I have seen in perf. Products catalogs aluminium (?) valve covers for the 914. They say these dont warp, run cooler....Any real world experiences out there? Mine work fine, and i can think of other ways of spending $100.....

Ive often wondered about these myself. They also claim to suppress the valvetrain noise better?

They secure with studs that protrude up off of the towers thought the top, so that alone seem to me as a better way to secure the covers than the spring tention of 30 yr old latches.

But pricey :finger2:

JUNK, GARBAGE, POS, CRAP, DO-DO, TOTAL SHIT!!!

Stick with the stock V/C's, If you have problems try a set of new covers, that sit flat and make sure that your heads are vented.

The bolt ons are shit, they leak, they're a PITA, they have even been known to fall off. I have seen many a bug engine killed by these covers.
So they're pretty, who cares? Who is ever going to see them?

Remember the spring bales work because air-cooled engines expand and contract a lot!
A bolt just can not do this!

Save you coin for something better.

My experience with them is that they require "repairing" before being useful. That seems to be a standard requirement for aftermarket parts.
What I found is that the gasket surface really isn't flat, and the surface where the bolt head makes contact is not at the correct angle. The rocker arm studs are not at a 90 degree angle to the head, but the machined surface on the valve cover is. These two areas require machining to fit correctly.
Some people have expressed concern about the added stress on the rocker studs, but I haven't had a problem with this.

I dont know about Type 4 engines, but in Type 1 engine they are ..... crap. I tested some stupid EMPI valve covers and they didnt suppress the valvetrain noise any better. They leak and they..... dont even look better. I recommend to use the money in some other and better way