What’s The Secret.... To The V6 Thermostat Gasket?

I’ve had it in once so it didn’t leak but not this time or any other time I’ve installed it. I know you must disconnect the hoses or it will never go together right. But darn it why did they make that vertical instead of horizontal? I’ve tried it with no sealant, with little sealant and I’ve tried with sealant on everything.

What’s the secret?

 

I start with a clean dry surface....then I seal both sides of the gasket....seal the threads of the bolts....and then I let it sit for a day....I don't touch it....I don't look at it....works every time.

 

Conquered this. No gasket, 1 minute black rtv , bolt threads too, finger tight. Torque up next day worked for me. Now my oil pan....

 

Maybe my thermostat is in good and I didn’t seal the bolts.
I’m going to remove them, one at a time and put some RTV on them.
I’ve read this “next day” a couple times, why do you torque the next day? What other parts do y’all torque the next day?

 

The thermostat housing gets pinholes in it. It can look like sth gasket is leaking but its the housing that's gone bad. If its good, what Rich said.

 

Make sure the housing is flat...sand the gasket surface on a piece of glass or other straight surface.

 

I adopted this several years ago too because it made sense. When torqued down wet, you basically squeeze the sealant out. If you finger tighten, let it set up for a couple of hours until the sealant has begun to set-up, torqueing then compresses the sealant for a tight seal as opposed to squeezing it all out of the joint. Similar concept in woodworking/wood glue. If you slather something in wood glue then clamp the fire out of it, it results in a poor joint because the glue gets squeezed out. It needs a layer in there for a good bond and the best way to do that is let it set-up for a bit before applying the torque or pressure. Just my 2 cents, but in real-life practice: So far so good.

 

What Tlm E said... On my Dauntless, I used Indian Head Gasket Shellac. Makes it a bear if you need to work on it again but no leaks on my timing cover or thermostat...

John

 

BTW the replacement housings from Summit, etc suck I sent 2 back and sourced an nos ( cast) on evilbay.