valve stem seals

[colin]

how easy are the valve stem oilseals to change without removing head for a amature to do

[guitarswet]

If you read my notes in the restoration section you will see that it is possible to change the valve stem oil seals on the car but it is not straight forward and you require a special spring compressor tool. The tool can be bought (eg from Burton) but it is probably about half the cost of the job. The seals are about £5 per set but you will need to pay around £75 to have them done.

If you have chronic white smoke on start-up then you should get them replaced. It will fail its MOT otherwise. It transformed my car having them done although I changed them again during my strip down, which is the easy way to change them.

[Jon B]

You don't have to have any special tools - to compress the valve springs I used the handles of a pair of pliers, and a small screwdriver to remove the collets. It is a bit of a pain, but it can be done.