Question on BMW 3-Series Head Gasket

Hi Wayne,
I hope you can help.
I am about to put the cyl head back on my 316.
It's the gasket that's puzzling me, not the way it fits, etc But the small holes +- 3mm for the cooling system!
On cylinders 1 to 3 the holes in the gasket are 3mm whilst the water ducts are much larger see arrors on cyl No 1.
I highlighted the gaskets holes and ducts on cyl No 1.
Whilst on No 4 the gasket apetures are almost the same size as the ducts, only slighlty out of alignment. No 4 is where it ocer heated! The old gasket is the same as the new one - regarding hole sizes, placing & alignment.
sould i makes the holes bigger?
What do you suggest I do?



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This post was auto-generated based upon a question asked on our tech article page here: Pelican Technical Article: BMW Head Gasket Replacement

[Wayne 962]

I remember having the same thoughts when I installed / replaced my head gasket on my 3-Series engine (shown in the article). In the end, I just installed it and went on my way, as I figured that the new one and old one were the same, and the factory seemed to know what they were doing. In other words, I wouldn't worry about it.

- Wayne