RajDatta

Hi guys, so twice now I have had this issue where I have an intake leak on the #1 manifold port. Its on the intake manifold side. The rest of the ports remain perfectly sealed. The gaskets were Elring Klinger, I also have 2 spare brand new sets of factory 2.7 intake gaskets.

Has anyone else seen this? Only changes were I changed the turbo hotside last yr and had to clock it. This caused some clearance issues on the intake which were all sorted (atleast I think, had to grind the intake and turbo a bit).

Is it recommended to double gasket? Car runs great but as it warms up the idle starts to increase. When cold, idle is perfect.

Ideas besides taking it apart again and checking the flatness of the intake.

hot-J

Sounds like something is hitting and it is not sealing properly. I wouldnt double gasket. Too much pressure.

rlm328

May want to coat your gasket with some type of sealant next time.

RajDatta

Probably, any ideas what are typical points that cause interference. I have already confirmed the turbo to intake clearance, the intake mounting bracket on the front and the rear intake mounting bracket.

RajDatta

I was thinking Permetex type of sealant that is oil resistant.

refresh951

Throttle body/intake hitting the turbo compressor. Very common if you have a Garrett turbo.

RajDatta

I thought I confirmed this but will check again. It is a GT3076 with .63 A/R. Had a .82 A/R and wanted better spool up.

refresh951

You can use some clay or plumbers putty to check clearance. Generally it hits on a compressor bolt boss. I clocked the compressor but still had to take off a good bit of one boss with a Drexel. You can also double gasket to provide more clearance.

RajDatta

Thanks Refresh, this is what I was thinking. Double gasket, but some suggested it might not work. I don't see why it wouldn't. The gaskets are bolted down pretty tight so there is no room for leakage.

Thom

How about some debris in bolt holes in the head causing bolts to bottom out before tightening the intake properly?

RajDatta

Thom, never thought of this possibility but you never know. I am using the proper length cheese heads, I checked this part for sure. The engine is very clean but it never hurts to confirm.

thx

refresh951

I used double gaskets with my T04E with no issues.

RajDatta

Refresh, you were spot on. I did confirm that the throttle body part of the intake is hitting the turbo for sure. I could not fit a feeler gauge between the turbo wheel and the intake. There is a clocking bolt on the turbo right below the throttle body section of the intake that is hitting, hence causing the other end of the #1 port not sitting 100% flat against the intake gasket. Time to dremel.

V2Rocket

THe other day I was thinking about how hard it would be to use an o-ring type gasket for the intake manifold flange like many newer cars have (Ford Modular, LS series, etc). You would need to cut a groove into the manifold surface or the head for each o-ring to seat in but the other mating surface is just flat metal to squish the o-ring (like the 944 throttle body seal).

Would that be an improvement over the stock paper gasket, or be useful in conjunction with one?

RajDatta

Great concept but you know those crush rings ain't cheap.

Update: ground off the turbo clocking section and bolt. Double checked after install and feeler gauge has plenty of space now. True test would be a drive. Snowing right now, so it will have to wait.

Thanks everyone. Really appreciate it.

Regards.