???s about fel pro upper gasket kit

i'm about to put my engine back together and i've never replaced this many gaskets at one time. i have the fel pro upper gasket kit. i was wondering what gaskets need RTV and which don't. I have silicone intake manifold and valve cover gaskets. Most of the others are all cardboard type gaskets. also do the head gaskets need any type of sealant? thanks

I don't know necessarily about the rest, but you don't put anything on the head gaskets themselves. As for things like the intake and plenum, I'd think that a small amount of adhesive or RTV to hold the gasket in place would be sufficient. Generally, any coated gasket you never use anything on, and cardboard takes sealant on both sides. Use as little as necessary, don't goop it up cuz thats what papa did on the old 67 chevy. Most of the time, 1/32" thick is all you ever need. On aluminum surfaces such as the SC top, you won't use a gasket at all, just a razor thin layer of copper (or any sensor safe) RTV. You can use it if you want, but you don't need the exhaust manifold gaskets. Copper, just FYI, is high heat.. you could use it to seal your exhaust manifolds to the heads. People use it elsewhere just because its convenient, but its overkill as the heat load on the SC and IC isn't anywhere near needing copper.
This is about the limits of my knowledge; I've replaced HGs a few times on other cars and seen the threads about it here, but never on my SC. That's this fall's project... in terms of seriousness, it ranks higher on my list than my tranny swap.

A couple suggestions, I can't remember if Fel-Pro includes thick cork seals for intake manifold to block, but if so just disregard those and use a nice fat bead of RTV instead. Also you'll need to put RTV on the intake manifold gaskets where they meet the water passages.

Rob Noth said:

A couple suggestions, I can't remember if Fel-Pro includes thick cork seals for intake manifold to block, but if so just disregard those and use a nice fat bead of RTV instead. Also you'll need to put RTV on the intake manifold gaskets where they meet the water passages.

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the manifold to block gaskets are silicone. shouldn't i just use rtv all the way around the intake manifold to head gasket? i would think if you only put it around the coolant passages it would leave a gap?

Just Did Mine!!!!

I Just replaced the intake gaskets on my 94 SC. I used Felpro and my set included silicone forward and rear seals. I put the actual intake gaskets on dry. I believe that blue stuff on Felpro gaskets is a sealer. I put a small bead of blue RTV Gasket Maker on the bottom of the forward and rear seal and put it in place. I let it set for about 30 to 45 minutes before I installed the manifold. Then I put a small bead on top of the seal and a dab in each of the 4 corners. I installed the intake and torqued to 10 LB-FT and then to 18 LB-FT per the sequence in my Ford manual. I let it set for an additional 2 hours after I finished to give the RTV time to cure. No leaks: air, coolant or oil to date.

Hope this helps!

Ed Springer

90 Black XR7 5-speed: 70mm TB, Fresh Air Intake, '94 Supercharger, 5% SC Pulley, Raised SC Top, I/C Fan, Under-drive Pulleys, 190 l/h Fuel Pump, 36# Injectors, Headers, Magnaflow Muffler (no cats) with stock resonators, 3:27 Gears, Ripper Shifter, 73mm CL MAF (Blue Tube), Magnacore Wires, NGK Iridium Plugs and Rear Spring Air Bags.

94 Red SC Auto: 70mm TB, Fresh Air Intake, Stock 90 SC Pulley, Raised SC Top, I/C Fan, Under-drive Pulleys, 190 l/h Fuel Pump, 38# Injectors, Headers, Raven Muffler (no cats) with stock resonators, 3:73 Gears, 76mm CL MAF (Gold Tube), Magnacore Wires, NGK Iridium Plugs, TRANSGO Shift Kit, Pro-Torque 2500 Stall TC, Haydon Auxiliary Transmission Cooler, Tokico Struts & Shocks, American Racing 17” Sniper Wheels, Michelin Pilot Sport A/S Tires and 235 RWHP with 315 LB-FT Torque.