Bizarre intake gasket failure

[c9zx]

This is the strangest intake gasket failure I've seen. It was on a Boss 302 Engine. Anyone seen a similar failure mode? Chuck

 

[MeZapU]

Very typical of the FelPro Print-o-Seal gaskets. They have given me and many of my other car friends issues just like this over the years. FelPro denies any issues with the gaskets. They just suck.

I used the metal valley pan gasket for my last 351c build without issue. My other recent hot rod Windsor builds I am using a Cometic gasket. On the standard Windsor builds I use the metal reinforced solid blue FelPro gaskets.

 

[Canted 393]

This is the strangest intake gasket failure I've seen. It was on a Boss 302 Engine. Anyone seen a similar failure mode? Chuck

The guys over on the FE power forum call them print O leaks, I have had good luck with them on clevelands. But I have seen a lot of photos that look like that gasket. Time for something different on my next project.

 

[4Vforever]

Hi Chuck,

Never seen it personally,but have seen pics of the exact same failure years ago, that was said to be caused from ethanol blended fuels apparently. It was never an issue over here until about 10 years ago when that crap blended fuel came in over here. I keep hearing that these gaskets are apparently crap, but I or anybody I know has had any problems with them including using three stacked together each side on a sheet metal intake on a 900+ HP Cleveland on methanol without any dramas. I don't know what to make of these claims though as I've never seen them first hand as no one I know runs that crap fuel, but I know of an E85 Cleveland that has no problems that I'm aware of. I would send that pic to Fel Pro and ask them to explain why they think this failure was caused. Besides yourself, I for one would love to know their answer.

 

[TommyK]

Many posts on the 460 boards about the same type of failure with those gaskets.

 

[c9zx]

Many thanks for the replies everyone. I've located NOS Ford gaskets. My only concern is they are .018 thinner than the old gaskets, that may be a good thing. I'll know when I test fit the intake. Just as information the car has never had any ethanol content fuel in it. It doesn't get driven very much at all. Perhaps that is part of the problem, I don't know. I'm waiting on pistons, pins, and rings as well as for the machine work to be finished. So, it will be a while before I let you know how it turned out. By the way, if you need forged pistons, Randy at Auto Tec/Race Tec is a great guy to do business with. A +.040 piston was no problem, I could pick the specific top, second, and oil control rings, valve relief size, and pin size. Chuck

 

[4Vforever]

Be interesting to know why this is fault seems to be happening and as I said it doesn't seem to be a problem down here. If it's so common then why doesn't Fel Pro recognise it or at least give give a reason to why it could be happening so people would know what to do or not to do. As I said I'd send that pic to them and ask them to explain why this has happened and why it seems to be a common fault.

 I didn't think you'd be silly enough to deliberately put ethanol blended fuel in your car car Chuck, it's just a reason I heard years ago. I just don't trust scrupulous service station owners or the fuel companies themselves. I had a friend that worked in a servo years ago and quit because the boss wanted him to put kerosene in with the fuel as there was no tax on kerosene, so more profit for him. He quit and dobbed him in to the authorities and they closed him down until all fuel was dumped and replaced with checked quality fuel. He said if you knew what some of these operators got up to with fuel you wouldn't use it, especially in performance cars, but what are we supposed to do, push our cars, get lab tests before we drive them, unlikely.

As for Racetec/Autotec they really are a great piston and will make what you want to whatever spec you're after, plus not treat their customers like an idiot when asking questions. If not for those JE's that turned up at a great price, I would've went with them also.   

I don't think you've got too much to worry about with the gasket being .018" thinner, especially after machine work is done. As you said you'll check for fit once everything is back and assembled. Good luck with it.