I need to get a new exhaust manifold for my '88 22R pickup. I see some kits come with all the gaskets and will save me money. Some of these are cheap kits on eBay. Does anyone have recommendations on gasket brands? I would rather spend a little more and get a quality gasket than get something that is going to blow out soon. Beck/Arnley gaskets are on sale at Rockauto, and I am also wondering about Dorman.

 

Have you priced the difference between these brands and getting one at the dealership? What's the quality difference between an aftermarket and a Toyota OEM gasket? Are you getting a new header? I think most headers come with the gaskets you need.

 

depends on where you get the header seen some that came with headers i wouldn't even attempt to try. i've used some from autozone with luck so far.

 

OEM Baby unless your have or are going with a header then use the header manufacturers gasket

 

I will save a lot of money if I buy a kit, which appears to be a Dorman brand manifold and gasket. If they are really bad quality then I will go with OEM. Has anyone had experience with the Dorman brand?

 

if you want one that will NOT leak here is your answer:

http://catalog.remflex.com/product_p/rf7002.htm

ive been running these on my 22re and my SB Chevy tow rig, never had a problem!!

 

Nice to know , will check them out

 

When i did my engine, the gasket in the kit was clearly not the same quality as the Toyota OEM gasket. I used a Toyota gasket in several locations where the kit gasket looked marginal. On the other hand, replacing a bad gasket is not that big a deal, the kit gasket may work fine.

 

We are speaking of header gaskets , I think

 

I second the Remflex idea. I just ordered that gasket a few days ago from a local auto parts store for $20. The nice thing about them is that they are about 2.5 mm thick so they can account for any warpage in your header.

 

X2 on the ramflex
X2 on making sure your manifold is not warped. I take mine to the machine shop and get them planed.
Also, make sure all your studs are there. HeliCoil if necessary. Don't neglect the support bracket down on the bell housing. Lots of times ppl don't clamp the pipe back down, that excessive vibration will stress your manifold connection.

 

Those remflex ones look good. I think I will order one. I just bought a new exhaust manifold and I know that all of the studs are on the truck. Would there be any reason to install new studs? The support bracket is there, but not attached. I plan on re-attaching it and checking the cat to make sure it is not clogged. Thanks for all of the advice!

 

If the studs are in good shape I would leave them alone. You may want to replace the lock nuts because they tend to loose their locking ability if they are reused.

 

I always used stainless nuts and lockwashers on the small blocks , may be a tad expensive but the puppys won't rust .
I used to used the self locking ones (also stainless ) but then I realized after a few times on and off they weren't so self-locking anymore so I used the lockwashers and was even guilty of using a narrow stainless flatwasher as well and could be found on the first installation filing a flat edge on that washer for some of those nice tight stud/pipe tolerences but of course this is when large lizards roamed the earth and the natives used primitive carbueration .