Reinforced cylinder head gasket VW Audi 1.6 1.8 8V EA827 4B ABB ABM

The Volkswagen and Audi engines covered

The petrol engines of 1.6 and 1.8 litres, with four cylinders in line, built as 4B, ABB, ABM, ADA, DD, DR, DS, DT, DZ, JN, JU, JV, JW, MU, NE, NP, PH, PM, PP, PV, RN, RS, RU, SA, SF, SH, 1F, ABN, ABS, ACC, ADZ, EZ, RP, 1P, 2H, AAM, ADD, ANN, ANP, DTA, DX, EV, EW, EX, EZA, GU, GX, GZ, HM, HN, HT, HV, JH, JJ, KT, PB, PF, PN, RD, RE, RH, RL, RM and RV, power the Audi 80, 90, 100 and Coupé and the Volkswagen Golf, Jetta, Passat, Scirocco, Santana, Caddy, Polo, Fox, Gol, Saveiro, Parati, Pointer, Voyage, Vento and Logus, detailed in the table below. The gasket is sold individually and the engine needs only one.

The original part number on record is 026 103 383 K. The manufacturer publishes neither the bore, nor the construction, nor the thickness.

Reinforced cylinder head gaskets

The gasket is not everything: the studs or bolts that clamp the head on the block provide the other half of the seal. A composite gasket sags for good beyond 100 N/mm², whereas the 301 stainless steel of an MLS withstands 517 N/mm² and recovers its shape after every combustion. To replace the fasteners, follow the workshop manual.

This page presents one part number from Athena, an Italian maker of racing gaskets, in a single construction: MLS, a multilayer stainless steel. Its bore is 83 mm and its thickness 1.40 mm. It is sold individually: a single gasket is enough for these four cylinders in line.

Technical specifications

A gasket's volume is the space it leaves free above each cylinder. That space joins the combustion chamber and lowers the compression ratio; only gaskets of the same bore can be compared. Here, the bore offered is 83 mm.

Preparation and fitting

Before fitting, check the flatness of the head and block faces with a straightedge, and have whichever needs it skimmed. The Athena gasket arrives ready to fit: no sealing paste, and the same check at every rebuild of an older block.

Technical guide

The construction offered

Athena MLS Several layers of AISI 301 stainless steel, laser cut, stamped and then riveted together. Around each cylinder, a layer folded over on itself, the Gas Stopper, concentrates the clamping load on the combustion chamber, while beads block the water and oil passages. The outer layers carry a two-coat finish: the first withstands high temperatures and fills small irregularities of the block and head, the second, silicone based, keeps the gasket from sticking at removal. It is Athena's all-steel answer, from the tuned naturally aspirated engine to moderate forced induction. Here, the MLS is offered in 83 mm and 1.40 mm.

Choosing bore and thickness

Gasket bore. The Athena MLS comes in 83 mm (338003R), with no other bore.

Thickness. No thickness is published for the original gasket: only the figure read on the removed gasket applies. A thicker gasket enlarges the combustion chamber and lowers the compression ratio; a thinner one reduces it and raises the ratio.

With no known original thickness, use a dial gauge to read how far the pistons rise above the block face, especially if the removed gasket is thicker than 1.40 mm: that figure gives the clearance left between piston and head. On these engines, the measurement is made with a dial gauge, head removed.

The brand

Athena S.p.A. is an Italian maker of gaskets and engine components, established in Alonte, in Veneto, where its head office and main plant stand. It also has sites in Spain, the United States, Brazil and India. Several carmakers fit its multilayer gaskets on the assembly line, and its entire racing range is designed and built in Italy. Part number 338003R is the one on this page.

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 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: 026 103 383 K.

Important: the part number on this page suits the engines listed in the compatibility table: check the engine code of your vehicle before ordering.

Why switch to a reinforced gasket?

When the original gasket is no longer enough, the reinforced gasket takes over: under higher combustion pressure it keeps its shape instead of being crushed. These engines find here a gasket with an 83 mm bore.

Turbo, supercharger or a raised compression ratio: the head gasket is the first part stressed, the weak point of the top end. A reinforced gasket prevents the leak, and the head removal that goes with it costs well above the gasket. This holds for these engines as for any hard-driven engine.