water gasket fitment
 

GM all. I ordered a Fel Pro Gasket #35629 and matching it up to a Mopar V9900083 that is about a year old. I wanted to confirm if DIY have taken some scissors to match the gasket to the water pump. Seems odd to me that is not matching up. Plus there would be a huge gap on the top water passage. I thought I would ask before I proceed. The Mopar gasket that came with my water pump matched perfectly. Any thoughts ? Thanks in advance.
https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.che...3a3e22a80c.jpg

I just did the water pump in my '00 XJ. I bought the Napa one which is a Gates one. Decided to not use the supplied gasket. And that fit perfectly. Opted for a FelPro one myself.
Anyway noticed the exact same thing.
Put it in.
One thing. I researched this before I did the install. FelPro on the their website repeatedly tells people to not use any gunk. To put it in dry.
I asked on here cause I was curious what other people thought.

https://www.cherokeeforum.com/f2/wat...askets-251292/

So I did both the thermostat and water pump gasket dry.
Been a couple weeks now but so far so good.

Thanks Ralph77

Coolant system held pressure and I am back on the road.

No problem. Glad it all worked out.
Was a little unnerving how that is set up though. Wasn't it? LOL.
Especially how the holes for the bolts don't line up perfect either.