1. Can this be the culprit for low boost?

2. Are you suppoed to use a sealant on this gasket?

I don't know if it was broken before I took the throttle body off or if I broke it when I removed it to change the plugs. I changed them because of missing power.

I've since put in a boost gauge and I get a 16-17 vac reading at idle, but an 8-5-5 in 3rd at WOT.

 

Could be, I guess any sort of leak in the intake tract could cause a boost pattern like that. Usually though when you have a leak in the intake you will also see a higher idle. If you want to confirm this take some carb cleaner and spray along the edges, if you have a leak you'll see it get sucked in and the idle will surge. You are not supposed to use any sealant on the gasket, and the UIM to LIM and UIM to TB gaskets are both metal, they usually don't break, but the TB to Intake Elbow gasket is a rubber O-Ring that sometimes needs to be replaced. Good luck.

 

Wow...if there is a gasket b/n the plastic intake elbow to the TB then I've never taken notice of it. Is it incorporated into the TB somehow?

The gasket to the TB and the Upper intake manifold looks like a hard brittle plastic like material, but I've not removed it yet. It is broken in 2 places.

So no sealant eh?

 

Technonovice,
There is a O ring incorporated into the Elbow, it will help seal between the TB and the elbow, just try the carb cleaner when you put the elbow back on to make sure you dont need a new o ring....
Also, depending on the year of your car, the gasket between the UIM and the TB will either be a paper one or a Metal one. i Believe the 93's are the only ones that were made of paper, the 94 and 95 were metal, if you remove your TB from teh UIM for the first time its almost sure to tear, I would "upgrade" to the metal one, your better off that way. No risk of idle problems, or pieces of it flyin into your engine!
But i think you have a vacume problem for boost wise....check all your vacume hoses and make sure they are in the right place and they are on tight without kinks. Hope this helps some
Huy

 

I ordered the TB/UIM gasket. It is a little under $20 so I hope it is metal one.

I checked all the hoses for connections and kinks already. I'm hoping this will magically cure it. Needs to be done anyway.