RTV on head gaskets = how bad?

yeah, BAD idea.

although my felpro mls gaskets use some type of rubber on the metal surface.....must be super high temp, but hell it works!

We have tons of permatex stuff at work.. The stuff that says 600* RTV silicone or gasket maker does <B> _NOT_ </B> do well under heat. A customer came in with some of it on a piece of metal and I was able to burn it off with a lighter.

Doubt a lighter gets up to the temp. of your heads.

17yrOldStanger said:

using it on the head gaskets isnt a bad idea.... its a horrible idea.

Click to expand...

funny and true

No type of sealant/RTV should ever be used on head gaskets. The only time I've ever seen such a thing is when hackers are trying to compensate for a warped head/deck.

Some idiots that did the last headgasket swap on my wife's car apparently used dots of RTV to hold the gasket in place (As if the locating dowels weren't enough!) It makes a lovely circular char mark on the block that takes forever to get off with a razorblade. They also told her that they were installing copper gaskets so that they would never blow again, and they charged her $150 for them. When I pulled them off you can still see the blue stripes from the $12.00 Felpro gaskets! That's why I don't like to let anyone else work on my cars.