I have to pull my FAST to repair a vacuum leak at mod on the intake to avoid cutting the firewall. I did a search using "FAST INSTALL" & went thru all 250 posts w/o finding a detailed removal/install post. Anybody out there have this info, hopefully w/ pics to refresh my memory. I did it a long time ago on my '05.

 

Mike, I cant believe you are asking that question. T thought you Ported your own Fast & did the Firewall Mod etc. I remember talking to you at that time. If you have the sheet that came with your Fast I believe the
instruction was on there. Couple of points to refresh if I may.We just removed the 90 about a week ago to replace with a PORTED 102.
1. Remove the Plumbing from the Vr to the inlet of the TB.
2. Drain the Gas at the Shrader valve at the end of the Fuel rail.
3. Disconect the Fuel Rail at the Fitting by drivers side firewall.
4. Remove the 8 screws holding down the Manifold. Raise the Two
in the Back & put a 1" slit piece of hose around those two Screws to hold them up so they dont scrape the heads while pulling the manifold foreward.
5. Remove the plastic Purge vent hoses. Didconnect MAP., Tb Plug
6. Unplug the injector connectors.
7. Unplug the Oil sender in the rear.
8. Pull the Brake Hose connection off the " RESERVIOR.
9. slowly pull the manifold foreward while snake lifting the Brake hose over the Oil sender. be careful as you can break it.
10. Some take the rail off but you may get gas all over manifold I always pull the Fuel rail while on the Manifold. important. keep the fuel rail flex line pointing up to avoid gas comming out.
Good Luck. Leon

 

Leon, I was brain dead & very aggrevated at the end of a long day. I was out in the car when it failed, so limped home w/ my heart in my throat. Only symptom was idle hanging at first, then back 2 normal, but missing or surging below 2K Rs. My guess was the cpu read the leak as WOT & was dumping lotsa fuel. I was only 10 min. from home, but w/ the fuel being burnt in the cats the exhaust got superheated. So much so the car had smoke billowing from the wheel wells & the trunk through water drain tubes in the trunk ('vert). The CEL never went on & all gauges read normal, & the engine compartment was throwing no more heat than normal. So at first I had know idea what was happening. Hell, I thought the car was going to catch on fire!

So w/ a house full of guest for the w-end & perf. forecast, the last thing I wanted to is have my head under the hood instead of enjoying my time off & company, especially the idea of top down weather cuising.

Brain working this morning, as a matter fact I realized I have file with documentation on the whole procedure. Once I get guests fed & outta the house to the beach, I'm on it!

 

Mike, your not the first to have the firewall mod collapse or crack around the sealed area. Many of us were putting that mod on in that time period.
Spinmonster had the first real writeup on doing the mod and saving a bunch of money. JB Weld was the sealant that held up the best. You might have gotten a little rusty but it will all come back and you will be up and running. Leon

 

Mike I had this problem 3 times until my buddy made me a metal filler plate out of sheetmetal, epoxied in place. No problems since for over a year now.

Oh and no need to unhook fuel rail. Just take out bolts and pop injectors out of the manifold, put a towel on the windshield and flip the fuel rail back on it still hooked up to the car. No gas spillage this way.

I also unhook the brake booster hose from the booster and snake it out from around the oil switch, using my hands once I pull the manifold forward a little.

Call me tomorrow if you need any tips. An air ratchet is a big help.

 

Mike here are some pics of the sheetmetal mod by buddy made for me.

You might do well by making one of these. My plastic panel ended up warping. I'd reseal it, then it would warp some more and leak again. I finally gave up after the third time it happened to me. When it happens it causes a huge vacuum leak and a rough running car and lousy mileage as it dumps fuel at idle and very part throttle trying to keep up with all the air. I always got a check engine light too.

Anyway here are some pics. This worked great.

 

Did you just fill around that with the JB Weld?

 

Joe, thanks 4 the tips.

 

What did you use to seal it?

I have a theory that the best sealant would be common silicone based automotive RTV. Isn't silicone RTV used to seal the upper and lower half of the FAST manifold now?

Its also used in many automotive sealing applications including the water pumps , valve covers, intake to head, and the ends of many intake manifolds where it meets the engine block. If both surfaces are clean and oil free, this stuff seals really well and should last. I would think a hard epoxy would tend to crack and loose adhesion over time due to heat, vibration, and oil vapors coating the inside of the manifold. Silicone RTV works a long time under these conditions.

Since the manifold is under vacuum, you would not need but 2 or 3 small fasteners or clips to keep the plate from moving around while the RTV cures.

Just a thought......

 

Yes, to seal the manifold halves you use RTV. But they are mechanically bolted as well - the graft at the back has only the screw you can see, no mechanical connection on the top part. Thus I wasn't comfortable using only RTV with no mechanical connection, I think it needs bolts as it doesn't have enough adhesion to hold a part in place. Matter of fact as I recall after the Goop failed I tried to use RTV on the plastic graft one time and it didn't hold.

It's been a year now but I'm 99% sure I used JB Weld on the graft. It's held up very well for a year now so far.

The new FAST 102 solves all these problems. Too bad they weren't out two years ago.