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SOHCDriver

AU 4.0 MLS OE head gasket question.

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Hello all,

I have my 4.0 VCT 6 out for an oil leak fix & general freshen up and want to replace the head gasket. I have a genuine Ford one packed in 2008 and the multi layers are not bonded together. Is this normal? I have not used this type of gasket before.

Thanks for any good advice.

 

cheers

Bill

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That’s normal. The outer sides bond to the head and block then the middle layers can more and slide as the engine heats up and in some cases overheats ( over expands ) but doesn’t blow out the gasket.
Wish more people knew this. I've had multiple customers want us to order in a new gasket for them because their MLS gaskets has "seperated" before they installed it

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Just my 2c on this, au's rarely had head gasket issues due to the MLS head gasket they ran, personally if its not leaking between the timing cover and the head, and the timing cover itself isn't leaking I would leave the head alone unless of course you are planning on doing some headwork as well

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Thanks for your input Thom.

Yes, the timing cover was leaking along with the tensioner and the oil pan. The O rings throughout are brittle and I will be replacing all these with viton.

I do plan on keeping the ute for many more years so this overhaul apart from being enjoyable will keep it in good condition and hopefully the leaks to a minimum.

Any experiences  on the longevity of the MLS head gaskets?

cheers

Bill

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Plenty of au taxis with 4/500,000ks on their original head gasket I did over 200,000 in my xh ute after I used an au MLS gasket in it, just make sure you buy new bolts, as the original bolts are torque to yield and are single use

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Finally got back on to this, the head is off and everything is looking pretty good.

With the MLS head gasket, it is genuine Ford 10 years old and has been stored well. Is it ok to use given the years sitting on the shelf?

cheers

Bill

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Make sure you use new head bolts too. We all have our chosen brands too. I personally use Permaseal. They make a good product and have the part number cast into the head of each bolt to easily identify them.
Old ones will do up too easily and not give the proper clamping pressure. The torquing specs are different for mls head gasket compared to a composite head gasket too.

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