Hey folks, my oil pump arrived today in a sealed box, new, and did not include the gasket as pictured here;


Pretty sure I'm not going to install without it.

Do I have an alternative other than a return or exchange? I'm reading the gasket is hard to come by.

Edit-after doing some searching around, a popular opinion is to go no gasket, or make one from a cereal box. I may go with no gasket on this.

 

I've made my own gaskets a bunch of times over the years. I have punches for the holes, but a pair of scissors and an exacto knife and you can make your own. I'm pretty sure most auto parts stores still carry gasket material. Then again, some have been dropping parts that are fairly common because they don't generate enough profit.

 

Does your local auto parts shop have one?

 

They don't, and as it turns out, the gasket is supposedly hard to come by, according to various posts I've read. One person contacted Melling direct and they sent him a gasket.

But after some thought, I think I'm going to go without the gasket.

 

A lot of pumps I have done, didn't come with a gasket either..... it's a finely machined surface..... and having a thin piece of paper in there probably wouldn't hurt, but, I do not believe it is absolutely required.

 

Maybe they're not overly worried if a few drops of oil seep out between the two mating surfaces and fall back into the pan.

 

That'd be my guess......

 

I believe you got a high volume pump. If both surfaces are clear with no nicks, it should compensate for any seepage.

 

Was more concerned about maintaining pressure than where the oil would go if it leaked.

 

It is definitely not the high volume pump. I weighed both options when making the purchase.