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My apologies. I did purchase the 12204-50020 for my 2002, not the 12204-50030!
I will try to pry it out as best I can given the hard brittle state of the grommet, remove the grommet (breaking it as little as possible) and replacing both.
Will report back in a few days on how it went when I get a chance to do it.
OK, so almost 4 months later (not several days as I said on my last post in July!), I installed the new PCV Valve and Grommet.
The old grommet was hard as plastic and I had to break it to get it out. I did fish a couple of small pieces out of the valve cover that had fallen in but couldn't get another small piece out. As others have mentioned, there is a baffle there so I don't see any way it would ever cause a problem.
I was a little concerned though about how 'gunked' up the PCV valve was. Granted, it was original with 185,000 miles on it! There was a fair amount of stuff visible in the hole. Not really sludge, was more a crumbly oily sort of buildup. When I replaced my valve cover gaskets about a year ago, the valves and heads looked great. No sludge at all, just some varnish stains. So I am not really worried about it, I assume that junk just builds up there because there's no oil flow, just hot oily gas that can create this stuff after 14 years and 185,000 miles! Although I do wish I had cleaned all that out when the valve covers were off.
Attached some pics.
Opinions? Anything to worry about?
I am going to check the PCV valve after a couple of thousand miles and see how much buildup there is after it's been installed for a while. I will also be replacing the $3 grommet every year to avoid it becoming hard again!
Last edited by mekelly; 11-08-16 at 10:45 AM.
Reason: correction
Nothing to worry about. The deposits are from blow-by gasses and oil mist condensing on the surfaces involved. You are correct in saying that there is no oil flow there to clean them out. As your engine wears the deposits will accumulate faster as there is more blow-by past worn rings.
The PCV valve in my 2002 easily comes out (not a screw-in), cleaned it for the first time last year, car was 13 years old with 134000kms. It was mildly contaminated so I sprayed MAF sensor cleaner in both ends and shook it really well to get the ball and spring cleaned.
They are pretty cheap to replace, but I don't like adding plastic to the landfill, so I'd rather add 5 minutes to my post-winter checkup to clean it out. If the ball and spring is locked up solid or too gunked up, just replace it.
Hi, I think I found the correct PCV valve for my 03 ls430 - https://www.rockauto.com/en/moreinfo...416642&jsn=367
And I found the grommet as well. Does anyone have a picture showing where the PCV is located? Also should I go ahead and replace the air hose that connects to here as well. Thanks!
Very surprised it came out easily after 13 years. Was the rubber grommet not hardened at all?
Mine was like hard brittle plastic, not pliable at all.
The valve itself has always come out easily enough (I pulled it out for a cleaning every 2-3 years). I didn't say I changed the grommet back in 2016. In December 2018, I installed a brand new OEM valve and grommet.
Valve was no problem as usual, but getting the grommet out required a ton of effort and multiple pliers and flathead screwdrivers of differing lengths and angles. I spent a lot of time carefully gripping with pliers and prying it out with flatheads. I didn't want to apply too much pressure to one spot in case it was brittle. Definitely replace this grommet every 16 years or earlier.
PCV Valve for 2001-2003 LS430: 12204-50020
PCV Valve Grommet for 2001-2003 LS430: 90480-18001
No need to replace the hoses unless they leaks and/or don't hold tight. The PCV valve is easy to find, remove the engine cover, look on the engine block near the oil fill cap but slightly towards the windshield, and above the spark plugs. The valve will be covered by a black heat insulator, but you'll see the hoses running into it. Pictures at https://www.clublexus.com/forums/gs-...ml#post8030377
The valve itself has always come out easily enough (I pulled it out for a cleaning every 2-3 years). I didn't say I changed the grommet back in 2016. In December 2018, I installed a brand new OEM valve and grommet.
Valve was no problem as usual, but getting the grommet out required a ton of effort and multiple pliers and flathead screwdrivers of differing lengths and angles. I spent a lot of time carefully gripping with pliers and prying it out with flatheads. I didn't want to apply too much pressure to one spot in case it was brittle. Definitely replace this grommet every 16 years or earlier.
PCV Valve for 2001-2003 LS430: 12204-50020
PCV Valve Grommet for 2001-2003 LS430: 90480-18001
No need to replace the hoses unless they leaks and/or don't hold tight. The PCV valve is easy to find, remove the engine cover, look on the engine block near the oil fill cap but slightly towards the windshield, and above the spark plugs. The valve will be covered by a black heat insulator, but you'll see the hoses running into it. Pictures at https://www.clublexus.com/forums/gs-...ml#post8030377
I had a similar issue with the grommet for the PCV. A previous sloppy/lazy Indy did not replace the grommet for the PCV. This is after I gave him every single part necessary for the valve cover gasket replacement. I was really pissed when I found out years later the old grommet was not replaced. When I replaced the PCVa few years ago with a new OEM, the new Indy asked me if I wanted to attempt to remove the old hardened like a rock grommet. I said no.....no reason to chance it as it most likely would not break on it's own and fall into the valley. If I try to remove it, it's a good chance it will break into many parts and fall in. I decided to leave well enough alone. That was a few years ago. So far so good. I didn't want to have to remove the cover in case the vacuum cleaner method did not work.
I just did the PCV replacement on my 2003 LS430 and I am happy with the results. There are immediate improvements in throttle response and gas mileage 2~4 MPG. I replaced the PVC tube, the grommet and the PCV valve. The improvements are from the new valve but also the from sealing the vacuum leak around the valve cover grommet.
Just a bit of advice for you DIY folks, the only challenge was extracting the old grommet out of the valve cover because it was so brittle that it broke into pieces. I made a tool by bending a hex key into a hook to insert into the grommet and pull the largest pieces upward through the hole. If grab the top of the grommet with a pair of pliers the grommet will break when you pull up on it. You can pull out the biggest pieces fairly easy but I had to extract grommet pieces that broke away and fell inside the valve cover by grabbing them with a pair of hemostats. I vacuumed inside the grommet hole with a shop vac, to ensure that I got out every particle of the old grommet. Don't leave grommet particles inside as they could eventually travel internally and clog an oiling port in the motor. Other than that testy grommet, it was an easy job. Just expect the old grommet to break up when you remove it. Unless there exists some specialty tool, I doubt there is an easy way to keep from destroying the old grommet when you take it out.
I'm currently trying to replace the PCV valve on my 2002 and it won't move at all -- haven't even had to deal with the grommet yet. Does anyone have any erudite wisdom on removing the valve as well as the grommet? I've used my hands at the hose end of the valve and if I pull any harder it will certainly break. Using pliers at the base of the valve hasn't lead anywhere either.
Are you able to twist it? If not, take a pair of pliers and turn it inside the grommet. Then take and spray between the grommet and valve with a lubricant. Your going to have to pull hard or try to pry it up and out with a small screwdriver.
Originally Posted by LeX2K
I hit them with a heat gun sometimes it works. If pieces fall into the valve cover the baffles will trap them.
07-22-16, 03:36 PM
