Last weekend me and my brother-in-law installed an UP and DP in my 04 WRX. We put in ERZ pieces and it took a little while to get in but when we went for a test drive the paper material that was in the gaskets blew out and the gasket partially melted causing a really loud leak (happened twice). I am thinking i should get new OEM gaskets and put those in. I was also thinking of putting the copper RTV on the gaskets to help get a good seal. My question is since we took off the manifold to help get the UP out do i need to replace the gasket between the manifold and the block or just reuse the old one, and same goes for the gasket between the manifold and X-over. Also any advice or tips when it comes to using the RTV would really help I am not that familiar with the stuff. I don't know but maybe the RTV would be overkill. :dunno: Advice, suggestions, help are all welcomed. Thanks, Shaun
first off, dont get the oem gaskets again. we(grimmspeed) are now carrying these really nice 50% crush graphite gaskets that are guaranteed, if installed correctly, not to leak. right now we have: turbo to downpipe gasket engine to header gaskets header to crossover gaskets i should have our description and pricing up tomorrow. if you need pricing sooner let me know.
The copper RTV only has a temp rating of 700 degrees, IIRC. OEM gaskets should take care of your problem, since they are much better made.
OEM gaskets..no leaks....and I've had my manifold off a few times, up-pipe out twice, and down pipe out more than I can count. It's a good idea to replace gaskets if you have higher mileage. the small amount of money now will save you hassles down the road. And having leaks before the turbo is no fun
So Justin, do you have 10k miles on any of your graphite sets yet?? I heard that they just don't last. I have always used the stockers. Since you are useing a erz up, you might want to try putting in 2 gaskets at the bottom of the uppipe. The usually helps with a sub-par uppipe. Russ
yeah we just got them this week and i already have 10k on them...pete and i have been driving together lol the guys over at TiC have been using them for a long time with no issues, they love them. btw - putting two stock gaskets together on the pickiest connection in the exhaust system is bound to fail.... i've tried it many of times.
so are the oem ones.... gauranteed IF INSTALLED correctly is the catch.. ha ha but get these if they work... gaskets are gaskets... again as JUSTIN stated IF INSTALLED CORRECTLY... you shouldnt need RTV... I have used a little on my x-over as I had mine off many times when building x-overs, but that was after probably the 15th time apart... and I re-used ALL my factory gaskets when I installed my up & dp and have no leaks... just get soem new ones, either OEM or through Grimmspeed and try again.. take your time and tighten down once you have everything in place...
^^^ we reused all my oem gaskets when we did my exhaust as well.. and I have not leaks either. I think his last sentence is the trick.. put it all together and then tighten everything down, start at the front and work towards the rear.
OEM gaskets are nice for the right price. I picked up a sheet of really nice high temp gasket material for a really nice price at Autozone. Its a graphite material with a metal central layer. I'm gonna redo my turbo to uppipe gasket with that, and I need to put one in my v-band since I don't like how well its seals on its own. If I didn't have an OEM gasket for the lower uppipe connection, I'd make one for that too. That can be a bit time consuming though. That sheet was about $15 and its about 18" by 36".
New gaskets do add up. I replaced both downpipe, both uppipe, and the manifold and crossover gaskets when I did my install.
