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By RossL - Last Month
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I read that the head gaskets should have a locating tab that allows you to confirm the gaskets were installed correctly. I've looked at all four corners and I don't see any tabs.
If the gaskets were installed wrong, what would the symptoms be?
I am chasing a "cooling" issue with the air conditioning on...... The temperature gauge (NOT stock), goes over 200/210 if I'm in stop and go traffic, OR when I'm on the highway above 2500RPM/70MPH.
I have a 6 blade mechanical fan with stock shroud, 10" electric pusher fan, Paragon spacer, re-cored OEM radiator 3 core, high flow FlowKooler water pump. Tried a few different thermostats.......... I also removed the freeze plugs and cleaned out the water jackets in the block
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By stuey - Last Month
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Hi
This might what you are looking for.
http://www.ford-y-block.com/assemblyerrors.htm
stuey
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By RossL - Last Month
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I am familiar with that page. I do not see the locating "tab" (see yellow arrow)
Top front left side head:
Bottom front left head:
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By paul2748 - Last Month
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There is no "tab". As stated in the write up, the gasket has one square corner and 3 round corners. The square corner go to the front.. From the looks of your pic of the left front, the gasket is on wrong as I do not see the square corner
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By Daniel Jessup - Last Month
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This video will also help... https://youtu.be/NDR5KLjODis?feature=shared
It is the "7 deadly sins" video for reminders on Y Block engines. One of the sins concerns the head gasket orientation. The video includes good closeups, explanations, various head gaskets, etc.
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By RossL - Last Month
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paul2748 (6/9/2025)
There is no "tab". As stated in the write up, the gasket has one square corner and 3 round corners. The square corner go to the front.. From the looks of your pic of the left front, the gasket is on wrong as I do not see the square corner
Should the tab be visible on the top rear corner (see blue arrow)?
I don't see that tab on any of the four corners
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By paul2748 - Last Month
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Honestly, I don't know. Plus, it is not a "tab"
RossL (6/9/2025)
paul2748 (6/9/2025)
There is no "tab". As stated in the write up, the gasket has one square corner and 3 round corners. The square corner go to the front.. From the looks of your pic of the left front, the gasket is on wrong as I do not see the square corner Should the tab be visible on the top rear corner (see blue arrow)? I don't see that tab on any of the four corners
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By miker - Last Month
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As you can see from the pictures, the “tab” is really a square corner. Why there’s none showing I don’t understand.
But you’ve only got cooling problems in traffic or high speeds. One of the problems with a bird is getting air out of the engine compartment. Slow cruising in a “parade” many guys pop the hood open. You might try that, it worked for me.
Likewise at highway speed in hot weather. A friend had a bird, with a/c, that he drove cross country extensively. He rigged a strap from the hood to the crossbar on the latch’s. On the highway the hood would blow open. His was a 57, but he said at 70 the hood opened enough to start to block the view of the road. That much built up air pressure. The strap kept it from going too far. One hot summer he drove Seattle/Chicago, Rt 66 to CA, and home. Most of it with the a/c on and the hood open. The 2 birds touring with him had to stay under 70 when it was hot.
My 55 cools fine with the a/c. But it’s a BeCool aluminum radiator, a high CFM fan, and a very well cleaned block with aluminum heads.
Just a thought.
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By KULTULZ - Last Month
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It may be the gaskets were not shaped as originals. If they were mounted backwards, the engine is going to overheat, period.
Do you know the source?
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By RossL - Last Month
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KULTULZ (6/10/2025)
It may be the gaskets were not shaped as originals. If they were mounted backwards, the engine is going to overheat, period. Do you know the source?
No. It was rebuilt by the previous owner. No contact with him or documentation
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By Joe-JDC - Last Month
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When you look at the head gaskets, there is a water passage on one end of the gaskets. That extra water passage goes at the rear of the block regardless of what the gasket is shaped like. Water goes into the block from the water pump, out the rear of the block into the rear of the head, up to the front of the head into the intake manifold, to the thermostat housing. Joe-JDC
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By FORD DEARBORN - Last Month
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I will try to add the link to a pair of steel head gaskets now listed on epay that show all 4 corners rounded. I know nolthing about this listing but there were gaskets made with all corners rounded. https://www.ebay.com/itm/267106263304?_skw=ford+y+block+head+gaskets&itmmeta=01JXDR52TX0RQZNEK1YB25P0JR&hash=item3e30c62108:g:zTwAAOSw9O5nbEYj&itmprp=enc%3AAQAKAAAA0FkggFvd1GGDu0w3yXCmi1dPc4tVm2hW7KLOX1vvIsx9GIomlw1Ey5Mh72Rw3ZYhllKzN7jts0QWMxwpU2hOhDG12jSGArzpBXLJUGDcpv3C5BajIJyzdjXJBr%2Bcbl2jv1g%2Bu52ti6EXR80EfHt58s%2FflUHDpvsDTkJn4NTg8yH%2BPCJNjnv6xZmVV5OnfV2pm6cFXxjpzR9ksaGIzBE1uf6E0HtJ0JtkUpl2yzXX8rpgfU6V5GLaoClCq3JL10WzY0%2B2xm1s7PNkRnQuUAaOLNU%3D%7Ctkp%3ABk9SR86tlLjrZQ
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By KULTULZ - Last Month
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- BINGO ! -
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By Joe-JDC - Last Month
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And there is a hole in one end of those gaskets. That goes to the rear. Joe-JDC
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By Ted - Last Month
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tab noun
- a small flap or strip of material attached to or projecting from something, used to hold or manipulate it, or for identification and information.
Seeing as you have determined that you have no ‘tab’, protrusion, square corner, ear, etc. at either end of the gasket as installed on the engine, one must surmise that the gaskets on your engine are ‘tabless’. Unless someone has another method for verifying if those particular head gaskets are installed correctly, the heads would need to be removed from the engine just to verify if they were indeed installed correctly/incorrectly. And of course that will require new head gaskets.
If the engine runs cool while idling after being thoroughly warmed up, then the head gasket orientation may not be the issue. Most instances where the head gaskets are installed incorrectly simply has the engine slowly getting hotter and hotter and eventually boiling over.
To date, I’ve only seen the Ford Y head gaskets without the square corners on the steel shim head gaskets. Have never seen a composite head gasket without the square corners or tabs.
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By RossL - Last Month
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If the engine runs cool while idling after being thoroughly warmed up, then the head gasket orientation may not be the issue. Most instances where the head gaskets are installed correctly simply has the engine slowly getting hotter and eventually boiling over.
To date, I’ve only seen the Ford Y head gaskets without the square corners on the steel shim head gaskets. Have never seen a composite head gasket without the square corners or tabs.
My car/temp gauge increases on a hot day after a highway run at 70/75 MPH. It will also increase at idle in prolonged traffic. I was thinking that at 70 MPH there should be enough air flow through the radiator (re-cored original 3 core) to compensate.
It seems the cooling system is struggling with extremes............................... One time this happened (no boil over). It stayed there for a few minutes until I drove around town it finally went down to (in between the large line and the dot on the gauge)
I know the stock gauges are not very accurate. This is an after market gauge and sender, I am hoping its better than stock.
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