Britparts MLS head gasket - Anyone know the sequence?

[theNEWT]

Britparts MLS head gasket - Anyone know the sequence? 300Tdi. I get the impression it isnt the same as the composite and it has no instructions.

[Hybrid_From_Hell]

Erm....prob ends with the britpart in the bin shortly after a load of work ?

[Tetsu0san]

I fitted one a few years ago, again with no instructions. It failed immediately so I rang the supplier who said you're meant to tighten the head bolts even tighter. But as they are stretch bolts that didn't make any sense? Anyway, removed it and fitted an Elring composite gasket and all was OK after that.

I believe that with MLS gaskets you should put some sealer in there? I am sure I read that on here somewhere.

But if it did have instructions it would simply say 'take the quality MLS gasket from Britpart, locate your nearest rubbish bit, insert the gasket in this bin and and fit a proper gasket instead'

[Bowie69]

'take the quality MLS gasket from Britpart, locate your nearest rubbish bit, insert the gasket in this bin and and fit a proper gasket instead'

This.

Do not put anything Britpart near your vehicle.

[theNEWT]

Ok, cheers. So has anyone here used one of these gaskets and torqued it according to the manufacturer instructions (if they found them)? Apparently MLS gaskets place less stress on head bolts than composite, possibly thats why it has a higher torque setting after all it is a very different gasket to composite. The britpart one may well still be poorly made however. But it would be good to know what the failing is related to rather than just blaming the part without investigation.

According to info from the net:

Multi-Layer Steel Head Gaskets
An increasing number of OEMs have turned to "Multi-Layer Steel" (MLS) head gaskets to provide improved durability. MLS gaskets, which are found on Ford, Chrysler and many Japanese engines, typically have three to seven layers of steel. The outer layers are usually stainless spring steel and embossed. The inner layers provide added support and thickness.

The embossed multi-layer construction reduces the load on the head bolts, which in turn reduces bore distortion for less blowby and lower emissions. The outer layers of steel are coated with a thin layer (.001˝ to .0015˝) of nitrile rubber or Viton to improve cold sealing.

MLS head gaskets are very durable because their solid steel construction retains torque very well and does not take a compression set like composition gaskets. But the rigid nature of MLS gaskets also means they have very little conformability. That is why MLS gaskets require an extremely smooth, flat surface finish on both mating surfaces (typically 20 to 30 RA or less).

Reproducing the kind of high quality surface finish needed to seal MLS gaskets requires up-to-date milling equipment and precision resurfacing techniques. Even then, it may be difficult to get a good cold seal on some engines. One alternative here is to install a conventional gasket (graphite or composition) that does not require such a smooth finish (if such an alternative gasket is available for the application). Several gasket manufacturers have conventional replacement gaskets for the Ford 4.6L as well as other applications.

[Les Henson]

Tightening head bolts is always the same sequence - centre outwards in a diagonal pattern. No sealant of any type on it. Tightening torque/angle/deg will be the same.

Les

[Boydie]

After two failures with the metal head gaskets I switched to a composite and it's been on the car now (Disco 300Tdi) for well over 280,000 kilometers with no sign of failure. Simply put I won't use metal gaskets ever again, - including on the "P" gasket

[theNEWT]

After two failures with the metal head gaskets I switched to a composite and it's been on the car now (Disco 300Tdi) for well over 280,000 kilometers with no sign of failure. Simply put I won't use metal gaskets ever again, - including on the "P" gasket

From the sounds of composite, you must be one of the lucky ones. So much conflicting information...what a headache.

[Bowie69]

Only because they have been around for longer, easy to pick faults in something that had been around for eons, new stuff however, like MLS gaskets, are an unknown quantity in some respects, certainly these engines weren't fitted with them.

Fit an MLS, that's fine, just buy a decent brand for pity's sake, you are here asking about how to fit it, what you should be doing is researching the brand you are buying, and yes, paying that extra £10 or more to get it right rather than buying the cheapest nastiest brand that EVERYONE knows is pap by experience, and THEN moan about it when it fails, and THEN blame the tightening sequence, or torque values, and then internet rumours start up, and then someone else comes along and does exactly the same as you......

Whoops, slight rant.... not at you but how the internet operates, I promise

[Boydie]

The only problem with MLS gaskets is that the 300Tdi, and certainly the 200tdi were never machined at the factory to the super fine standards required for their use, the slightest imperfection or corrosion on the block or cylinder head or pitting and a MLS gasket will fail whereas a composite gasket will compress to fill those minute pitted surfaces and imperfections.

The corrosion, for example, that is the blight of the water pump "P" gasket is a prime example. Unless the face surfaces of the block and the pump are pristine the metal "P" gasket will eventually fail, whereas a composite gasket will compress into the pits and seal indefinitely.