Reinforced head gasket VW Audi 1.5 1.6 Golf Jetta Passat Scirocco 80

The Volkswagen and Audi engines covered

The 1.5 to 1.7 litre Volkswagen and Audi petrol engines in the compatibility table below are fitted to the Golf I, Jetta I, Passat, Santana, Scirocco, Caddy I, Iltis, Voyage and Parati as well as the Audi 80, 100 and Coupé; each takes a single head gasket.

The original gasket for these engines carries part number 049 103 383 K. Volkswagen publishes neither its bore, nor its construction, nor its thickness. It is made for standard combustion pressure: if that pressure rises, the clamping load falls away, the head moves a little and coolant enters a cylinder.

Reinforced cylinder head gaskets

A head gasket's seal also depends on the fasteners that clamp the head onto the block: they provide half of it. A composite gasket sags for good from 100 N/mm²; the 301 stainless steel of an MLS gasket resists 517 N/mm², five times more, and regains its shape with each combustion.

This page gathers the part numbers from Athena, an Italian maker of racing gaskets, for a single construction: the multi-layer steel MLS. Two part numbers are offered, with a shared 81 mm bore and thicknesses of 1.40 and 1.75 mm. As a rule, the gasket bore chosen is at least 0.5 mm larger than the actual cylinder bore. Each part number is sold individually, one gasket per engine.

Technical specifications

The gasket volume is the void it leaves above each cylinder. It adds to the combustion chamber and lowers the compression ratio; as both part numbers share the same bore, the thicker gasket is the one that lowers the ratio most.

Preparation and fitting

Before fitting the gasket, check with a straight edge that the head and block are flat, then have them resurfaced if needed. Athena supplies the gasket already coated: apply no sealing paste.

Technical guide

The construction offered

Athena MLS Two to five AISI 301 stainless steel sheets laid one on another, laser cut, stamped and then riveted. A folded sheet surrounds each cylinder: this Gas Stopper concentrates the clamping load on the combustion chamber, while beads close off the water and oil circuits. Each outer face receives two coatings: the first withstands heat and fills small imperfections in the block and head, the second, in silicone, keeps the gasket from sticking at removal. Athena makes it its all-steel formula, from a prepared naturally aspirated engine to moderate forced induction.

Choosing bore and thickness

Gasket bore. The Athena MLS is offered in 81 mm (338419R and 338461R), with no other bore.

Thickness. Volkswagen does not publish the thickness of the original gasket. A thicker gasket enlarges the combustion chamber and lowers the compression ratio; a thinner one reduces it and raises the ratio.

With no published original thickness, measure with a dial gauge how far the pistons protrude above the block's gasket face, particularly if you choose 1.40 mm: it fixes the clearance left between piston and head.

The brand

Athena S.p.A., an Italian maker of gaskets and engine components, is based in Alonte, in the Veneto, where its head office and main plant stand; the group also has sites in Spain, the United States, Brazil and India. Some car makers fit its multi-layer gaskets as original equipment, and the whole competition range is designed and made in Italy.

Advantages over the original gasket

When a reinforced gasket becomes necessary

• Adding forced induction, or raising boost on an already turbocharged engine
• Cylinder rebored beyond what the bore of the original gasket, which Volkswagen does not publish covers
• Looking for a compression ratio different from standard, higher or lower
• Engine that has already lost its gasket, or is consuming coolant
• Competition use, where the gasket goes through repeated temperature rises

Vehicle compatibility

OEM part number: 049 103 383 K.

Important: the part numbers on this page only suit the engines in the compatibility table: check your vehicle's engine code before ordering.

Why switch to a reinforced gasket?

Where the original gasket reaches its maximum, the reinforced gasket takes over: under higher combustion pressure it keeps its thickness and shape instead of being crushed.

Forced induction, a higher compression ratio or more revs: the head gasket is the first part of the top end to let go when power climbs. The reinforced gasket spares you the leak, and the head removal that follows it, which costs more than the gasket.