The car engine head gasket is a vital component that ensures the proper sealing of the combustion chamber, allowing for efficient fuel combustion and the containment of high-pressure gases. This gasket is subjected to extreme temperatures and pressures, making it essential to select high-quality, durable materials that can withstand these conditions. The car engine head gasket is crucial for maintaining the integrity and performance of the engine, contributing to the overall reliability and longevity of the vehicle.

The seal shown in Fig. 14.2 is a relatively simple design; most automotive seals are more complex. Dust lips are often used to keep outside contaminants away from the oil lip seals; such seals thus have undercuts that make demolding more difficult. Fluoroelastomer compounds used for such undercut shapes must have reasonably high elongation at break at molding temperatures to avoid tearing the part during demolding. The metal insert is often U-shaped, and stock may be molded to form a thin layer over the outside of the insert. Since both compression and injection molding methods are used, suppliers of fluoroelastomers for shaft-seal applications often must provide different versions of the same polymer composition-medium to high viscosity for compression molding, and low to medium viscosity for injection molding. Different precompounds may be necessary to accommodate relatively long compression-molding times at low temperature and very short injection-molding times at high temperature.