
 

I can't seem to find the o rings for the bolts on the valve cover sold separately. The bolts are fine that I have but the rubber o rings have degraded.
The bolts are so crazy priced, that I'm not buying a new set.
So if anyone knows if the o rings can be bought separate or the size of the o ring that would be great.

MINI doesn't offer them by themselves so it makes it a pain and not cheap.
https://www.waymotorworks.com/valve-...53.html?&cat=0

You might try going to your local auto part store and see if they have an assortment of injector rail o-rings to pick from...take one of your bolts with you to test for fitment.....

I'm sure you can come up with something close.....if not, then the $17 for WMW bolt set is not all that bad

Bryan

Yeah, except the complete set is $165 !!!

Ah, my bad......I was looking at the link on my phone....I didn't see the drop down box for the complete bolt set.......

I would still try the injector o-ring idea......it worked well for mounting the ignition coil to the valve cover on my car

Bryan

My independent MINI garage suggested I change the valve cover gasket at some point & cautioned me to get a gasket set that includes the seals. Apparently, some do & some don't.
On the face of it, these might be correct from BMW:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/BMW-VICTOR-...-/271773530322

Can anyone compare & confirm?

I have not yet gone shopping for my gasket so I'll be interested in the outcome.

Those might work, I would have to see one to compare to the OE R50-R53 bolt o-ring.

I have a spare valve cover here, complete with bolts & o-rings.....I pulled an o-ring off and cleaned it up, ours are more "rounded" than the ones in the ebay link.....but it's the thickness that matters, if it fits the bolt and our valve cover snug, they may work

Here are the numbers on the o-ring that I just cleaned up -> BS1001B0-C1 ADB 220

Bryan

https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.nor...f4a7e698cd.jpg
https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.nor...dec7844a55.jpg

Thanks for the ideas guys. I was thinking some of the same things either look for something that is for another car.
​Or just looking at the local hardware store. But the ones at the local store gonna be heat and oil resistant. (Or at least for some time.)

Bryan any idea of the ID OD and thickness of the o ring?

which I why I suggested the auto parts store.....the injector rail o-rings are gonna be way better than hardware store items

Bryan

let me get some measurements and I'll post back my findings

Bryan

Measurements of OE o-ring are as follows......dimensions are in mm.....

OD - 18.85mm
ID - 8.65mm
Thickness on the outer edge - 6.05mm

Now with that said.....I have a toolbox full of o-rings and such that I have collected over my years of being an auto technician, I found a couple blue ones in my stash that are almost perfect replacements.....but I don't know what they were for......I want to say FORD 3.8l intake manifold bolts, but not sure (EDIT, not the FORD intake bolts, just checked).......most any vehicle that has plastic intake manifolds or valve covers use the same style long bolt & o-ring for sealing.......there is a substitute out there.....it just has to be found.....

I still say find an injector rail o-ring that is close and see if it will work......or try to find a brand name valve cover gasket that comes complete with the o-rings.....like Felpro, and other well known brands.....you don't have to change the valve cover gasket every time you take it off.......

Bryan

https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.nor...6468e3004f.jpg
https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.nor...e3003f5292.jpg

Awesome thanks for the measurements. Yeah the blue one seems like a dead ringer.
I'll see if I can come across anything online tonight.
Perhaps something in Viton ( if that's the name) since that material is heat and chemical resistant.

Just about any o-ring that is used on an engine will be very resistant to heat and chemicals, unlike the hardware store ones

I'm still trying to figure out what the blue one fits, but my memory is not the best anymore

Bryan

I'm fairly certain the dealership sells the valve cover bolts for significantly less than WMW. I cannot recall the specific prices, but I remember being surprised at the price of the bolts from the dealership when I broke one of mine and had to get a replacement. If the o-ring method doesn't work, get a quick price check from your dealership.

Did a little research today, seeing the engine was a joint venture between Chrysler and BMW, I decided to look at the 2.4l engine and see if it's the same....the picture below is a valve cover bolt with o-ring..... when the wife gets home tomorrow with her PT cruiser, I'll pull a cover bolt and compare

Bryan

https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.nor...66d3efe27.jpeg

I came across that same Chrysler valve cover bolt picture last night while searching as well.
I believe it had the bolt listed between 5-6$. Definitely cheaper if it works the same which it does look very similar. But was unable to see if the rubber o ring was sold separately.

https://www.ecstuning.com/Search/Sit...h/11121437395/

Very close but they have a little different design, more of a washer then the donut design, guess it could work. My hardware was so bad I am going to replace the screws/bolts with the little grommets, the years of water and moisture on that valve cover has torn bolt heads up.

If I take one bolt out so that I can do some comparisons at the local parts store, will oil start gushing out? ! ! !

No, certainly not with the car turned off. The only time oil is flowing up there is when there's oil pressure in the case.

If you're very concerned, you can gently loosen them all, remove one, and then ensure they're all evenly and correctly torqued back into place. I don't know how flimsy that gasket will be; this could relieve pressure that may otherwise cause a leak by binding the gasket a bit.

FOUND THEM!!!

I went up to my local auto parts store this morning and talked with the guy that I have been dealing with over the years..... as I stated yesterday, I thought that these were the same as my wife's PT Cruiser, and I was right......he even had them on the shelf, price was under $15 for a package of 10, (your price may vary) ......they are blue, not black....so the purists might frown upon them

Felpro part number is ES73026, you get 10 per package, they are called "valve cover grommets", not "o-rings"......I just told him they were for a 2003 PT Cruiser with 2.4 engine, no turbo

So.....there ya go......I love it when a plan comes together

Bryan

https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.nor...5b235e01b7.jpg
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.nor...0185ba52bb.jpg
https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.nor...50b703041c.jpg

yep we can get those, Nice job and it added some color to the valve cover!

https://www.ecstuning.com/Search/SiteSearch/ES_73026/

https://c1552172.ssl.cf0.rackcdn.com/1316574_x800.webp

That's funny Bryan I found the same thing. I ordered them last night. Was waiting for them to come in to confirm. I figured they looked to much like the blue ones you showed yesterday not to be them.
can get them for $7 and change at Rock Auto, but obviously shipping on top of that .
Good you confirmed, and nice there's options out there instead of having to replace the entire bolt.

I was pleased to find a substitute for the grommets as well.....I went ahead and just bought the set that my parts store had.....I figure with our 2 MINI's and the wife's PT Cruiser, I'll eventually use them......

I'm not a big Rock Auto fan......sometimes the shipping prices are a little high.....and the parts quality is not the best, at least for me......my opinion, consider the source

Bryan