Reinforced head gasket Nissan 3.0 VG30E

The Nissan engines covered

The VG30E is Nissan's petrol V6 of 3.0 litres, fitted among others to the Maxima, 300ZX, Terrano, Pathfinder, Navara, Cedric and Gloria listed in the compatibility table below. Each bank of three cylinders has its own cylinder head and its own gasket, so the engine needs two.

The original gasket carries part number 11044-06P00. Nissan publishes neither its bore, nor its thickness, nor its construction. Sized for standard combustion pressure, it reaches its limit as soon as it rises: clamping load drops, the head lifts and coolant finds its way into a cylinder.

Reinforced cylinder head gaskets

The gasket's hold also relies on the fasteners that clamp each head against the block. A composite gasket is permanently crushed beyond 100 N/mm²; the 301 stainless steel of an MLS gasket resists 517 N/mm², 5 times more, and recovers its shape at every combustion. Change any head bolt that is stretched or marked.

This page presents part numbers H3265SP2045S and H3265SP4051S from Cometic, the American maker of racing gaskets, in a single construction: the multi-layer steel MLS. The bore is 88 mm for both; the thickness is 1.14 mm for the first and 1.30 mm for the second. Each part number is sold individually: plan on two gaskets per engine.

Technical specifications

A gasket's volume is the free space it leaves above each cylinder. It adds to the combustion chamber and lowers the compression ratio: the thicker the gasket, the larger that volume. Here both part numbers have the same 88 mm bore; only the thickness changes, 1.14 mm or 1.30 mm.

Preparation and fitting

Before reassembly, check the flatness of each head and of the block with a straight edge, then have any face that needs it ground. Cometic gaskets are coated from the factory: do not coat them with any sealant.

Technical guide

The construction offered

Cometic MLS A stack of stamped and riveted stainless steel sheets. The outer sheets carry active beads that surround every cylinder and every fluid passage. Moderate clamping is enough to seal and the bore stays stable: a versatile construction, from the tuned naturally aspirated engine to moderate boost. The part numbers H3265SP2045S and H3265SP4051S on this page are offered in this construction.

Choosing bore and thickness

Gasket bore. The Cometic MLS H3265SP2045S and H3265SP4051S come in 88 mm, in that bore only.

Thickness. No thickness is published for the original gasket 11044-06P00. A thicker gasket enlarges the combustion chamber and lowers the compression ratio; a thinner one reduces it and raises the ratio.

As the original thickness is not published, use a dial gauge to measure how far the pistons stand above the block's gasket face, especially before choosing the 1.14 mm: this reading gives the clearance left between piston and head.

The brand

Cometic Gasket, Inc. is an American company based in Concord, Ohio, since 1989. It designs engine gaskets and sealing solutions, and made its mark with the custom gasket, cut to the bore and thickness requested and made in the United States from American raw materials.

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 11044-06P00, which Nissan 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: 11044-06P00.

Important: the part numbers on this page only suit the VG30E engine: check the engine code of your Nissan before ordering.

Why switch to a reinforced gasket?

When the standard gasket is no longer enough, the reinforced one carries on: at higher combustion pressure it stays in shape instead of flattening.

As soon as a V6 is tuned with forced induction or a higher compression ratio, chamber pressure climbs and the head gasket is the first link to give way. A reinforced gasket prevents the leak and the long, expensive removal of both heads.