So my pesky cylinder 6 has been a thorn in my side ever since I bought the wagon about a year and a half ago. A few months after I bought it it misfired on 6 so I replaced all the coils and plugs like I planned to anyhow. The wagon has always been an oil drinker, and I was smelling burning oil after running it hard, but a month or so ago it misfired on 6 bad, enough that the plug wasn't usable. I thought, it's been a year so I'll put in a new plug and not worry. Two weeks later, it misfired again and I knew what had to be done: valve cover gaskets. I really don't like cracking the engine open but it's really a life or death situation for the motor. Luckily, the front three cylinders are very easy compared to the back 3.
Thanks to
@bluedevil6 and his fantastic guide, it wasn't bad at all and it was incredibly satisfying cracking the cover's seal and peeling it off 😀 You can maybe tell from the picture that cylinder 6 had more crud around it where oil was likely seeping into the plug tube. The only worry I had is that every bit of plastic under the hood is incredibly brittle due to age. I cracked a couple tabs and even damaged a wire, but nothing a little (or lot) of electrical tape can't fix!
So after a day of driving, I haven't smelled any oil at all and no CEL. I'm hoping that oil consumption has slowed or even stopped. Fingers crossed!
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