Exhaust gasket again
Thread Starter
Burning Brakes
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 1,108
Likes: 0
From: Sebastian Florida
Exhaust gasket again
My NEW pass. side header gasket just blew. At the front of the engine. This gasket is less than a month old. Did I do something wrong or just got a defective gasket or what?
Safety Car
Joined: Oct 2000
Posts: 3,547
Likes: 12
From: Carbondale Pa.
Are you sure the flange is straight/flat/true/whatever ? What I used to do was to tighten them up and then after a ride go over them again, and before I used the car again (cold) I would go over them one more time and then check them for tightness from time to time and snug the loose ones up, after a while (only days) they no longer needed any more attention but if I was under the hood for other reasons I'd give 'em the once over,these were just run of the mill MR.GASKET header gaskets, nothing special. Good luck, Peace,,,Moosie 
Drifting
Joined: Mar 2008
Posts: 1,900
Likes: 3
From: Nixa Missouri
Dont know if this will help or not but I'm re-installing my stock exhaust manifolds & I'm going to have to go re-read this but I think theres a torque setting of 30 ft/lbs on the exhaust manifolds. Is theres a torque setting on headers as well? If so and all bolts have equal torque on them might cause less tendency to leak.
Team Owner
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 37,637
Likes: 3,118
From: Crossville TN
If you don't use lock-wire or French locks on the exhaust manifold bolts, they will just get loose and back out with heat/time. The gaskets change size/degrade with heat cycling. That's why GM didn't put exhaust gaskets under the manifolds...just bolted them down (with the French locks).
Race Director
Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 14,112
Likes: 28
From: Florida
An old trick is to cut the flange between the 1st pipe and middle tubes and then the last pipe and middle tubes.
It allows the flanges to fit tighter on all ports and usually eliminates any gasket problems.
I always do it.
It allows the flanges to fit tighter on all ports and usually eliminates any gasket problems.
I always do it.
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Race Director
Joined: Sep 2004
Posts: 11,874
Likes: 263
From: Arlington Va Current ride 04 vert, previous vettes: 69 vert, 77 resto mod
make sure your bolts are not bottoming out so that when you think it is all the way tightened down it really is not. i had to grind off the bottom of my bolts so they did not bottom out
Melting Slicks
Joined: Feb 2007
Posts: 2,136
Likes: 62
From: West Kingston RI
Been there done that.
