Product Description
Victor Reinz, a sealing brand sold by Dana Incorporated, is alleged in publicly filed asbestos litigation records to have supplied cylinder head gaskets containing compressed asbestos fiber sealing layers to the U.S. automotive and marine aftermarket. The Victor line and later the merged Victor Reinz product line were allegedly distributed through parts jobbers to independent repair garages, dealership service bays, and engine rebuilders from the 1940s into the 1980s. The asbestos-bearing sheet stock was allegedly chosen for its thermal stability at head-to-block interfaces on both gasoline and diesel powerplants.
Workers Exposed
Litigation records allegedly describe exposure to automotive mechanics installing and removing Victor Reinz head gaskets, engine rebuilders scraping baked-on gasket residue from cylinder heads and blocks, machine shop workers surfacing decks and running parts washers, DIY shade-tree mechanics doing driveway rebuilds without dust controls, and marine engine mechanics servicing gasoline and diesel marine powerplants in the cramped confines of engine rooms and boat wells.