oem engine gasket set frsport.com

[lucky03602]

replacing head on my s14 sr20 and was told to not go with cometic hg. i got the new used head and its bare so i need to swap all parts off the old head, so i plan on buying all new gaskets for it. i came across an oem engine gasket set on frsport.com for 200. has anyone used this set? how did the hg hold up?

if i could buy this kit and save a little money rather then buying individual gaskets (cant find a head swap kit) then it would be nice but i sure dont wanna sacrifice saving a little money to cut a corner, cheapest isnt always the best.

[homeslicej2]

It's an OEM from Nissan Japan gasket set. It has all the gaskets and seals (plus OEM RTV) that you need when you rebuild the motor. I've seen other vendors sell them for $150, I've also seen just the top end (all the stuff you need when rebuild/replacing the head) for $83. Both were OEM NIssan sets. The stock HG in good shape will hold ~15psi though I don't recommend that much. If you still have the stock turbo, the OEM HG will handle it.

[lucky03602]

thanks for the reply. yeah the engine is completly stock aside from a fmic. the head im taking off the motor i plan on rebuilding and getting aftermarket gaskets for when i put it on, so for now im just trying to get the car running in good condition, without sacrificing too much quality. ill look for head oem gasket set, again thanks!

[ray666]

ive never had a problem with cometic at all. i bought one for my ka and sr.

[homeslicej2]

Eric Hsu, formerly of XS engineering (no, not XS power eBay crap) wrote an article about cometic head gaskets after testing one on a Mitsubishi 4g63, the thing sealed like crap on a properly prepared block and head, even compared to an OEM gasket and another aftermarket HG. The article was later taken down. I believe this may have been due to legal concerns as Eric Hsu went to work for Cosworth some time after he wrote the article. If you type "cometic head gasket" into google it will bring up with the auto-search feature "cometic head gasket failure" and link to numerous sites/forums/magazines/etc. Replace cometic with cosworth or apexi or power enterprise, and you'll get no such results in google. Those three brands are among the best you can use with SR20's. Cosworth has been around, and involved in the racing world for a long, long time. Mazworx used an Apexi HG on their drag S15 SR20, and many Japanese tuners use/d Power Enterprise HG. In short, if you've had no issues with your Cometic HG, you're in the minority.

[ray666]

they could have improved the design since then. why sell a defective product?

[Hijacker]

It's not defective. It's cheaply made.

[ray666]

Well I guess i wont recommend the cometic to anyone. I guess some of the mods should tell all the sponsors to quit selling them on there sites, or make a stickie for everyone to see that cometic is crap. Im just like anyone else, i dont wanna buy p.o.s. products

[PyR0NiAk]

Some users still swear by Cometic, because they've gotten lucky. We can't tell our sponsors what to sell and not sell. FRSport, Enjuku Racing, and 240sxmotoring are some of the best sponsors a forum could ask for. All 3 of them sell cometic head gaskets because they are a popular item. If you contact any of the sponsors directly, they would most likely recommend a different brand if you asked for their advice on best brand.

[ray666]

10-4, i decided to rebuild my motor fully and ordered a cometic last week but i guess ima have to return it. id hate to blow a new motor build up. i think im going cosworth and return the cometic back to frsport.

[PyR0NiAk]

Cosworth is what went on mine. It sealed nicely.

[lucky03602]

aside from this thread ive heard nohting but good news about cosworth hg's.

[ray666]

ive heard nothing bad about cosworth ever for as long as ive been a member on here

[PyR0NiAk]

Sounds like lucky is misunderstanding this thread, and thinking we're talking bad about cosworth instead of cometic.

[lucky03602]

haha no i didnt misunderstand i had 2 thoughts at once. i forgot what i origionally what i was going to write but yes, ive heard only good things about cosworth including this thread

[homeslicej2]

^ah! that's good then bc yeah, Cosworth is the way to go IMO. Apexi and Power Enterprise (and some others) are all very good HG, but the Cosworth is just as good and is cheaper.

[ray666]

how about greddy's hg?

[Hoffman5982]

check out z1motorsports. I got my gasket set from them(oem) for like 150-160. plus, standard shipping was overnight since they are right over in georgia

[OM3GA]

FRSport is great!

[ray666]

ive been dealing with them about exchanging the gasket, i will be buying and apex'i one. any recomendation on thickness? i had the head decked ever so slightly.

[lucky03602]

im actually ordering the oem complete gasket set, rocker arm stoppers, and arp head bolts from phase2motorsports either tonight or tomorrow. all together its like 330ish. im also talking to a friend about possibly buying his new un used apexi safc2 for like 200, not sure though.

[PyR0NiAk]

ray, stock hg is 1.06, so you should go thicker than that..

[ray666]

excellent, thanks!

[lucky03602]

just ordered the parts for my car!! enjuku racing ISIS rocker arm stoppers and then nissanraceshop.com got oem top end gasket set and head studs.

[PyR0NiAk]

You went with ARP headstuds right?

[lucky03602]

this time around i went with jdm oem. im going to rebuild the head im pulling off the engine within a year or so. when i have the head completly rebuilt then ill replace the stock one with it and go with arp, cosworth and other upgraded gaskets as well.

[PyR0NiAk]

The reason I ask is you have to retorque the stock head studs, which is a complete pain in the a**, as to where the ARPs don't stretch so you don't have to. (Some people still do, but it's not required.)

[lucky03602]

oh as in you need to torque them down the first time, drive for x amount of time then re-torque them? hmm yeah i didnt know that.

[PyR0NiAk]

oh as in you need to torque them down the first time, drive for x amount of time then re-torque them?

Yes. The oem head studs tend to stretch, as to where the ARP ones do not.

[lucky03602]

well since i already ordered them im stuck, but when i rebuild the head i plan on going with arp studs so its good to know that for future referance, thanks