Valve seals replace while in the car

[Ray Thomas]

I have a 1995 subaru Legacy with over 300k miles on it. I think the valve seals are no longer sealing the valves because the engine really smokes at start up especially in cold weather. After the engine warms up most of the smoke disappears. Is there a way to replace the valve seals with the engine still in the car. Other than that the engine runs great.
Thanks, Ray

Topic

[Richard Kirshy]

If there is enough room you might try just removing the heads.

[Ray Thomas]

I know some Subaru’s you almost have to remove the head because the valves are under the cam. What I think I’ll do is pull the valve cover and if it has removable rocker arms I’ll take them off and if I can get to valves maybe I can fabricate a valve spring compressor to get to the seals. I thought if I was to remove the heads I might as well go through the whole engine.

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