Oil leak

[joniki]

I had a small oil leak when I bought the TJ, dime sized after driving it. I cleaned the engine and replaced the valve cover gasket. The gasket was hard and had been compressed. The cover looked good. After cleaning the cast surface and replacing the gasket, after several days, I noticed some oil on top of the cover.

No O ring. Hopefully I got this...

 

[Chris]

Sounds like an easy enough fix.

 

[CharlesHS]

While the missing O ring is certainly a problem; I have found that due to the extreme heat the valve cover plastic fill cap becomes brittle, can distort and develop cracks or the cap thread become stripped due excessive tightening.
When I purchased my '01 I needed to replace the valve cover fill cap since the cap threads were stripped and the O ring had cracks.

 

[joniki]

While the missing O ring is certainly a problem; I have found that due to the extreme heat the valve cover plastic fill cap becomes brittle, can distort and develop cracks or the cap thread become stripped due excessive tightening.
When I purchased my '01 I needed to replace the valve cover fill cap since the cap threads were stripped and the O ring had cracks.

I replaced the oil cap with an OEM cap. I'll drive her for a few days and see what it looks like.