what should I torque the intake manifold bolts down to? I just got a fresh new set of Felpro gaskets and was going to install them today, until I realized that I cannot remember the torque specs...[&:] did get the mating surfaces nice and clean though[8D]

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do I need to run a bead of RTV around the coolant passages?

 

I put mine around 20 ft lbs. You shouldn't need RTV if you get the gaskets on there nice and square and you torque it all properly. Be sure to recheck torques after you torque them all.

There should be little tabs sticking out from the head gaskets that you can use to hold the intake manifold gakets in place. You'll see what I mean.

On a side note, did you get your transmission issue fixed?

 

 

Lol, that's totally not what he asked for, Matt.

 

thanks guys, both your posts helped. I saw those tabs, cuz after I cleaned the mating surfaces nice and good, I test fit the gaskets, just to check...

thanks again[8D][8D]

 

why not? you covered the torque, i showed him the order

 

om if you dont use a thin layer of RTV around the water passages (on each side of the gasket) your ASKING for a leak i dont care how flat everything is. also throw away the cork/rubber front and rear gaskets and use a nice thick bead of rtv across the block instead. should be about 1/4" - 3/8" thick bead and it'll seal up nice and tight.

i recommend permatex ultra copper (orange), but using gray or black can make for a cleaner looking installion if you have any overage.

 

Good thing I used some RTV there anyway just to keep the damn gaskets in place, lol.

 

thanks man, I got the good gasket kit for my baby, so the cork gaskets are not there, it came with special rubber gaskets that are the same material as my new oil pan gasket... I have some red RTV, the high heat type that holds up well in high temp situations, but I'll check the auto parts store again tomorrow to see if they have the permatex stuff

I just wasnt 100 % sure on everything, cuz when I worked on that craptastic 3.8, everything... and I mean everything was different......

If anyone wants that engine... you can have it, for 50 bucks...[&:][&:][&:][&:][&:] condition, unknown...