Transmission pan rubber gasket vs. RTV/FIBG

Hi. My husband, roommate, and I are planning to replace a botched tranny pan on our 2004 tacoma prerunner 4 cyl 3RZ engine. The tranny pan is to get to San Diego this Tuesday for some odd reason the dealership said it's back ordered. I am new and learning how to maintenance cars. But my roommate is an expert who will be helping me. My husband..is not so much of a guy who likes to works on cars.

Meanwhile, I have been reading the Haynes manual, Toyota factory manual, and watching youtube videos on how to get a new tranny pan on. While getting the new pan on, we will also be changing the tranny filter while we are up there.

In the manuals, they mention using RTV (the generic) or FIBG (toyota genuine) sealant to act as a gasket/sealant. But in some of the youtube videos of people working on their tranny pan, they are using the NAPA tranny filter and rubber gasket. Not so much of the sealant.

For example: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pYkF6osAL6I, and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FoInC_ueluM

Is it better to use RTV/FIBG as the gasket or a rubber gasket from NAPA? What are your experiences as to what works best? I know the RTV/FIBG stuff can be a pain and messy to get off while the rubber gasket appears much cleaner and neater. But at the same time, I don't want tranny fluid to be leaking and have to drop the pan again.

I have also seen people on Youtube cleaning the sealant off the pan, then reapply the RTV or whatever, then seating a rubber gasket lining up the holes. I have already purchased a Toyota Genuine filter which does not come with a rubber tranny gasket and Toyota's FIBG. But returning Toyota's filter even after a 15% restocking fee and getting Napa's filter with the rubber gasket would save me $10.

 

did you get this figured out? I'm looking for a gasket for my 02 as well as we speak and not sure which route to take

 

I would use the rubber gasket. The FIPG is a bit messy and kind of a bitch to get back on, especially if you don't remove the sway bar (or whatever that bar is that's directly under the pan). Also, one of my problems was I got FIPG in the thread holes, so I couldn't see if the bolt holes in the pan were lined up perfectly with the threaded holes in the transmission. So of course the first one wasn't perfectly lined up and since the threads are aluminum (or very weak at the least) i stripped one.... cam close to stripping a few others, but saved them.

Point is, next time i drop the pan i am not using FIPG/RTV.... Unless there is evidence that the rubber gaskets fail, which i doubt it.

 

Hi. Sorry for a late response. I bought the tranny filter and FIBG from Toyota dealership and a rubber gallery from Napa. I was not sure what would be more appropriate so I got both and asked my roommate who knows more about cars than I do. We ended up choosing the FIBG. His reasoning was that over time the FIBG creates a better seal and mating surface since it forms to the pan where the rubber over time may possibly deterioate and cause gaps. He has really good hands so the amount of FIBG material was minimal and uniform. We did not problems torquing the pan bolts. The manual said 65 inch lbs which we converted to 5 ft lbs. We also had the pan sit over night for a full 24 hrs to make sure the FIBG really rubberized before filling the tranny fluid.

Again we replaced the pan with a new one since our old one was botched. So there was no cleaning of the old pan.

 

i have been a toyota tech since 2004 and fipg is like gold aroung the shop. the best rvt style sealant on the market hands down. it may be a bit messy like mentioned before but i would just run a bead arround the new pan where the gasket would go and tighten it up, fill it full of fluid, and drive it for another couple hundred thousand miles. i love the stuff. i use on everything with no problems. i even use it on all my gm trans pans and forget the cork or rubber gasket that comes in the filter kit.