what are my options? Ive tried vise grips but its too stripped for them to grip, i tried filing the bolt so there is something to grab didnt work. I am going to try hammering a smaller socket on to see if that works... i was thinking of welding another socket on but i dont have a welder! ideas!?

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89 Firebird (AKA "Money")
2.8 V6 w/ t5 tranny (383 tpi t56 12/01)
Flowmaster 80 series, 3" Intermediate, SS Tips, Random Tech Cat, Msd Coil, MSD 6a, Accel 8.8 wires, Cold Air Intake w/ K&N, Lakewood LCA's, Brushed aluminum Hood pins ETC...
Next:
Spohn Torque Arm, Lakewood Panhard bar, BMR Fabrication Sub Frame connectors...
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My Site:
www.geocities.com/firebird89white

" I'd rather run last in a full out race, than to NOT run at all ".

 

weld a nut on it

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ICON Motorsports

1st & 3rd

 

I just went through this song and dance with a thermostat housing bolt!
If you haven't already, spray some rust eater or some form of penetrating oil and keep trying with the vice grips.
If you have a torch, heat the bolt and let it cool a few times. Keep in mind where you're applying heat so you don't melt anything! Since heat expands, the bolt will too. This may break the rust seal inside.
If that doesn't work, you can drill it out. This is what I had to do, and it's a pain the the butt! You'll have to get a tap and die set. Drill out the bolt carefully, so you don't go through the bolt housing wall into the tranny pan. At worst, you can rethread the hole and put in a larger bolt.

 

Which bolt are you having trouble with? The one that mounts the rubber mount to the crossmember? Or what?

Without a good selection of tools, you are sorta in a tough situation.

But, if you had a air powered cut-off tool you could cut a slot in it and then use an impact hammer to bust it loose. Or, if you had a die grinder and a carbide bit you could just grind the head off the bolt, remove the mount, and then use vise grips to grap the shank of the bolt. If you had a welding outfit, you could weld a nut to it. Or use the cutting tip and blow the head off the thing. There are lots of options, actually. But without a garage full of tools, the options don't matter much.

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FORMULA 350 TK
Southern California 3rd Generation F-Body Organization©

 

I've also heard of using a hammer and a punch to tap around and "into" the edge of the bolt, so the tapping will "spin" the bolt. I tried that way, though.

Did anyone else play with the trans? If a bolt you're talking about goes into the case of the trans, I think the max torque spec for a steel bolt into an aluminum trans case is around 30 ft/lbs- so at least it's not in there with a ton of force.


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-Tom P (Hot rodded 1986 Firebird 2.8l) from http://www.f-body.net/mailbag/3rd/3rd_mailbag.html message boards
---Think your car could be pic of the week? Visit http://www.f-body.net for details!

 

My pain in the *** is the bolt that holds the actual trans mount to the tranny!

------------------
89 Firebird (AKA "Money")
2.8 V6 w/ t5 tranny (383 tpi t56 12/01)
Flowmaster 80 series, 3" Intermediate, SS Tips, Random Tech Cat, Msd Coil, MSD 6a, Accel 8.8 wires, Cold Air Intake w/ K&N, Lakewood LCA's, Brushed aluminum Hood pins ETC...
Next:
Spohn Torque Arm, Lakewood Panhard bar, BMR Fabrication Sub Frame connectors...
-------------------------
My Site:
www.geocities.com/firebird89white

" I'd rather run last in a full out race, than to NOT run at all ".