Head Gasket - best make?

[30csl]

Hi guys,

who makes the best head gaskets? Victor Reinz seems to be quite respected?

Any tips greatly appreciated.

Regards,

Rohan

 

[MMercury]

who makes the best head gaskets?

I would assume that the best answer would come from someone who performs a lot of gasket replacements and has personal knowledge regarding the various offerings. Since not all failures can be attributed to the gasket versus poor head-block preparation, installation or unrelated extreme overheating, opinions could be all over the spectrum.

For what its worth, I have used gaskets from the big three names: Reinz, Elring and Goetze. I have found them all consistently acceptable and have no personal preference. Given today's global economy, I would not be surprised to learn that there is/are only one or two primary manufacturers and many re-branded or repackaged versions. My biggest concerns would be if the gasket or packaging evidenced mishandling (e.g., kinking) or if the gasket was an older design that has since been revised. Parenthetically, there are semi-custom head gaskets available at higher costs in stainless composites or copper. Having no personal experience with them on an M10 or M30 engine, it is only speculation if they are worth the additional expense. :wink:

http://www.headgasket.com/physics101.html
http://www.cometic.com/sportcompact.aspx
http://www.headgasket.com/faq.html
http://www.dtmpower.net/forum/forced-induction/161621-ics-titan-head-gasket.html

 

[30csl]

Thanks MM,

im not sure the uprated gaskets are for me as its a pretty stock engine. I plan to get the head cleaned up before reassembly so surface prep that side should be ok.

Do i need to remove the valves to have it cleaned up?

Regards,

Rohan

 

[deQuincey]

mine is goetze
seems to work fine
can not tell much more, though

 

[Honolulu]

Don't believe valve removal is required for "clean up" though that term is undefined... do you want to hot tank the head?

Copper or SS gaskets can be used when the head has been shaved below minimum thickness and there's a danger of valves hitting pistons. I suppose they are more resistant to corrosion (?) and are less likely to blow out of high compression motors. But they're not inexpensive.

 

[IS3FIFTY]

Reinz or Goetze

who makes the best head gaskets? Victor Reinz seems to be quite respected?

You can't go wrong with either Reinz or Goetze. Both are OE manufacturers to BMW going way back. I visited the Goetze plant a few years ago, they make the aftermarket gaskets out of the same tools used for the OE ones (just the marking is different) :-D

 

[IS3FIFTY]

Copper or SS gaskets can be used when the head has been shaved below minimum thickness and there's a danger of valves hitting pistons.

Not necessarily. They can be available in various thicknesses, including standard size. The key thing about metal gaskets is that they perform better in high compression/high heat environments. So better for racing or for modern engines in general. However, they have lower tolerance and require the head and block to be resurfaced to super smooth finish (smoother than for a regular composite material gasket) and absolute flat planes.