Engine Cover Removal?

You don't have to, but it helps.

Removing the plastic engine cover will allow more heat to radiate from the engine, which in theory helps in the battle against knock. It also removes about 5 lbs of weight. After shedding the cover, you'll notice there are brackets on the engine that used to hold the cover on. Removing these will rid your engine of almost 4 more lbs of weight.

You'll notice the engine looks entirely different with the cover off, and it may not appeal to everyone, especially those wanting to keep everything stock. Sometimes it takes a while for the exposed engine to grow on you, but it's not a bad looking motor when cleaned up. And if you decide you don't like it, you can always put everything back to the way it was.

You can also remove the brackets that are used to lift the engine to save some weight.

I took the engine cover off my last Riv and by the time i opened the hood gain my previously perstine hood liner was all chewed up
maybe cause i didnt take the mounting bolt out ?
idk but im leaving mine on for now ... this time ....

Hmm, I don't see why it would be related. Your hood liner shouldn't contact the cover when it is installed, AFAIK, so I don't think the bolt would be a problem. Not an issue on my car.

Just a small tidbit of info, If you get PRJ ignition wires, you pretty much have to loose the cover. I couldn't get my cover back on after that wire install.

It's just an unnecessary decoration anyway, and a rarely seen one at that.

I'm painting mine. I got a '95, so the cover's only held down by a little plastic tab that sticks into a square metal arch on the TB.

Still, I'm painting mine. Because we all know that custom paint adds 10 horsepower.

mr riviera wrote:

I took the engine cover off my last Riv and by the time i opened the hood gain my previously perstine hood liner was all chewed up
maybe cause i didnt take the mounting bolt out ?
idk but im leaving mine on for now ... this time ....

that may be caused by a really bad engine mount(s) allowing your engine to rock back and forward

oooooo i was wonderin what u were sayin about it takes weight off...than iian sayin its plastic on the 95...i was so confused hahaha cuz i was like mines plastic...and cant take off that much weight...lol

i hope urs lookks good when u paint it iian..i wanna see pics.

I'd guess more like 2-3 lbs or so. And making the front end lighter isn't necessarily a good thing, if you run at the track at all.

It won't be getting painted until it's warm out, like 70* or so, in NY. I'll definitely post pics, though!

can anybody tell me what i have to do to remove my engine cover? ive looked for the brackets holding it on but i cant find them.

take the oil cap extender out (same way you take the oil cap off, just twist), the nut in the top center, then the front lifts up and the rear goes down and out from under the bracket back there. It' pretty easy but you might need a wrench to take the nut off.

o ok thanks for your help, am i risking anything by taking it off?

As has been answered before, the cover is useless. It just makes your motor look pretty when you open the hood. It's personal preference, although I think you can save a little bit of weight by taking the clips out.

texasfan010 wrote:

.... am i risking anything by taking it off?

no

ofcourse it is up to you but personally i like it with the cover on

I don't consider it completely useless. It had an original purpose... It's extra insulation to help keep underhood temps under control. Prevents people from burning their hands while poking around that amazing engine Oh, and it hides a lot of dirt.

You might have some surprise cleanup to do after you take it off

Uh... if the extra insulation helps control under-hood temps, then it also helps to keep the engine hotter. Imo, the only purposes of the engine cover are looks and to attenuate engine noise.

You can take it off, or leave it on. Makes no real difference.

just take it off unless your one of those people who want to try and hide your supercharger

took mine off today and cleaned the engine. looks purdy

One possible benefit of taking it off, would be to remove the rear bracket it hooks into. By removing that you may find it much easier to access the rear plugs.

Would taking off the cover damage/hurt anything?

DarkVader wrote:

Would taking off the cover damage/hurt anything?

No

thanks

DarkVader wrote:

Would taking off the cover damage/hurt anything?

i wouldnt do it man! it could cause the injectors to loosten and dislodge into the throttle body.which would lead to engine failure