I've got an 02 Sunfire with the OHV of Fury, just to give a little background to this question.

I've got 42200 on it and have never had a problem...until this last oil change. I switched to Mobil1 Tri-Synthetic oil, put in 4.5 qts, and almost immediately I noticed an oil leak. There is a fine film of oil around the valve cover gasket- is it possible that I just overfilled it, or is it time to change that gasket? I've never heard of a valve-cover gasket going bad at 42k before, but hey, it wouldn't be the first time in my life I was a trend-setter.


I may not be the sharpest crayon in the box, but at least I'm a pretty color

Synthetic oil passes by worn seals rather easily, use conventional.
It is possible for the gasket to be bad, so change both.
It's a rather easy fix.

Thanks man, I guess I'll do that.


I may not be the sharpest crayon in the box, but at least I'm a pretty color

No problem, if you do not have one, get a repair manual that will give you the torque specs on the gasket, as well as the tightening procedure.
It is essential, unless you want to do it again.