Reinforced head gasket VAG 1.8 2.0 TFSI EA888 Gen 1 Gen 2 BYT CDAA CJKA

The Volkswagen, Audi, Seat and Skoda engines covered

The turbocharged EA888 four-cylinders of 1.8 and 2.0 litres, built as BYT, BZB, CABA, CABB, CABD, CAED, CDAA, CDAB, CDHA, CDHB, CFPA, CGYA, CHJA, CJKA, CJKB, CPMA and CPMB, power the Audi A3, A4, A4 Allroad, A5, A6, A8, Q3, Q5 and TT, the Volkswagen Passat, CC, Golf VI, Sharan, Amarok, Transporter, Multivan and California, and the Seat and Skoda models listed below.

The original gaskets are numbered 06H 103 383 AA, 06H 103 383 AC, 06H 103 383 AD, 06H 103 383 AF, 06J 103 383 B, 06J 103 383 D and 06J 103 383 G; no original number is published for the CJKA and CJKB engines. The manufacturer publishes neither their bore, nor their thickness, nor their construction. They are sized for standard combustion pressure: when that pressure increases, the clamping of the head weakens, the head lifts and coolant reaches a cylinder.

Reinforced cylinder head gaskets

Sealing does not depend on the gasket alone: the bolts or studs that pull the head onto the block matter as much. The O-Ring shares the load: its stainless ring seals the combustion chamber by itself, while the body closes the water and oil passages, with no machining of the block.

This page offers the Athena part number, an Italian maker of racing gaskets, in one construction only: the O-Ring, a steel sheet faced with aramid fibre and ringed with stainless steel. Its bore is 83.5 mm and its thickness 1.40 mm. The usual practice is to pick a gasket bore at least 0.5 mm larger than the cylinders. The part number is sold singly, one gasket per engine.

Technical specifications

A gasket's volume is the space it leaves open above each cylinder. It adds to the combustion chamber and lowers the compression ratio; only gaskets with the same bore are comparable.

Preparation and fitting

Before fitting, check the flatness of the head and the block with a straight edge and have the part that needs it resurfaced. The Athena gasket goes on as supplied: add no sealing compound.

Technical guide

The construction offered

Athena O-Ring A steel body coated with asbestos-free aramid fibre, in which each cylinder is surrounded by a stainless compression ring. The ring transfers the clamping force to a narrow band, where the sealing is won or lost, while a silicone bead isolates the water and oil passages. Of the whole range, this is the construction that best withstands the highest pressures.

Choosing bore and thickness

Gasket bore. The Athena O-Ring exists in 83.5 mm (330147R), in that bore only.

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

Because the original thickness is not disclosed, use a dial gauge to measure how far the pistons protrude above the block deck, especially if the removed gasket is thicker than 1.40 mm: that figure sets the clearance left between piston and head.

The brand

Athena S.p.A. is an Italian manufacturer of gaskets and engine components. Its head office and main plant stand in Alonte, in Veneto; the group also manufactures in Spain, the United States, Brazil and India. Its multilayer gaskets are fitted as original equipment by carmakers, and its whole racing range is designed and built 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 83.5 mm bore of the gasket offered 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: 06H 103 383 AA, 06H 103 383 AC, 06H 103 383 AD, 06H 103 383 AF, 06J 103 383 B, 06J 103 383 D and 06J 103 383 G; no original number published for CJKA and CJKB.

Important: the part number on this page is reserved for the BYT, BZB, CABA, CABB, CABD, CAED, CDAA, CDAB, CDHA, CDHB, CFPA, CGYA, CHJA, CJKA, CJKB, CPMA and CPSA engines: check your vehicle's engine code before ordering.

Why switch to a reinforced gasket?

When the standard gasket reaches its limit, the reinforced one steps in: as combustion pressure climbs, it holds its shape rather than being squashed.

On an engine that is already boosted, fitting a bigger turbo or a more aggressive map makes the head gasket the weak link of the top end. A reinforced gasket then becomes a question of reliability rather than comfort: it avoids the leak, and the head removal that follows.