throttle body o-ring

[iowa p-car]

I am in the process of replacing the fuel lines, sensors, vacuum lines, etc. in the engine bay of my '88 Carrera. When I separated the throttle body from the left intake manifold I found that the o-ring barely made contact with the manifold at about the ten o'clock position and just past the five o'clock position.

It looks like the manifold had been ground in this area to remove metal. Has anyone seen this and what, if anything, should I do to improve it. At its narrowest, the dark circular mark left by the o-ring is 1/32 inch in width.

Car had been running fine. Just thought I'd replace the o-ring while doing all the other items.

Thanks in advance for any thoughts or suggestions, Kevin.

[RedCoupe]

It looks like you might be able to straighten the o-ring groove with carefull use of a small hand tool. Perhaps the right size screwdriver with the sharp edges ground off. On my 86, the throttle shaft was twisted so it wouldn't close all the way. I wound up buying a good used throttle body from 20th St Auto which is a used parts place in Phoenix. The other challenge is to make sure the o-ring doesn't fall out of the groove when you reinstall it. I used some some vasoline to hold it in place.

[boyt911sc]

Kevin,

I would try to replace the missing section/s using some epoxy resin and flatten the top edge using a wooden disc with Saran Wrap. For final touch up, get your Dremel out.

Tony

[iowa p-car]

RedCoupe.....the photo is of the intake manifold, but it appears egg-shaped because my phone was tilted when I took the picture causing some distortion.

The dark circle is where the o-ring made contact with the manifold. That manifold surface is actually a flat machined surface.

Good idea to use vaseline to adhere o-ring to throttle body when reinstalling.

boyt911sc.....building up the manifold seems like a good idea. My only concern is the possibility of it letting go someday and finding its way into the intake valve area. Maybe with the right product it shouldn't be a concern.

Appreciate the input.

Kevin

[911pcars]

Vasoline is slippery and there’s a chance the o-ring could creep out of place during assembly. Suggest using a light gasket cement like GasgaCinch.

Technical – Gasket Sealer

Sherwood