Why do Aftermarket HG's Blow? (1 Viewer)

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I have always used Toyota oem head gaskets when pulling the head for what ever reason. And I know most experienced TLC owners agree to also use the oem HG. I always go back and re torque the head. I am going to assume that others do this as well. MAF sales after market from what I can see on their website. It looks as if SOR does as well.

I never actually understood why after market head gaskets suck. You would think the companies that make them would have become wise to this and re-engineered them to work like the oem hg's.

So why do the after market head gaskets fail?
 
FWIW:

I bought the 2F gasket set from SOR because they said it was made by the same OE manufacturer that makes the Toyo OEM gasket. I was at the parts counter and said: "prove it". The guy went away, came back with an OEM gasket, we opened the set, compared the HG against the OEM, and they were the same. Identical. And about $100 bux for the whole set.

Convinced me, and I even get cranky when I can't find OEM bolts.

S.
 
FWIW:

I bought the 2F gasket set from SOR because they said it was made by the same OE manufacturer that makes the Toyo OEM gasket. I was at the parts counter and said: "prove it". The guy went away, came back with an OEM gasket, we opened the set, compared the HG against the OEM, and they were the same. Identical. And about $100 bux for the whole set.

Convinced me, and I even get cranky when I can't find OEM bolts.

S.

So the head gasket SOR sells for like 50 bucks is the very same sold by Toyota? and looks like the one in Jims post?

I just want to know so I can order one if it is the same and not an aftermarket one that is going to blow on a 1200 miles trip.
 
So the head gasket SOR sells for like 50 bucks is the very same sold by Toyota? and looks like the one in Jims post?

I just want to know so I can order one if it is the same and not an aftermarket one that is going to blow on a 1200 miles trip.

I'm just now cleaning the garage, and found the blown HG I removed last summer. Looks just like the after market in Jim's post.

I don't have any pix of the new one, bought almost a year ago, but as I remember, it was exactly like the OEM, but I bought the engine gasket set, not the individual HG. Engine was assembled by a builder, not by me.

I would call SOR to verify, if you're just buying a head gasket, or of course, just play it safe and buy the OEM. But I did hold them side by side and they were the same, far as I could tell. And it wasn't the Kevlar gasket.
 
I'm just now cleaning the garage, and found the blown HG I removed last summer. Looks just like the after market in Jim's post.

I don't have any pix of the new one, bought almost a year ago, but as I remember, it was exactly like the OEM, but I bought the engine gasket set, not the individual HG. Engine was assembled by a builder, not by me.

I would call SOR to verify, if you're just buying a head gasket, or of course, just play it safe and buy the OEM. But I did hold them side by side and they were the same, far as I could tell. And it wasn't the Kevlar gasket.

I wasn't aware they had a kevlar head gasket. I have used their kevlar header gasket and it was awesome.
 
I wasn't aware they had a kevlar head gasket. I have used their kevlar header gasket and it was awesome.


I think you must be the only one in the universe with that experience. Mine blew after 1 trip, and the OEM I replaced it with has been fine for >5 years now.
 
The oem copper washers have a thermal expansion coefficient of 17e-6 ratio/degC and the steel is like 12e-6. That means the copper expands 33% more than the steel for a given temperature increase.

The little rubber rings on my after-market gasket just don't work like the oem copper rings and they looked like they were almost dissolved.
 
no clue why. i used felpro on the lemon twice. both times about six months later, the hg blew. that was it's final demise.

around the same time as the second gasket, a friend's dad rebuilt her motor with felpro. it blew around the same time as my second blow out. he put an oem on and afaik, it's still there...you'd have to ask subzali, he now owns the rig.
 
Forget the HG, I wanna know why my GF won't blow! :eek: :hmm:
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A friend of mine once used an aftermarket HG and the oil passage holes didn't line up and the top end got no oil for some time. That was costly. So when I rebuilt the 2F, I compared an aftermarket gasket with the stocker and found that I had the same issue, the holes for coolant and oil were all different. If I had used it, my motor would have had a very short life. I don't know why, but with regards to Cruisers, the aftermarket suppliers are often wrong. Had the same thing with a water pump, the refference material was way off, I couldn't even tell what the pump was that the parts guy produced, but it wasn't anything like the stocker.
 
UPDATE

Pop pop goes the gasket the gasket
pop pop goes the gasket the gasket
Pop goes the Gasket because the gasket goes

***************POP****************


Well that felpro headgasket fricken blew. I did everything right during the install and post install. Lost it Friday about 50 miles from home with no cell phone and a farm house with no one there.

I will be installing a OEM Toyota head gasket now and call it a day. I just hope it didn't fxxx up the head when it went.
 
Sorry, Dude... How many miles did ya get on the HG replacement ?
 
This actually is funny. My father in law is a old timer that has a racing history . He was telling me sunday night that they used to use a small layer of grease on their headgaskets on the old race cars.

I got to thinking last night when I first seen your thread and talking to my teacher about something similer...that makes sence. lol do not do it I just thought I would share.
 

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