The factory has made changes to the gaskets to deal with the early failure issues. Most people in the aftermarket are having great results with Multi-layer steel replacements which are primarily designed for turbo engines. Whether this is a good long term plan is a push in my opinion, as the MLS gaskets are designed for 7.5/1 nominal compression and the Normally aspirated cars are 10/1. In my experience nothing replaces good maintenance and care. Sure even with good care some things are going to break, but it happens a lot less. The early failures were centered around externally leaking coolant which the factory added a sealant by recall to add, and extended the Powertrain warranty on the headgaskets from 60K to 100K.
Most of the failures I see now are external oil leaks from the bottom, but rarely a "blown" headgasket, And seldom on cars with regular maintenance(Coolant and Oil Changes).
On the maintenace issue most vehicle owners don't know that electrolysis damages coolant and when the electrolysis is high enough it causes corrosion, and can damage headgaskets/heads. For more information on this look up Volkswagen Headgasket issues on the Boxer "wasserboxer" Vanagons. The same issue exists with motor oil, as blowby from the engine adds unburned fuel/acids as well as soot, which degrades the oil. This is especially bad on vehicles that do alot of stop and go driving or many short trips. The PCV system does reduce this effect, but extending the oil change intervals or ignoring them completely can cause damage. The next time I replace a headgasket I will try and post pictures so that everyone can see what extended Oil Change intervals can do to The Headgasket Surface.
