Exhaust manifold gasket

[LEOL]

Anyone have Good or bad experiences with particular brands of Exhaust manifold gaskets??

the RH side on my expy has clearly been replaced recently, but after i tested and tightened it, it is still leaking.

The gasket is of the type that is a solid crush type material like this...


My big question is if anyone has had better luck with MAHLE gaskets as they make an exhaust manifold
gasket that is a replica of the OEM ford gasket, like this....



Since the gasket thats on there, similar to the first one above, leaks... im not inclined to replace it with another one , and im wondering about the quality of the MAHLE brand/style... if anyones used it.

 

[LEOL]

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[JoeD]

exhaust manifold warped?

 

[MLKESQ]

Not sure on the Ford but had good luck with Victor Reins on a Dodge a few years back

 

[Adieu]

Mahle is a solid brand afaik

Seems to make a lot of good quality odds and ends for German cars, havent had issues

 

[LEOL]

JoeD, Yes the manifold is new but is certainly possibly warped right off the bad... the manifold is clearly relatively new... looking at it a second time, i noticed CHINA stamped on it... so it seems the used lot i bought it from probably had someone like Big-O throw cheap parts at it. ive seen cheap crap like that warp the first time you get the engine up to Operating temp in summer heat.... so guess ill have to pull it off and see.

i dont even know if it is yet... BUT if it is warped from being garbage metal though.... since its already been subjected to heat warping, it may be less likely to warp further, So i MAYBE able to get away with having a shop grind it flat and make it right.

Also, i realize it is not needed or typically used on most newer vehicles, but is there any legitimate reason NOT to use copper anti-seize on exhaust manifold studs and gaskets??

 

[JoeD]

Have you looked at these?
Percy's Seal-4-Good Header Gaskets 66055
35/pair from Summit

fwiw - my 2v 5.4 F150 needs its 3rd pass side, still factory on the other

 

[JoeD]

JoeD, Yes the manifold is new but is certainly possibly warped right off the bad... the manifold is clearly relatively new... looking at it a second time, i noticed CHINA stamped on it... so it seems the used lot i bought it from probably had someone like Big-O throw cheap parts at it. ive seen cheap crap like that warp the first time you get the engine up to Operating temp in summer heat.... so guess ill have to pull it off and see.

i dont even know if it is yet... BUT if it is warped from being garbage metal though.... since its already been subjected to heat warping, it may be less likely to warp further, So i MAYBE able to get away with having a shop grind it flat and make it right.

Also, i realize it is not needed or typically used on most newer vehicles, but is there any legitimate reason NOT to use copper anti-seize on exhaust manifold studs and gaskets??

Your preference, you wrench on your own stuff. Very rare a service tech is going to go the extra mile for a faceless customer, unless its specified by the factory.
I do things for me, to make it easier/better the next time. Just like buying a tool for the job.

 

[LEOL]

Yeah, i agre Joe, i just wondered if there was any reason to refrain from using it... in some applications certain compounds and such can actually cause more issues than they help. for instance using gasket sealer or RTV is good on some types of transmission pans, but on others where a reusable factory gasket is actually a good design, using those sealers/ect... on them can actually be a bad thing.

i have not seen the percy's gaskets... im curious about whether they live up to their product description... normally id just give it a try, but im too broke to be a guinnea pig at the moment. LoL

 

[JoeD]

Leo, I have had a set of their collector gaskets in use for a track car, they seal well.