Will they cause problems or can they be let go. My oil pan leaks, valve covor gaskets, and possibly the rear main.

Kinda depends on how much is leaking, and how well you watch the levels.

If it'* just seeping out (stain on the surface), it should be tolerable for a while. A couple or three drips a day is survivable, as long as you check the oil regularly. Much more than that should definitely be looked at.

No oil leak is good, but not all are "life threatening" for your car

i watched a neighbor'* car go up in flames from a leak that went un-fixed... the oil kept dripping onto the exhaust manifold, and one day, it just lit right up

and then the battery exploded, the fire department came, and the entire engine compartment was junked.



anyway, depends on where it is. you can get away w/an oil pan leak w/o too many worries, but honestly, most of the leaks aren't nearly as bad to fix as what you might think. the oil pan didn't take long at all, with a set of ramps to work under (i'm sure a good set of jack stands would make it just as easy). threw in some mobil 1 when i was done, and haven't looked back - no more leaks!

and the motor LOVES the mobil 1... nearly constant pressure, at temps between operating range and -5 degress. gotta love it.

How bout the valve covor gaskets. Are they hard to replace?

Never done one of our cars, but in general they're usually pretty easy

I did them on my 99 when I did the upper intake and lower gaskets. They were easy. Took about an hour...most of the time was spent cleaning the heads and the covers. The rear was a little more tricky just because of the limited space.