Okay, I went to change my car over to a Primera header, and the bolt right below the oil seperator thing on the right hand side of the engine is broken off below flush, any ideas on how to get it out? It looks like its been broken for a while...any help would be appricaited...TIA guys!

~Ryan:confused:

Dude I feel your pain the same one on mine broke. Me and a friend tried to get it out with an easy out but we wound up breaking two of his titanium drill bits while trying to make the pilot hole. If you try this be sure you have VERY GOOD bits. What I wound up doing was lucky for me the stud was broke off midway in the engine block. I had 3 or 4 threads before the broken stud. I used a dremal and cut down the length of my new header stud the threaded it in. It been holding now for about 2-3 months.

Good luck, oh and also don't forget to use some high temp RTV copper sealant on your header gasket. If you've had a leak your gasket will be thinner where it leaked.


Late,

I had a manifold stud break flush with the head. I drilled a hole in the stud (regular ol' high speed steel bit) with no problems. I did have to use a right angle adapter for the drill since there was not enough room between the head and the radiator for my drill. Just go slow and make sure you drill the hole in the middle of the stud. Then I heated the stud with a butane torch (could have used mapp gas, but was afraid to get it that hot and screw up the head) and used and easy out. You only have one chance with an easy out, so make sure you do it right the first time: center the hole, use heat, and be patient.

Hmm....what type of easy out do you guys reccomend? I've seen many diffrent kinds...also, do you think a cutting torch would be too hot and possibily warp the head? I was thinking that if all elce fails, I can drill the bolt out slightly undersized and then very carefuly use a tap to rethred the hole, or get the rest of the bolt out....thanks for your imput guys....:) Let me know if you have any other ideas...

~Ryan

Don't know what brand I have, it says "chrome vanadium" on the side and that's it. I do know that chrome vanadium is a bitch to drill through, so don't break one off in the stud.
As for using a cutting torch, I wouldn't do it, but I don't know what kind of temperatures those things get to, much less how much heat the head can take. You would be getting a small portion of the head very hot while the rest is cold, that's a risk I wouldn't take. Besides, you'd be cutting into the head since aluminum is a softer metal than the steel stud.
Drilling and retaping the hole will work it you're careful, but it's a last resort. Try easy out/screw extractor first.

Originally posted by SENTRASER
Hmm....what type of easy out do you guys reccomend? I've seen many diffrent kinds...also, do you think a cutting torch would be too hot and possibily warp the head? I was thinking that if all elce fails, I can drill the bolt out slightly undersized and then very carefuly use a tap to rethred the hole, or get the rest of the bolt out....thanks for your imput guys....:) Let me know if you have any other ideas...

~Ryan

Sorry Ryan I don't remember, we never did get to use them! Ha! *** his bits were not solid titanium, they were coated, sorry about that. The small one used for the pilot hole was tiny. I guess he applied pressure at an angle to it and it snapped or they were cheap knock offs. BBye V8 is right though you really have only one shot to do this right, after that at best its make do time.

do you have to use sealant on your header gasket even if you have a copper one?

Originally posted by silversx
do you have to use sealant on your header gasket even if you have a copper one?

Nope, just the gasket is all you use, pretty much any other sealer will burn off on that type of heat....:cool: