Thicker gasket available?

[AMink]

I have an exhaust leak between my BD manifold and the turbo. I've put on 2 or 3 different gaskets plus had a shop install one. Does anyone make a thicker than stock gasket? I am guessing something isn't flat and I'd like to avoid the cost of truing the head and turbo if possible. '06 5.9

 

[lpennock]

Sure it isn't the BD Manifold? If you still have stock you could put it back to see if problem goes away.

 

[Joseph Donnelly]

You could try using double gaskets.
Also, tighten in a star pattern a bit at a time, with never seize on threads and shoulders of the nuts.

 

[AMink]

Sure it isn't the BD Manifold? If you still have stock you could put it back to see if problem goes away.

The stock one was so warped I can't get it back in, thus the BD.

 

[lpennock]

The stock one was so warped I can't get it back in, thus the BD.

Makes sense. Can you tell where the leak is?

 

[AMink]

It's between the manifold and turbo. I'll try the two gaskets and see if that works.

 

[Motorhead]

Without having BOTH surfaces true, I doubt that two gaskets will seal. One important thing is to tighten the nuts to spec torque. Over tightening will cause warpage. One gasket on a true surface will seal best and carefully torquing the nuts like a cylinder head will give you the best results.

 

[Bob4x4]

If you look at the stock oem gasket it has a raised bead formed into it.Correct assy.procedures have always worked for with hundreds of installs of both oem and aftermarket manifolds and turbos.I prefer to remove and install the manifold and turbo as a unit on the 3rd gens.

 

[Motorhead]

Bob, which way do you orient the raised part on the metal gasket? I too have preferred to attach the turbo to the manifold first on the bench then install the whole assembly. It gets heavy....

 

[AMink]

Sooo...It turns out that not only was the mani/turbo gasket leaking but so was the slip joint on the BD manifold. Since I am out of warranty I contacted BD and they were willing to ship a new one for less cost but I needed to get it fixed. Bring in Summit Racing. Dan at BD gave me his contact info to give to Summit to see if they could offer a lower price. Summit gave a lower price without even needing to contact BD! Good deal! So, back to the shop. They removed the old manifold, cleaned everything up, checked the turbo housing for true, and installed the new BD. It all checked out...until this morning.

I just had to make sure myself and squirted some soapy water on the connections. The mani/turbo leaked way less but still leaked some. The slip joint on the brand new BD also leaks the same as the old BD. Since I'm leaving for vacation tomorrow I'm going to have to run with the leaks. I contacted the shop and he said they have installed lots of BD manifolds over the years and they've never seen one do this. Of course, they didn't see it doing it yesterday either so I don't know if others leaked and just weren't noticed.

Hopefully Dan at BD can provide some insight as to whether this is normal or if something else is going on. I did check when the engine was cold so maybe they leak and then seal as they get hot? It's hard to check at operating temps since the soapy water evaporates too fast to see any bubbles.

In the mean time, I have a BD manifold for a 5.9 if anyone in the Reno/Sparks area is interested in seeing if it works any better on their truck!

 

[Motorhead]

I have experienced leakage between the turbo and manifold too but as you described, not much. I believe the turbo would have benefited
from an additional two fastener holes put in the middle of the long side, 6 in total.

 

[AMink]

Dan at BD said it would take a few heat cycles to seal the slip joint. That makes sense. He wasn't sure about mani/turbo joint unless there is something wrong with the turbo housing. I'm not ready for that!

 

[Ozymandias]

Dan at BD said it would take a few heat cycles to seal the slip joint. That makes sense. He wasn't sure about mani/turbo joint unless there is something wrong with the turbo housing. I'm not ready for that!

So it is, the slip and the header are different materials, if heatet up the slip seals in the header. They are all made that way.