It seems I have one. Has anyone done this that can tell me the do's and donts and what to look out for? Also should I look into a performance replacement or do the stock ones do just fine?
Cheers
Cheers
intake manifold gasket leak
- Thread starter dirtfella
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Gas or diesel?
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- #3
Sorry 2f gasoline
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If it turns out to be a failed gasket, use one from 'Remflex'. It's a completely different material. Good to 3000 degrees and is compressible to fill irregularities in the surface. Spendy but well worth it. I ordered mine from napa store.. I think they have a website.
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- #5
remflex thanks. I guess I should get all apart before I go buy anything, the sound is coming from underneath the intake but above the exhaust so it could be a crack but I hope not! Would be an excuse for some performance parts but I am trying to do this on a small budget so I can have cheap fun in it. Always more fun. Anyone know if these areas are prone to crack?
I've had the same issue you've got. Have you tracked the leaky area down? I used starter fluid to track the area down then after pulling the manifold it was easy to see leakage by the carbon marks.
first start with ture square surfaces. A metal square will work on the head. The manifold is easy to have planed by a machine shop BUT BE CAREFUL! The aluminum manifold will grind away faster than the cast iron peices and leave you with a manifold set that is uneven and difficult to seal. This was my problem here, uneven manifold thickness. If you get in this situation it's a real pita. You must use 1/2 cut shims/washers to build up the proper thickness on the intake bolting surfaces. Have I lost you yet?
I've used felpro intake gaskets and small amounts of high temp copper gasket around the intake then torqued up the manifolds slowly to spec. I don't know the torque off-hand but it is fairly low like 30 lbs or so. I've heard of folks doubling up gaskets and such but I'd avoid that. The important thing is to insure a true square as possible and clean surface. If the manifold thickness of the intake and exhaust manifold is the same you should be ok and this will be an easy fix.
Measure or inspect the thickness at the bolt face to the machine face, if they are out of wack and the gasket won't take up the slack no amount of torque is going to seal it. Epoxy some shims (washers cut in 1/2) on the bolt face to get those shared surfaces on the manifolds the same height.
Check your valves inside the head with the manifold off and make sure they aren't wet from bad valve seals! Not a hard job just time consuming. dont forget to get a new donut gasket for the exaust pipe!
first start with ture square surfaces. A metal square will work on the head. The manifold is easy to have planed by a machine shop BUT BE CAREFUL! The aluminum manifold will grind away faster than the cast iron peices and leave you with a manifold set that is uneven and difficult to seal. This was my problem here, uneven manifold thickness. If you get in this situation it's a real pita. You must use 1/2 cut shims/washers to build up the proper thickness on the intake bolting surfaces. Have I lost you yet?
I've used felpro intake gaskets and small amounts of high temp copper gasket around the intake then torqued up the manifolds slowly to spec. I don't know the torque off-hand but it is fairly low like 30 lbs or so. I've heard of folks doubling up gaskets and such but I'd avoid that. The important thing is to insure a true square as possible and clean surface. If the manifold thickness of the intake and exhaust manifold is the same you should be ok and this will be an easy fix.
Measure or inspect the thickness at the bolt face to the machine face, if they are out of wack and the gasket won't take up the slack no amount of torque is going to seal it. Epoxy some shims (washers cut in 1/2) on the bolt face to get those shared surfaces on the manifolds the same height.
Check your valves inside the head with the manifold off and make sure they aren't wet from bad valve seals! Not a hard job just time consuming. dont forget to get a new donut gasket for the exaust pipe!
You might want to try re-torquing the manifolds before removing them to install a new gasket. Go from the center out.
Read this and laugh. Then go buy some gaskets.
https://forum.ih8mud.com/40-55-series-tech/182500-thanks-info.html
https://forum.ih8mud.com/40-55-series-tech/182500-thanks-info.html
Real easy to remove.
This gasket from remflex is great. I've used it on 2 different 2f's with headers. The first one had uneven mating surfaces and still sealed due to its thickness and how it crushes at the mating surface. Steve
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- #12
Yeah thats pretty much in a nutshell, this remflex gasket has me wondering now... Island 45 where did you come across these???
We've all been down that road together huh. I love the wifes comment on wingnuts! Shes a keeper!
Read the link D'animal posted it's funny now, but to avoid this milling/resurfacing will help. I'm a but of a perfectionist so I go the extra mile sometime too often. Milling can also F things up if it's not done properly. As in my case when the exhaust manifold was resurfaced the manifolds were not attached tightly and the ends of the exhaust manifold (I've a 3-piece unit) were floating about a bit. When this was done the manifold thickness became different from one piece to another. Follow still? Another bit of advice is as mentioned in that link, loosen the exhaust and intake from one another at the heat riser a little, tighten to the head then torque the heat riser up. I pulled out my heat riser and blocked it off as I live in a temperate climate (Not today though) and feel it's overkill.
Here is a pic from todays work new head and h20 pump! Manifold tomorrow unless it snows. Good luck and enjoy. I might look into that remflex gasket if I were you that sounds like a good product.
Is you exhaust manifold one peice or three piece? It depends on the year. You can go to SOR and find out by looking at the diagrams.
Here is a pic from todays work new head and h20 pump! Manifold tomorrow unless it snows. Good luck and enjoy. I might look into that remflex gasket if I were you that sounds like a good product.
Is you exhaust manifold one peice or three piece? It depends on the year. You can go to SOR and find out by looking at the diagrams.
hers the pic of my lastest headjob...
I had the same problem and decided to have a machine shop mill the manifolds. Installed them with an OEM gasket and haven't had any leaks since.
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FJunker, Spotcruiser here on the forum sent me a link to their site. Remflex even sent me a small sample of the material about 1/8 thick and said to sqeeze it with pliers. it crushed down to about 1/16 and left a sharp print of the plier jaws. They are graphite and used in extreme applications in industry for 30 years. I admit I also have had my manifolds off a couple times since fall and have a new set ready and a remflex gasket hanging in the shop, so I still havent used it yet. Remflex said they could sell me one outright but suggested getting it from napa store so as to avoid shipping. It was about 58 bucks. While on the subject, I have always surfaced all my manifolds at home. My last leaks were between the manifolds and like d'animal they eluded me. This is how I surface a combination manifold. Keep in mind I live on an island and there is no 'corner machine shop'. It could be more than a week just with shipping. I have a cabinet shop and use stick on adhesive sandpaer routinely. I stick a couple feet of about 80 grit on the cast iron outfeed table of my jointer. Holding the manifold like some kind of jack plane, i scuff it back and forth and keep lifting it up and checking. It comes down quite nicely and it's very easy to tell when you are all done. There are even some cast iron bosses on the exhause side that keep one from tilting it. I have done this many times over the years and that combined with the remflex, I'm thinking will be the answer. Good luck!
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- #19
Thanks for all the info folks. I have some rusty bolt syndrome and this task is looking harder all the time. I got the sinking feeling I am going to have a couple break off. Lame. Yhis thing seems to have many leaks. I wonder if I smell a sbc. I dont want to but I think a cans of worms has been cracked open
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- #20
anyone have the remflex part number?
