Broken exhaust bolts when doing starter?
Thread Starter
Instructor
Joined: Feb 2010
Posts: 164
Likes: 1
From: Las vegas Nevada
Broken exhaust bolts when doing starter?
I need to replace the starter on my 97 corvette and the exhaust bolts / studs / nuts are VERY rusty. I need to take off the cats and the 3 studs ( 3 on each side ) are rusted so bad that they will just snap. ( not the ones on the head ... the ones that connect the manifolds to the cats ) Are you guys just cutting them off flush and drilling them out and putting a long bolt through or how hard are these to drill? Thanks.
Tech Contributor
Joined: Dec 1999
Posts: 32,910
Likes: 2,402
From: Anthony TX
CI 6,7,8,9,11 Vet
St. Jude Donor '08
If it were ME,, I would soak the bolts in PB Blaster over night. Attempt to remove. If they wont break free,, use a TORCH. ( I use MAP Gas) and heat up the nuts till there almost red and then quench them in PB Blaster. Heat again till red and then attempt to remove. If it snaps, just remove the manifold and have the studs extracted.
Most of the time, the stud will spin out of the manifold. You can purchase the studs and nuts at www.gmpartshouse.com for way less than the local STEALERSHIPS prices
Most of the time, the stud will spin out of the manifold. You can purchase the studs and nuts at www.gmpartshouse.com for way less than the local STEALERSHIPS prices
Tech Contributor
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 19,473
Likes: 1,171
From: Dyer, IN
If it were ME,, I would soak the bolts in PB Blaster over night. Attempt to remove. If they wont break free,, use a TORCH. ( I use MAP Gas) and heat up the nuts till there almost red and then quench them in PB Blaster. Heat again till red and then attempt to remove. If it snaps, just remove the manifold and have the studs extracted.
Most of the time, the stud will spin out of the manifold. You can purchase the studs and nuts at www.gmpartshouse.com for way less than the local STEALERSHIPS prices
Most of the time, the stud will spin out of the manifold. You can purchase the studs and nuts at www.gmpartshouse.com for way less than the local STEALERSHIPS prices
Le Mans Master
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 5,015
Likes: 508
From: Hilton NY
I used a torch several times with good results but be careful not to burn any nearby wires, several layers of aluminum foil or a scrap piece of aluminum sheet ahead of any wires is good insurance.
Thread Starter
Instructor
Joined: Feb 2010
Posts: 164
Likes: 1
From: Las vegas Nevada
Yea I tried heating them and soaking them in PB blaster but the first one I tried to loosen snapped instantly. They are rusted very badly so I think cutting them off flush, drilling them and through bolting them is my best option ... are these difficult to drill or would I be best off just getting new manifolds altogether?
Race Director
Joined: Apr 2007
Posts: 11,152
Likes: 890
From: South Western Ontario
You'll make your life much easier if you heat the manifold and get them to back out there so you can just replace them. I've never had a problem getting a stud out of a manifold if I have heated the crap out of the manifold flange. But then, if you just break them off you can still get a wrench on them to turn them out of the manifold. At least on my car (98 so it should be the same) the studs had a hex head in the middle that tighened up against the manifold flange making it easy to usie a wrench or Vice Grips plus a torch to turn them out of the manifold. Worse case, you may want to cut the top side of the stud off so you can turn it out, since the threaded part in the manifold will be OK, it's just the part sticking through that is messed up with rust and won't turn out.
If you do decide to drill then just pull the manifolds. It'd only take probably about an hour or so to pull them off and they'd be so much easier to fix on the bench.
Peter
If you do decide to drill then just pull the manifolds. It'd only take probably about an hour or so to pull them off and they'd be so much easier to fix on the bench.
Peter
Last edited by lionelhutz; Feb 18, 2011 at 09:59 PM.
Tech Contributor
Joined: Dec 1999
Posts: 32,910
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From: Anthony TX
CI 6,7,8,9,11 Vet
St. Jude Donor '08
You'll make your life much easier if you heat the manifold and get them to back out there so you can just replace them. I've never had a problem getting a stud out of a manifold if I have heated the crap out of the manifold flange. But then, if you just break them off you can still get a wrench on them to turn them out of the manifold. At least on my car (98 so it should be the same) the studs had a hex head in the middle that tighened up against the manifold flange making it easy to usie a wrench or Vice Grips plus a torch to turn them out of the manifold. Worse case, just cut them off at the pipe flange to leave enough to grab after so you can heat and turn them out of the manifold. In any case, I would avoid drilling them like the pague.
If you do decide to drill then just pull the manifolds. It'd only take probably about an hour or so to pull them off and they'd be so much easier to fix on the bench.
Peter
If you do decide to drill then just pull the manifolds. It'd only take probably about an hour or so to pull them off and they'd be so much easier to fix on the bench.
Peter
BC
Melting Slicks
Joined: Oct 2007
Posts: 2,798
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From: It's true money can't buy happiness, but it is more comfortable crying in a Corvette than on a bicyc
St. Jude Donor '13
They through drill very easy. Been there done that. Heat and PB Blaster didn't faze them. I got lucky and the broken ones were accessible on the car, didn't have to remove the manifold. I was going to tap and restud but headers were in the near future so through bolting worked well.
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