cam cover gasket and oily coolant

[GModelle@domain.elided]

Gentle Alfisti,

Anthony asked about the longevity of cam cover gaskets, so I will say that I 
have found that using adhesive on the head side of the gasket only, is a good 
strategy to keep the gasket flat and out of the way while your fussing with 
the internal bits. Indeed, I haven't had the need to replace the cam cover 
gasket in quite awhile. Tom Sahines told me the over-the-top method he uses 
for his cam covers: he mills a slot in the cover to receive an o-ring, which 
stands to reason would be a great seal. The o-ring would necessarily have to 
be a half a meter in diameter, though, and exactly the right size. Wow.

I know from my limited experience that the Alfa cooling systems always have a 
bit of oil in them. The downside of this fact is that the oil acts to 
deteriorate the hoses, which should be checked and changed at regular 
intervals. If Anthony has had a catastrophic gasket failure there would be no 
doubt about the presence of oil in the coolant. A few drops is probably 
enough to watch, but not enough on which to base a dissassembly. Just an idea.

Modelle in Somers Point
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