[Bala]

Finally located the exhaust leak that was coming from where the header attaches to the engine. All 6 bolts came out fine, whew! The PO had put whatever M8 bolts he could find. some were shorter than the other. The gasket was a POC.

Anyway, ordered the gasket, bolts and also the bolts+nuts for the other triangular end of the pre cat.

Question is do I need to prep the surface of the header and the engine side before I put it on and bolt it? Like sanding down the surface smooth maybe? The old gasket seems to have fused a little bit on to the headers and I'm concerned that the seal may not be good enough. Do I have to use any kind of sealant around the edges of the headers? Thanks.