So far the machine shop has been dragging their feet on doing anything to the valve cover. I think that they're not cheerful about teh prospects. My mechanic keeps pressing them to think if there is something they can do to improve the situation. If not, it looks like we'll probably bolt it back on, apply some external sealant to where the surfaces no longer meet just right, and trade it on something else.

I would hate to do that, because I love to drive this car. But I need to get past this particular issue.