Reinforced head gasket VW Golf 2 GTI 16V Corrado Scirocco 1.8 16V KR PL

The Volkswagen and Seat engines covered

The 1.8 litre petrol engines with four valves per cylinder, KR and PL, power the Volkswagen Golf II GTI 16V, Jetta II, Scirocco, Passat B3 and B4 and Corrado, as well as the Seat Toledo I, in the table below.

For these engines the manufacturer lists the standard gaskets 026 103 383 K, L, M, N, P, Q, R and S; it publishes neither their bore, nor their thickness, nor their construction. They are rated for standard combustion pressure: when that rises, the clamping load falls, the head lifts off the block and coolant reaches a cylinder.

Reinforced cylinder head gaskets

Sealing is not the gasket's job alone: the bolts that pull the head down onto the block matter just as much. With the O-Ring, the stainless steel wire seals the combustion chamber on its own while the gasket body closes the water and oil circuits; with the MLS, the 301 stainless steel sheets take 517 N/mm², 5 times the stress beyond which a composite gasket compresses for good, and recover their shape with every combustion.

This page gathers two part numbers from Athena, an Italian maker of competition gaskets, in two constructions: the O-Ring, a steel sheet faced with aramid fibre and ringed with a stainless steel wire, under part number 330237R, and the MLS, a stack of stainless steel sheets, under part number 338004R. Both have an 83.8 mm bore, in thicknesses of 1.4 and 1.6 mm. As a rule, choose a gasket bore at least 0.5 mm larger than the cylinders. Each part number is sold individually, one gasket per engine.

Technical specifications

A gasket's volume is the free space it leaves above each piston. It is added to the combustion chamber and lowers the compression ratio; as both gaskets here share the same 83.8 mm bore, only their thickness changes this volume.

Preparation and fitting

Before fitting, check the flatness of the head and the block with a straight edge, and have whichever of the two needs it resurfaced. Athena gaskets arrive ready to fit: add no sealing paste.

Technical guide

The two constructions offered

Athena O-Ring A steel sheet clad in asbestos-free aramid fibre, in which each cylinder is surrounded by a stainless steel compression ring. This ring carries the clamping load onto a narrow band, where the seal is won, and a silicone bead protects the water and oil passages. It is the construction in the range that copes with the highest pressures.

Athena MLS Two to five AISI 301 stainless steel sheets, laser cut, stamped and then riveted together. A folded sheet surrounds each cylinder and forms a Gas Stopper, which directs the clamping load towards the combustion chamber, while raised beads keep the water and oil circuits apart. The outer faces are coated: one layer absorbs heat and fills small flaws in the block and the head, a silicone layer stops the gasket sticking at removal. It is Athena's all-steel solution, from the prepared naturally aspirated engine to moderate boost. Beyond that, the O-Ring remains the construction that withstands the highest pressures.

Choosing bore and thickness

Gasket bore. The Athena O-Ring (330237R) and the Athena MLS (338004R) are both available in 83.8 mm.

Thickness. For the original gaskets, the manufacturer communicates no thickness. A thicker gasket enlarges the combustion chamber and lowers the compression ratio; a thinner one reduces it and raises the ratio.

As the manufacturer leaves the original thickness unstated, use a dial gauge to measure how far the pistons stand proud of the block's gasket face, especially if you aim for 1.4 mm: it determines the clearance left between piston and head.

The brand

Athena S.p.A. is an Italian maker of gaskets and engine parts, whose head office and main plant are in Alonte, in the Veneto; it also runs sites in Spain, the United States, Brazil and India. Its multilayer gaskets are fitted to cars as original equipment by carmakers, and the entire competition range is designed and manufactured 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 gaskets offered (83.8 mm) 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: 026 103 383 K, L, M, N, P, Q, R, S.

Important: the part numbers on this page apply only to the KR and PL engines: note your vehicle's engine code before ordering.

Why switch to a reinforced gasket?

Where the original gasket runs out of capacity, the reinforced gasket takes over: under higher combustion pressure it holds its shape instead of flattening out.

As soon as an engine gets a turbo, a higher boost pressure or a raised compression ratio, the head gasket becomes the first weak point of the top end. A reinforced gasket prevents the leak, and the head removal that follows it, a job far costlier than the part itself.