Socket screws stripped on fuel rail.
02-15-2013, 01:43 AM
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c280
Socket screws stripped on fuel rail.
I have a '97 C280 and am removing the cylinder head to replace a leaking head gasket. The socket screw heads on the fuel rail stripped when I tried to remove them. They are really inaccessible so drilling them for an extractor or cutting slots in them would be next to impossible nor am I able to grab them with vise grips. (As a last resort I could take a saw and cut off the whole manifold, pull the screws then replace the manifold with a salvage one. They're $150-175 on ebay.
Any ideas on how to proceed? In the Bentley manual it says to remove the intake manifold in order to remove the head. Then at the end of that section it says to remove the head with both the exhaust and intake manifolds attached. I wonder if I can do that?
Any ideas on how to proceed? In the Bentley manual it says to remove the intake manifold in order to remove the head. Then at the end of that section it says to remove the head with both the exhaust and intake manifolds attached. I wonder if I can do that?
02-19-2013, 03:08 AM
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1996 C36
What size allen are the hex head bolts? Back in my VW days i stripped a hex head bolt that was a 6mm hex head. What I did was use a 6mm triple square bit (12 point) and hammer it into the stripped hex socket. This method has never failed me to date. good luck.
02-19-2013, 09:03 AM
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Hey, thanks. What a great idea. And I just bought a set of those a few days ago.
But I already pulled the head off with the intake manifold attached. It wasn't nearly as difficult as it looked. Probably it's a lot easier than removing the manifold. Those bolts will just have to stay there.
Those 12 points are strong, much more so than torx. I just twisted of the tips on 2 T40 bits trying to remove camshaft bearing caps. I decided to leave well enough alone.
Any ideas on how to separate the exhaust manifolds from the downpipes? It's +2F in my shop now and I'm about to apply heat to one side. We'll see. I saw an exhaust separator on Summit Racing's website but sure hope I don't have to resort to that.
But I already pulled the head off with the intake manifold attached. It wasn't nearly as difficult as it looked. Probably it's a lot easier than removing the manifold. Those bolts will just have to stay there.
Those 12 points are strong, much more so than torx. I just twisted of the tips on 2 T40 bits trying to remove camshaft bearing caps. I decided to leave well enough alone.
Any ideas on how to separate the exhaust manifolds from the downpipes? It's +2F in my shop now and I'm about to apply heat to one side. We'll see. I saw an exhaust separator on Summit Racing's website but sure hope I don't have to resort to that.
02-22-2013, 07:33 AM
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The compound didn't work. I finally removed the head wiht both manifolds intact. The exhaust pipes wouldn't separate so I had to remove the entire exhaust system. I had to re-attach the head with a few bolts then lower the exhaust before it would pop loose.
I drilled out the heads of the cap screws with long bits from Lowes (what a surprise to find them there.) Another screwhead stripped out while trying to remove the manifold but I managed to get it out with vise grips. I never could bet the camshaft bearing cap bolts loose. I broke several T40 bits trying though. I guess the valves will be ok for another 300K. I did scrape out the intake ports. They were pretty heavily coated in greasy black stuff. Strangely, for each cylinder it was only the back side wall that was carboned up. I really wanted to port and polish the intakes but that ain't gonna happen.
I drilled out the heads of the cap screws with long bits from Lowes (what a surprise to find them there.) Another screwhead stripped out while trying to remove the manifold but I managed to get it out with vise grips. I never could bet the camshaft bearing cap bolts loose. I broke several T40 bits trying though. I guess the valves will be ok for another 300K. I did scrape out the intake ports. They were pretty heavily coated in greasy black stuff. Strangely, for each cylinder it was only the back side wall that was carboned up. I really wanted to port and polish the intakes but that ain't gonna happen.
