V/C gasket leaking, only 30K since replacement
 

Hi all. First I'd like to say ... so thrilled to join! You know that country song with the lyrics, "She thinks my tractors' sexy..."? Humph! It SHOULD say, "She thinks my Isuzus' sexy ..." ;-P

Well here is why I'm joining: I own a '94 Isuzu Trooper with 192K-193K miles. I've done LOTS of maintenance since purchasing it in '08, and have been told that for year/mileage it looks pretty good, under the hood. However, i'm starting to get leaks, etc more often now. I did research before purchasing and expect problems to occur with my tranny around 190-200K, but they're telling me that my Valve Cover gaskets are leaking ... again.

Here is what they said when I took it in for an oil change, and asked them to check a leak directly under the driver side : "your transmission pan is leaking, you'll need to replace the gasket seal. And, your V/C gaskets are leaking, but we don't know why since you had it replaced little over 2 yrs/ about 30K miles ago.' (it'll cost over 600$ to review and fix since the manual labor will be so extensive)

Before I take my car in to get the front tranny gasket seal, and shift gear seals, replaced - what conversation should I have with them about my tranny AND why are my V/C gaskets leaking so soon? Could there be another, and maybe larger, issue occuring that is wearing out my seals so quickly, or is it the quality of parts being used?

Heck, while I am asking all these questions, let me please throw in another - how are U-joints doing on '94s? I take it on forest service roads, but more often than not I drive city (*yawn of boredom*). I swear, Trooper loves backcountry roads, especially ones with some obstacles! :-D

Thanks for reading and looking forward to your responses.

replace the PCV valve and this should reduce the pressure in the crankcase which is most likely causing your repeat valve cover leakage, you should replace your PCV valve about every 15k mile since these are notorious for clogging.