i'm replacing my intake manifold gaskets on my L98 and was wondering if i have to remove the distributor and valve covers. also, wanted to know if i have to take the runners and fuel rails off the manifold to get it off. one last question, (all i can think of for now) can i reuse all of my old gaskets such as the runners and throttle body gaskets, i know i'll have to put new silicone on them but should i just get new gaskets all together?
Thanks alot, Brandon.

 

Yes, yes, if you want to, and I wouldn't.

 

yes you have to remove dist.,but before you do line up timing mark on balancer,remove cap &mark where rotor button is:also must remove plenum first,leave throttle body att.then remove runners,cant get to bolts on intake until these are removed,buy new gaskets not that pricey,well worth the investment.fuel rail also has to be removed,take little black cap off shrader valve,press in valve stem in center,first place rag to catch fuel,wear safety glasses fuel can get in eyes,this relieves the pressure from fuel lines.be careful with fuel lines,they have rubber o-rings on them,replace these also(very cheap),place rags over the lifters to keep old gasket material out of engine.hope this helps a little,jimmy

 

thanks alot guys. hopefully i'll be able to bang it all out today

 

hey i'm having some trouble with my fuel rails. i took out the four main bolts that went down into the manifold, and the hard lines in the front of the engine are unscrewed completely as far as i can tell, though they still arent coming out of the female end that is connected to the fuel rails. the bolt that holds all of that to the engine is also unscrewed as far as it will come, but wont come out because the hard lines are in the way. is this a common problem or am i just missing something somewhere? someone please fill me in

 

did you unbolt it from the alternator ,also may have to pry it up just alittle( not too much pressure) sometimes itll stick remember the injectors are stuck in the intake pry each injector out a little at a time youll probably need new o-rings for these also,when putting injectors back in be sure to put a little grease on each o-ring before reinstalling them,this will keep you from pinching them,make sure injectors are all the way down before you put in the 4 hold down bolts,this is a very good time to put a new diaphram in the fuel pressure regulator a little costly though ,but this is the perfect time.later jimmy

 

thanks for the help jimmy. i didnt realise it was attached the alternator at all, i'll take a look after work in the morning. the o-rings on the injecters go between the injecter and fuel rail correct?

 

there are o-rings on both ends of the injectors,theres a c shaped clip on the fuel rail side of the injectors you have to push this clip off if you put new o-rings on fuel rail side ,be sure to get 16 o-rings if replacing them all ,they only come inpacks of 8.good luck jimmy

 

so i got my manifold and everything off, but i dont see any spots on either gasket where theres a crack or anything. so if the reason i was burning coolant and blowing white smoke was my intake gaskets, would i be able to see that by looking at the gaskets or not? i was almost certain it was an intake gasket because i still had good oil pressure, motor was putting out great power, and no visible coolant in oil nor oil in coolant. please give me some feedback, it's much needed.

 

hey man sorry so long replying back, i hardly ever get messages .ok if there are no signs of water entering through intake gaskets only other place is the head gasket,does the engine skip at all,especially at idle,sometimes head gasket will make it skip sometimes not .if youre getting white smoke (steam)out the pipes its most likely a head gasket.pull out the plugs ,if 1 plug is really clean thats the side the head gasket is blown on ( this is a sure way to tell if its a head gasket)if you have to pull the heads there are bolts on the back of the heads that have wires bolted to them ,be sure to count them so when you put them back all of them are hooked up(easy to miss 1 )heads can be pulled in car but its a pain to get to manifold bolts( but less trouble than pulling engine pita)ill keep check for messages hope this helps later jimmy

 

ya, i think i'm going to try and take my heads off today and since my girlfriends uncle owns a speed shop i'm going to take them over to him and have them checked over, cleaned, maybe some porting. questions- can i get my heads off in one day, this car has to be inspected by the 30th of this month, could i get the heads worked, and everything back together by then?

 

you should be able to in 1 day,the manifold bolts are a pain in the butt ,remember they have little tabs that are bent over against the bolt itself you have to straighten these tabs out flat to get to the head of the bolts .be sure to spray the studs on the pipe end of the manifold good luck jimmy

 

If you need to have it inspected soon, i'd wait until after that to do any modifications to it. If you can.

 

it needs to be inspected by the 30th

 

so my exh. manifolds are removed from the heads. i was reading that you should find TDC for each cylinder to take off the rockers, so you don't strip the studs. is this neccessary? it sounds like a pain in @$$. so if it is neccessary could someone walk me through it real quick. you guys have been a great help, esp. you jeremy, it's all greatly appreciated. have to warn you though, i'm probably going to run into some trouble when reconnecting all my vacuum lines though, so be forewarned lol. thanks guys, brandon

 

i'm trying to get this done today guys, so a bump to the top in hopes of getting some much needed help.

 

no, i've never heard of doing that in order to loosen off your rockers. Just remove them, in order to remove the heads. Try to keep your rockers marked or kept on the stud, so you put them back where they came from. Same with the pushrods. I don't think it's crucial, but probably a good idea.

You should have used some masking tape and a sharpie to mark your vac lines and nipples. mark each line with a #, and what it came off with the same number, then it's pretty easy to put them back the same.

What are your questions now? make a short list asking exactly what you want to know.

 

alright, all my rockers are out-

i have 17 head bolts out of my drivers side head, and my exhaust manifold on that side off, but the head won't budge, i also believe i got all the bolts on the accessory belt drive that bolt into the head out, but the head doesnt move at all

on my passenger side i have all the exhaust manifold bolts out except for one which is stripped. my question is could i just pry something between the manifold and head and knock the manifold off-snapping the stud? or would that damage the head?

i read somewhere that sometimes you have to take a pick or something and chisel the head off but i'm afraid of hurting matting surfaces.

not to be a nag but i need help on these issues soon because the mechanic i'm taking my heads to wants them today. so if anyone could reply asap i'd be eternally gratefull.
thanks, brandon

 

intake manifold is off obviously?
DS, if the dist and intake manifold are off, exhaust manifold is off, and all 17 bolts are out, use a prybar. Nothing should be holding it on now. Assuming you can see the front of the head, and nothing is bolted on.
PS - which stud is it that's stripped? You mean the head is rounded? If you can get any bite on it at all, try soaking it in pb blaster or something, then heating the bolt with a propane torch, and soaking it with water, etc. The rapid heating and cooling can help it break free. Otherwise, plan on using a die grinder and carbide burr, and removing the bolt head. Yes, be careful about the bolt head clamping surface. If you can wipe off the head of the bolt you're set. I would be wary about prying, (this is a stud isn't it?), if you can break the exhaust loose, you might bend the stud, then getting the head off will be next to impossible.
If you can cut off the head of the stud or bolt, that's your best bet.

 

wow, i didnt even think about cutting the head of it off, thats a good idea, thanks sonix.

passenger side head is off.

problem with the passenger side (other than the stripped exhaust manifold bolt) is that theres a torx stud that goes into the head behind one of the pulleys on the serpentine system. I think it might be the water pump pulley (idk) it has 3 10mm bolts in it, and the problem is you need to hold one tight while you loosen the one next to it, but it cant get the last one loose because you're left with no bolts to hold onto and i tried holding the pulley by hand and turning the socket wrench but its just far to tight. basically the pulley turns when i try to turn the stud. i hope this makes some sort of sense to you guys, cause once this is off my passenger head should be off and theyll both be on their way to the machine shop.

 

Screw the other 2 bolts back in several turns and put a screwdriver between them to hold the pulley from turning. (or use a butterfly like the rest of us)

 

whats a butterfly?

 

See the wings on top?
Get one here

 

alright i put an allen in between 2 of the screws and got it off,
pass. side head is off. thanks for the help guys. going to the machine shop when i get home from work.