Correct - the o-ring will look like a flat seal when it has been in there a long time.� This is an o-ring.

Z

________________________________
From: pdooley <psdooley@VERIZON.NET>
To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
Sent: Tuesday, April 7, 2009 7:34:18 PM
Subject: Re: seal at lower t-stat housing to cyl head

I'm no authority on the matter, but experience has shown me that old orings
compressed long enough can look like flat seals.

Any chance of mistaken identity?

-----Original Message-----
From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com] On Behalf Of
azsun99
Sent: Tuesday, April 07, 2009 9:03 PM
To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
Subject: seal at lower t-stat housing to cyl head

This is on a '90. The ETKA calls it a seal and when I removed the old one
(it was
leaking), it was a flat seal, not an old hardened o-ring. When I asked for
the seal at
a VW dealer in San Diego, they gave me an o-ring. It does not appear to be
anything
special, but I am concerned with the high heat in that area.
Has the flat seal been superseded by the o-ring?
Thanks,
Jerry in AZ