head removal

[red_gsx]

im taking the head off a 90 gst and ran in to a bit of a problem. the cylinder head bolts in the head arent coming out. the haynes manual says 8mm allen wrench, a piece that i just bought from sears for this purpose. now it seems 8mm is too small. anyone know the right size? thanks

 

[paul s]

The cylinder head bolts(oem) are 12point 12mm..

 

[red_gsx]

well tomorrow ill be picking up a 12mm piece then. thanks for the help.

 

[tstkl]

dont you have an adjustable wrench? cuz then you could just mesure that size and get that size wrench... or just use that...

edit: if your talking about remove the intake manifold so you can take the head off, the sizes on the intake manifold are 12mm for the outter nuts, and 10mm for the bolts... or maybe its 14 and 12, either way, if you have an 8mm, a 10mm, a 12mm, and a 14mm, you can get anything off of your dsm... those are the only sizes ive ever seen on the car...(except those 1/2 inch ones that i put on there.......)

 

[project_tsi]

The head bolts are 10mm Allens not 8mm.

 

[paul s]

intake manifold bolts are 12mm for the small and 14mm for the 2 outer ones..

 

[project_tsi]

intake manifold bolts are 12mm for the small and 14mm for the 2 outer ones..

He never said he is taking off the intake manifold!!! He's clearly stated he is removing the cylinder head and the head bolts are not comming off. I don't know why everyone is telling him to use 12 and 14mm's to take off the intake mani. Yes, those are the correct sizes, but the correct tool he needs now is the same tool that he has, just in a 10mm form.

 

[92redman]

The head bolts are 10mm Allens not 8mm.

Exactly, and don't get a cheap ass socket either because a lot of times the bolts will be pretty hard to crack loose initially, you will probably need a relatively long 1/2 breaker bar w/ appropriate adapters and/or extension to avoid busting knuckles(the aluminum edges in the heads will cut deep,fast and with little effort).

 

[paul s]

Ok, I'm sorry I had no idea that 90' had HEX style head bolts. WTF

 

[red_gsx]

thanks to everyone who posted again, with the extra info as well. now i got the book saying 8mm, and two different people saying 12 and one saying 10.... im going to go with 10 since the guy with the 10mm comment had the most rep. any pointers on the intake mani now that it has been brought up? thanks again

 

[erawtik]

well i just took mine off and back on it was a 12mm 12 point.

 

[92redman]

thanks to everyone who posted again, with the extra info as well. now i got the book saying 8mm, and two different people saying 12 and one saying 10.... im going to go with 10 since the guy with the 10mm comment had the most rep. any pointers on the intake mani now that it has been brought up? thanks again

Yes, remove and install the intake with the head off, it is very hard to do with the head on, especially if you get the stainless hex bolts. To answer the question abou the sizes on the intake, all the bolts are 12mm and the two outer ones(i think they are both nuts) are 14mm, but they are all regular 6-point, not hex/allen.

 

[project_tsi]

Ok lets try to go throu this a little better.

Valve Cover Bolts- 10mm
Head Bolts (Stock)-10mm Allen, get it in a nice socket config.
Head Bolts (ARP's) 14mm 12pt. Hex head.
Exhaust Manifold. 12mm 6pt. Hex
Intake Manifold, 12mm 6pt. Hex bolt, and (2) 14mm 6pt. Hex nuts.

The Timing belt, and that motor mount has to come off too. There is 2 14mm nuts by the PS pump, 2 14mm bolts by the timing cover, 2 14mm nuts on the left side of the actual bolt that holds in the mount, and a 17mm nut on the right side of the actual bolt. Then then bolt needs to be removed too.

Also, there is a bracket that is super hard to get to on the back of the instake manifold, that also bolts to the block. If I remember correctly, there is 2 14mm bolts that hold the bracket on the back of the intake manifold. Just remove these 2 for now. After the head is off, you can remover the 1 other bolt that holds the bracket to the block and toss it if you like, its not needed, just there for extra support, but w/out it, it makes head removal a lot easier.

There quite a few of hoses, and electrical connections that have to be removed too, but you figure out which ones are holding you back.

The easiest way to pull the head is w/ the intake and exhaust manifold still on. Just drop the turbo and the manifold will come off w/ the head.

If you have more questions, let me know.

-Dan

 

[92redman]

I wouldn't pull that intake support bracket off unless you either have completely eliminated all the vacuum lines that aren't needed, or want to run new ones because many of the vacuum lines connect to metal tubes that are part of that bracket.

 

[tstkl]

Yes, remove and install the intake with the head off, it is very hard to do with the head on, especially if you get the stainless hex bolts. To answer the question abou the sizes on the intake, all the bolts are 12mm and the two outer ones(i think they are both nuts) are 14mm, but they are all regular 6-point, not hex/allen.

no its not, its just annoying if you dont have the right tools... all i had to do was remove the battery.... for some reason i found it easier to unscrew those bolts from the passenger side than the drivers side...

 

[red_gsx]

project tsi thanks for the clarification. covered every piece of info i needed to know about this particular project. also thanks to everyone else as well. i dont see any more problems with this piece