Hi, I have a leaking exhaust manifold gasket which I would like to change, but the ac pump is right in my way. I was wondering if there is any special concerns I should know about before taking off the ac pump, seeing as though I've never dealt with freeon before. Also, my friend steven told me to take it to a shop because the bolts to the manifold are in pretty bad shape, and I really dont want them to break off in the block. And I'll need to grind the gasket off, right? Should I use gasket sealer? Then after I've put it all back together, to keep tension in the belt, I'd tighten the nut on the bracket coming off the alternator, I think? I've never done this before so any pointers/advice is greatly appreciated. Thankyou.
hi , welcome to the board...this is a "no win situation". if you do the job and break a bolt it will be a lot of extra work...if the shop breaks a bolt it will cost you a lot of bucks..they will tell you up front ..if a bolt breaks you pay. if you (they)can't get it out in the car then the head will have to be removed...my head shop charges $25 bucks per broken bolt... ...good luck...frank...
The main thing is not to get in a hurry. I know it's uncomfortable as hell bending over the car reaching down in there trying to get them loose, but you have got to take your time. Go VERY easy when your first trying to break them loose. It may take some muscle but do not absolutely force anything. If you feel the bolt hang up as your unscrewing it, STOP and screw it back in a couple of turns, then try backing it out again. I had to do that about 10 times on one bolt in our car to get it loose. Take your time and go sloooooow getting them out. As far as the compressor, just unbolt it from the engine and leave the freeon lines connected, and set it out of the way. You should be able to pretty much pull the old gasket off by hand, it will probably break and come off in several pieces. I used steel wool and a flat head screw driver to get little pieces of stuck on gasket off. The steel wool will "grab" the loose stuff and you can scrape off the stuck on stuff with the screw driver. The exaust gets way to hot for gasket sealer.
If you tackle this yourself, try using a good penetrating oil like PB blaster. WD-40 is not a substitute. Soak them very good, overnight will work. Spray it where the manifold meets the head. It may work it's way down to the bolt. It is possible although not likely that you could ruin a thread in the head, so be careful. IF you have bad bolts-rusted or rounded heads, it may be easier to cut the heads off of the bolts and slide the manifold off. I did not see if you were working on a V8 or an I6. There may not be room to slide an exhaust manifold off of a V8 with this method without jacking the engine up-unbolting the motor mounts first. As stated, take your time and be sure to use penetrating oil. Seth
