what head gasket to use on 7mgte

[mitchell]

ive got an ma70 and will keep the 7m in it. What gasket should i use and is a stud kit necassary?
Also how much boost can u run with the stock ecu? i have a gt35r i may use onit, is it worthwhile with the stock ecu?

[BeRad]

yes a stud kit is nessacery they stretch, arp studs for the win.... a metal one of some kind or copper although the jury is still out on which one is best....cometic make good ones, they can purchased through terryo on the forums...

[mitchell]

thanks mate ill look into it. Anyone know about the stock ecu, and how far u can go with it?

[EldarO]

how long is a piece of string?!

what im trying to get at, is theres no "best" gasket, only the "best" for your intended use.

if its a street run around, a standard toyota jobbie with standard toyota bolts would be lovely.

a hardcore race machine, full removal, disassembly, recondition and machining of the block and head would be ideal.

etc. etc.

Elmo.

[J0RD0]

thanks mate ill look into it. Anyone know about the stock ecu, and how far u can go with it?

You can go far as you want with the STOCK ecu, you will oviously benifit from any aftermarket one. Get a boost controller and you can run 30psi if need be

[terryo]

the 7M engine was always a trouble with heads and head gaskets. some had gaskets changed under warranty, they were that bad. the turbo ones worse. this is due to the stud locations not being optimum, and the cooling system flow creating local hot-spots. A new stock gasket and new head bolts will work fine provided both surfaces are perfectly straight & clean. Given that they had problems from new, an upgrade is sensible. We use ARP studs and multi-layer metal gaskets all the time in our shop, and rarely have troubles with "ordinary" street driven cars. pm me if you need more help or parts. see www.roadandtrack.net.au.

[mitchell]

cheers all, its only a cheap run around car i just picked up. i want it reliable with however much power it makes with all bolt ons but stock ecu as i have 2 other cars i would rather buy an ecu for. How good is the ct26 for power production? is it worth hiflowing it or does it then lose too much response?
Ill def go with a metal head gasket and stud kit.

[STR8 2.8]

if its only a cheap run around do you really want to go to the expense of a metal head gasket + studs?

[mitchell]

only if its worth while, or i can wait til it blows then upgrade

[STR8 2.8]

i guess it depends on what you want out of the engine.
if its not an all out build then i cant see the point of going metal head gasket, being an engine out job and all

[mitchell]

so should i wait and see how it goes first? im only after a reliable engine for a daily driver. ill do the exhaust, cooler and intake mods and wind the boost up and that should do it. its an auto to, i just need it for getting to work and maybe tow a car float once in a while

[Kedderz]

pics when you tow a float with the mz20 please, that would make a funny as christmas card

[mitchell]

its an ma70...... am i missing something funny?

[Negative Boost]

Check the head bolt torque right now. And torque them upto atleast 75ft/lbs. I forget the actuall number but thats about right. Be careful though, becuase if its down at around 50ft/lbs how it was at factory, you could disturb the gasket when tightening it up.

I wouldn't bother replacing the HG untill it blows if its your daily. There's just not much point, especially if your not boosting over 11psi (ecu limit) and have the HG torqued correctly. But if you are planning on running over 15psi, change the gasket to a metal one now.

Factory boost cut on the ECU is 11psi. Some have seen 12 and some see 10psi. Mine cut at about 11psi. You can get an FCD (jolly rare) and boost it upto 15psi but i wouldn't go higher than that with a stock HG otherwise it'll blow up. Just check out WA_TRD_83's ride thread. He blew his stock HG when he overboosted to 20psi.

The CT26's arn't much good above 15psi but do repsond well to highflowing. Just ask Whatthe? He got one highflowed and gave good results but spending 1k on highflowing for a daily? I'd rather spend it on an ecu for another car.

Hope that helps
Sam

[EldarO]

Whatthe?'s hiflowed CT26 is what killed WA_TRD_83's headgasket, same turbo

Elmo.