Transmission pan gasket

Replaced tranny fluid & filter a couple of years ago and have had a slow leak in the silicone gasket ever since. Getting ready to do it again and am considering using a rubberized pan gasket (from RockAuto) this time. Anyone had luck with these?

Is the pan bent anywhere?
These pans often get slightly distorted around the bolt holes from overtightening.

You can place the edge of the pan on a wood block and gently hammer down the high spots around the bolt holes with a ball-peen hammer.

All the metal surfaces where the gasket goes must be completely free of grease and oil and totally dry. I find using a spray can of brake cleaner a great way to quickly degrease the surfaces.

Finally, don't over-tighten the pan bolts. They don't need much torque.

Replaced tranny fluid & filter a couple of years ago and have had a slow leak in the silicone gasket ever since. Getting ready to do it again and am considering using a rubberized pan gasket (from RockAuto) this time. Anyone had luck with these?
Use a small screwdriver and remove all silicon out of the bolt holes. This makes the bolts very easy to break even with a 1/4 drive socket. The rubberized gasket will work fine. Use some grease after cleaning to hold it in place.

Finally, don't over-tighten the pan bolts. They don't need much torque.

Several of the hole threads stripped the first time I had the pan off. I knew that they required very light torque and I definitely didn't crank them down hard so I'm not really sure why they stripped - it almost seemed like they must have stripped on the way out. Anyway... now I probably need to either use a helicoil or tap the bad holes. Before I do either I'm going to try a longer bolt - maybe the holes are deep enough that longer bolts would have something to grab.

Use a small screwdriver and remove all silicon out of the bolt holes. This makes the bolts very easy to break even with a 1/4 drive socket. The rubberized gasket will work fine. Use some grease after cleaning to hold it in place.

i second that on the bolts and agree to a rubber gasket not cork.

Anyway... now I probably need to either use a helicoil or tap the bad holes. Before I do either I'm going to try a longer bolt - maybe the holes are deep enough that longer bolts would have something to grab.

Update: The transmission pan bolt holes are a few mm deeper than the original bolts. Cleaned up the bad threads with a tap (8mm x 1.25) and used longer bolts. All good.

Thanks for the update and I'm glad it workd out well for you.