The 2.3-liter engine is found in the Ford Escape Hybrid. The valve cover prevents oil from leaking out of the engine, which could ultimately cause a fire, if ignored for too long a time. The oil deposits dry up on the engine and exhaust, and the heat could ignite the oil. The after-market gasket is manufactured by Federal-Mogul, and is a press-in-place, edge molded gasket. It is also encapsulated -- encased in a material to keep it from soaking up the oil and allowing the oil to seep out -- and liquid elastomer molded.
Jack up the vehicle using the floor jack, and support it with jack stands. Unplug each coil's wiring harness connector. Remove the coil, using the appropriate socket. Remove the spark plugs, using the spark plug socket. Disconnect the crankcase vent hose with the screwdriver.
Remove the two coolant vent tube bracket nuts, using the appropriate socket. Move the bracket and vent tube out of the way. Disconnect the camshaft position sensor, cylinder head temperature sensor, temperature sensor and fuel rail pressure electrical connectors.
Disconnect the vacuum tube from the intake manifold by detaching the pin-type retainer. Move the vacuum tube out of the way. Remove the two accelerator cable bracket nuts. Move the bracket and accelerator cable out of the way.
Remove the power steering tube bracket nut, using the appropriate socket. Move the power steering tube and its bracket out of the way. Detach all the wiring harness retainers from the valve cover studs. Move the harness out of the way. Remove the 14 valve cover bolts, the pull the valve cover off the engine. If the valve cover does not come off easily, tap it with the rubber mallet.
Clean the gasket-mounting surfaces of the valve cover and the engine, using the rubber scraper and the rags. Smear a thin layer of RTV on the valve cover gasket-mating surface. Fit the gasket onto the valve cover. Install the valve cover and tighten the bolts to 89 lb.-inches of torque, following the sequence as outlined in the references.
Reposition the wiring harness. Attach the retainers to the valve cover studs. Reinstall the power steering tube and bracket, and the accelerator control cable and brackets. Tighten all bracket bolts to 53 lb.-inches of torque.
Reattach the vacuum tube and the pin-type retainer on the intake manifold. Reconnect the CHT sensor, fuel rail pressure sensor, temperature sensor and camshaft position sensor wiring harness connectors. Reinstall the coolant vent tube and its bracket. Tighten the nuts to 53 lb.-inches of torque. Reconnect the crankcase vent hose. Reinstall the spark plugs and the ignition coils. Plug in the ignition coils.
