427W Intake manifold problem

[Mag]

Here's my problem. I have a Ford Racing Z2 427 Crate motor in my Mk4. I purchased it new so it has never been messed with. The recommendation from Ford is to use the Edelbrock Super Victor 2924. However this manifold is too tall to fit under the hood, so I went with the Edelbrock Performer RPM air gap 7581. The first time I installed it I used the .70 intake gasket that came with the motor. I thought everything was fine but soon realized that the intake was seated too low in the valley. I put a bore camera down the intake through the carb opening and found that the intake manifold was about 1/8" below the intake ports on the head. I took it apart and bought a thicker gasket, Felpro 1262R5, which is .120 thick. Then I used a sharpie marker and marked the center inside of each intake port, (manifold and head). I layed the manifold in place without torquing it and put the camera back down and found the marks perfectly aligned. I knew after torque that they would no longer be aligned, so I purchased a second set of gaskets, this time Felpro 1262R3's which are .60 thick and added these to the .120's for a total of .180. After torquing to the recommended 18 ft lbs. the alignment was perfect. The motor runs great and I thought my problem was solved, but i checked the torque after I drove it and let it cool - 3 times now and every time the bolts need to be re-torqued and it seems the manifold is slowly sinking down again, although less than before. Oh I forgot to mention that after I pulled it apart the first time I talked to a mechanic friend of mine that thought the intake might be defective ( not milled correctly). This seemed probable so I purchased another intake and found it to be the same. If I hadn't used the cam, I never would have known about the misalignment. Has anyone had this problem?

[Mastertech5]

Try two steel shim gaskets on both sides of the Fel-pro gasket. they won't compress. glue them on with Hi tack gasket spray. just make sure that the port sizes match. Hi tack is like contact cement, so let it dry before putting the gaskets together. Check with Edelbrock and see what gaskets they suggest.

[Raddksn]

am I over simplifying this? would going back to original gasket, and port match intake to the heads solve this?

[luvaz]

I had a similar problem and swapped out the engine mounts to lower the engine down in the engine bay. I went from Prothane mounts to Autozone 1989 Mustang Convertible engine mounts. It worked for me.

Hope this helps!
Will

[Mastertech5]

Maybe your head gaskets are too thick raising the heads up and apart. You have to watch your compression ratio though as thinner or thicker gaskets will change it. Talk to your engine builder and inquire about it. Probably not the case though being a crate motor. Try another intake manifold.

[Mag]

am I over simplifying this? would going back to original gasket, and port match intake to the heads solve this?

Since the manifold ports are lower than the head ports, metal would have to be cut from the heads. Not going to do that.

[Mag]

I had a similar problem and swapped out the engine mounts to lower the engine down in the engine bay. I went from Prothane mounts to Autozone 1989 Mustang Convertible engine mounts. It worked for me.

Hope this helps!
Will

I would have to change my oil pan as my pan is now flush with the frame. What engine and intake are you using?