A thermal expansion compensation element (1) comprises an expansion element (2) made of a sufficiently plastic material with a high coefficient of thermal expansion and a piston (4) inside a hollow body (3). Unequal load on the thermal expansion compensation element (1) can result in a flow of material of the expansion element (2) from more heavily loaded to less heavily loaded places. In order to prevent this, the thermal expansion compensation element (1) is divided into a number of segments (11). This separation can be done by toothing of staggered cogs (6, 7) or by means of hollow spaces (9, 10) which are integrated separately from one another and can be accommodated directly in the connection disk or in a component provided especially therefor. The segments (11) of the hollow body or of the expansion element (2) can be kidney-shaped or circular.
