RTV Sealant

Room temperature vulcanizing (RTV) sealants are used in various applications on the 1.9 L engine. Several factors need to be considered when servicing this material:
^ Shelf Life - The useful shelf life of almost all RTV product is one year. Products used beyond this period will not perform as designed in some area of performance.
^ RTV Instead of Gasket - RTV has certain limitations as far its performance under specific operating conditions. For this reason using RTV in an application where a gasket was originally used should not be attempted as the gasket has been specially designed for those applications.
^ Color-RTV can normally be any color. High temperature resistance compounds are most likely red due to the addition of iron oxide. Other colors (black, white, blue or translucent) do not indicate any brand or physical characteristics.
^ Several different RTV compounds are available which differ slightly in performance characteristics. Saturn P/N 21006236 (silver color) is specifically recommended for the engine and will attain excellent adhesive balance with good serviceability. Equivalent products may be used if Saturn material is not available, but they may not seal.





Room temperature vulcanize (RTV) sealant is used in six locations on the engine as a gasket or sealant:
^ Oil pan
^ Front cover
^ Rear crankshaft seal carrier
^ Front cover, cylinder head, cam cover T-joints
^ Vibration damper/pulley washer

IMPORTANT: Disassembly of components sealed with RTV requires that specific procedures be followed. RTV cutter tool is required for oil pan removal. The engine's front cover and rear seal carrier have pry tangs to break the component loose from the cylinder block The cam cover gasket is a procured gasket.