Should I use both gasket and silicone sealer or only one on thermostat?

Question

Sorry If this is a stupid question but I'm a noob with mechanic work. I am replacing the thermostat on my 98 Nissan 200SX. I bought both a gasket and blue rtv silicone made to make or seal your own gasket. Should I use both together or just one. My intuition tells me I can just use the gasket but I want to be sure

Answer 1

Since the thermostat in your car has a regular gasket, you can use RTV or not, at your pleasure. If you've had seepage issues in the past, it's almost a given you'd use it. Even if you haven't, it's not going to hurt anything to use it now. If you do use it, only put a thin coat on it, covering both sides evenly. If you put too much on it, you can cause yourself issues. When you tighten down the housing, don't over tighten it. If you start seeing sealant squishing out, you've gone too far. Just bring the bolts down snug and you should be in pretty good shape. While I don't have the spec, I doubt you'd need to torque them beyond 20 lb-ft. You really don't need a torque wrench to tighten these, just try to make them as even as your calibrated hands can and it should be fine. Once the engine has gone through a heating cycle, double check to ensure they are still snug and you should be golden.

Answer 2

Cant do ye any harm to use a little on original gasket