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1G Turbo gaskets keep failing

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Steve92talon

Proven Member
156
21
Jul 3, 2019
Fernie, BC_Canada
I have blown out 3 gaskets now. What about just putting a piece of aluminum for a gasket surface? Anytime I'm cruising at 90mph for 30 40 minutes straight the turbo gets so hot the gaskets fry and blow out. Or my bolts loosen up from heat maybe letting it blow out. It's like the impossible task keeping my turbo sealed to the manifold. Anyone try a srt4 manifold that has a built in turbo that's 100% leak free guaranteed?
 
best thing that worked for me on the turbo to manifold gaskets where coating them with the copper gasket spray and doing a good torque on the bolts. srt manifold will not work on a 4g63
 
Stock turbo setup? If so, are you using the conical washers to keep the bolts tight?
I have also used Copper spray on a 6 ply MLS gasket, but keeping the bolts tightened after heat cycles might be beneficial in your situation until they finally quit loosening up. Just a thought.
 
Curious what your setup is also. What kind of power are you making, what turbo, and what manifold? Just going to assume it's all stock (14b or 13b at ~10psi).

  • Like Marty said, you've got to use those conical washers. They have the two divets in them and "lock" the bolts in place. Get new ones from extremePSI or JNZ or wherever.
  • Also, torque the three bolts and the stud to spec in a "square-star" pattern (40-47 ft/lb). Get new hardware if you're on the old stuff.
  • You mentioned the metal gasket but there's no mention of the ring that goes inside the manifold to turbo piping. Do you have that?
Definitely try the Permatex copper spray too. Be liberal with the spray but you don't need to drench things with it. At least I never have.
You said things are getting so hot that it's blowing out. Are you running insanely lean? Do you know your EGTs? Are you certain the turbo and/or manifold aren't warped by putting a straight edge on them?
 
It's a tdo5 maybe a mistubishi one still factory bolt on and internal waste gate. Cast manifold and I'm running 16lbs no problem. Cone washers eh I have some cone washer things at work at the Chrysler dealer I work for maybe that's loosening them. Honestly my car has a copper manifold to head gasket and the turbo was a copper gasket but it was cracked and missing a chunk so I tossed it. I tried just header flange gasket material and that started smoldering after one pass on boost during up. So since I'm in canada and no gaskets exist in any parts database I went to using just a round pipe gasket. Like the down pipe has. I had it all sealed up perfect and torque down. One run on the highway you know in "Mexico" at 90ish mph for pretty close to a hr off and on and major leak at the rear when I got to my destination. Radar detection wide open road why not. I tightened the bolts up when it was hot and they honestly felt like plasticky u know. Tight but still a little spring when u pulled. There gr 8 good bolts. So I was brain storming maybe a aluminum flat plate that will expand faster and keep a tight seal. What are high boost guys running to keep it sealed. Maybe I'm in a unusual situation where I generally drove my car 2 sometimes 3hrs straight each way and can go flat out most of the time. I noticed around 95mph my afr just goes rich and I'm only at 3 or 4 lbs of boost. Stock ecu still.

Curious what your setup is also. What kind of power are you making, what turbo, and what manifold? Just going to assume it's all stock (14b or 13b at ~10psi).

  • Like Marty said, you've got to use those conical washers. They have the two divets in them and "lock" the bolts in place. Get new ones from extremePSI or JNZ or wherever.
  • Also, torque the three bolts and the stud to spec in a "square-star" pattern (40-47 ft/lb). Get new hardware if you're on the old stuff.
  • You mentioned the metal gasket but there's no mention of the ring that goes inside the manifold to turbo piping. Do you have that?
Definitely try the Permatex copper spray too. Be liberal with the spray but you don't need to drench things with it. At least I never have.
You said things are getting so hot that it's blowing out. Are you running insanely lean? Do you know your EGTs? Are you certain the turbo and/or manifold aren't warped by putting a straight edge on them?
I have a aem afr I'm 14.5 just light highway speeds all normal. When I'm really cruising it at 90+ the aft will go pig rich even at just a 4psi the car starts dumping fuel in at its speed vs maf vs tpms reading I guess I try to keep just under that magic speed so I'm not pumping fuel in at just 20% throttle.
 
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You need a tuning solutuon for the pig richness and really for data logging the problem. If you had any kind of datalogger, it would help diagnose the richness.
Are all sensors adjusted per the FSM? TPS, Base timing, etc?
 
Timing is a little advanced maybe. The pig rich is a speed thing under 90mph it's just fine 14.5 afr cruising. I filed my manifold flat same with the turbo and the head mounting side of the manifold. See how it holds up over the long weekend coming up.
 
Same.

I mated an FP manifold with an FP red with, both with very low miles, with RTMs thickest gasket.

I've torque them down cold, retorque them when hot.

And it leaks on the compressor side. Bummed out :/

I havnt even been able to take it for a spin yet because I'm still missing the transfer case!
 
I burned out the exhaust pipe gasket even with the metal sealing ring it's just too much heat. So I was digging around at work and I found a Cummins exhaust gasket that multi layer steel but it's just a bit smaller then the hole. So far its holding up with no leaks but its definitely choking off the exhaust flow a bit limiting boost. Oh well its sealed for now and I'm getting great mpg at 10lbs of boost. I'm very tempted to make just a aluminum plate for a gasket that may leak a little cold but seal when the exhaust heats the aluminum to tighten up.

Same.

I mated an FP manifold with an FP red with, both with very low miles, with RTMs thickest gasket.

I've torque them down cold, retorque them when hot.

And it leaks on the compressor side. Bummed out :/

I havnt even been able to take it for a spin yet because I'm still missing the transfer case!
Funny enough when my rear diff was burned up I tried my car out with no transfer case and it drove like normal still. No slipping or nothing just normal take offs like it dident care about the rear diff. Maybe give it a quick spin around the block.
 
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Funny enough when my rear diff was burned up I tried my car out with no transfer case and it drove like normal still. No slipping or nothing just normal take offs like it dident care about the rear diff. Maybe give it a quick spin around the block.


I thought we had open center differentials. No transfer case and everything is sent out to the rear with no power at the front.

Perhaps I'm mistaken or my logic is flawed. Either way, its in no driving condition right now. Need to bleed the clutch, brakes, muffler is unhooked etc etc. I'm just not there yet.

Next week hopefully
 
I thought we had open center differentials. No transfer case and everything is sent out to the rear with no power at the front.

Perhaps I'm mistaken or my logic is flawed. Either way, its in no driving condition right now. Need to bleed the clutch, brakes, muffler is unhooked etc etc. I'm just not there yet.

Next week hopefully
That's what I was told too so unless I have a welded front diff there must be some other explanation? My car litteraly drove around my shop twice and dident care the transfer case was missing and the drive shaft was wired up under the car. Drove the same as it did with everything hooked up.
 
The center differential is a viscous coupling type. If you want to drive in fwd mode for any extended amount, you need a VCE.

http://eatsleepdsmmag.com/locked-center-differential-faq/
Ok sure but why is there no slip without a transfer case. The car pulled away from a stop exactly like it was awd still

I stopped using gaskets with stock frame turbos. Fresh flat surfaces with copper spray works amazing for me.
Sounds interesting I have everything filed perfect flat.
 
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Ok sure but why is there no slip without a transfer case. The car pulled away from a stop exactly like it was awd still
Are you absolutely sure that the center differential is not already welded in your transmission?

Because if not, it should slip just a very little bit, -like less than 5 seconds and then start to grab similar to feathering the clutch. The factory rear LSD is similar in it's activation.
 
Are you absolutely sure that the center differential is not already welded in your transmission?

Because if not, it should slip just a very little bit, -like less than 5 seconds and then start to grab similar to feathering the clutch. The factory rear LSD is similar in it's activation.
I dont know anything about my trans but it steers just fine not the hopping u usually get with a welded diff and no hesitate its instant go when I let the clutch out. So its a mystery why it drove great with no transfercase.
 
If you used a file, they aren’t flat.
Did the best I could with it in a vice working crossways in several direction till it was smooth and even for the file cutting all the way across. It was pretty bad for warping.
 
I’ve seen parts measured with a height gauge come out .005” out of flat that actually measured flat with a straight edge.
Well anything more accurate is not possible living in a town of 8000 no walmart or nothing within a hr
 
I'm not sure why this thread has gone so long about a single little topic LOL. It's simple.
- Get a flat surface
- Get a quality gasket
- Use some quality copper spray.
- Use the proper torque specs, or more if needed once warm.

I don't claim to be an expert on turbo gaskets or anything, I guess I'm just good at gathering stated information.

Good day. :)
 
My first dsm so still in the learning curve and quality gaskets are very difficult to obtain in canada unfortunately. online ordering only
 
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