pulling everything apart now.
99-02 throttle body gasket is about 22 bucks "retail" from the dealership, undoubtedly cheaper from carson. the design is updated from the two-hole 00 design i have, but it's specd for the same model years. two of the three holes are the same so it shouldnt matter.
i wound up getting a new one because the rubber does "clamp" over time, and in my case it looked like it may have allowed a small vacuum leak and possibly crud entering the engine--there was a bit of fluid (i assume condensed oil vapor from the connection to the head on top of the t/b) that seemed to be passing across the gasket.
another observation...i havent cleaned the t/b in at least 30-40K, normally it's every other oil change (10k) or every change (5k) if you're anal. while there was gunk in the t/b, it was minimal, and mainly behind the butterfly--very, very little in front of the plate. i am running a true flow filter, and previously a k&n...with the k&n, i would find a filthy throttle body at 10k, and the sort of dirt i found this time at 30k with the true flow would be about how the t/b would look at 5k with the k&n.
more later, off to pick up the gasket...good thing they had one in stock
...and a 22mm wrench.
-sean