leojs

Team,

My 94 GXE SOHC has had an exhaust-leak sound coming from up front near the engine for a while. I took it to the mechanic. He threw it up on the rack and said looks like the manifold gasket needed to be replaced.

Well, he ordered the gasket and proceeded to install it when it came in. I got the phone call later in the day thinking it was ready to pick up. Instead, he said some of the bolts looked like they had sheered off or something, and said unfortunately it would be more disassembly than originally anticipated due to the whacked angle or lack of room to access the bolts that needed to be replaced.

He said he could put it back as is, or look at it further and try and estimate a cost for me if I wanted to proceed with the repair. I want to proceed. Any idea on how complex this is anyone? What time should be involved? Any tips anyone might have for my mechanic I can pass along from one of you 3rd gen mechanic gurus?

My 94 is getting up there, 218K miles. I notice it hesitates slightly too when hitting the gas from a stop. The mechanic said this leak could partially be contributing to the hesitation, but I'm not sure. Perhaps just a tune up with wires and plugs or something, it's been a while.

My 93 max on the other hand only has 60K miles (wifes car) and is a lot more peppy, that's for sure.

Thanks for any help all,

-Leo

blppt

I just got an estimate on my 92 GXE (VG30E). $1000 to replace the rear manifold. $300 of that is charged to drill the friggin broken studs out. Grrr. The guy estimated 6 hours labor. It might be less if your front is the one in need of repair, but the guy said he's never seen a front one go, so take that as you will.

Despite the price, i will be doing it since the ticking is getting louder. :-(

leojs

Thanks blppt. Yes, I did some more searching here and found this sounds like the standard manifold-bolt problem known on this car. Since it looks like I will have to go through with this, any suggestions on what should be replaced while he's got the thing apart to ensure I never have to go through this again? (or minimize the risk the best I can?).

Thanks all.

LittlePiggie

if you want to avoid it almost forever, tell hime to replace all the studs with the VG30ET studs from the 300zx turbo. make sure they are the alloy studs though, as the older ones are just like ours.

billy bronco

Is there a common stud that breaks off the rear manifold, or is it random? My leaks too @ 77K miles, it passed inspection and I can live with it, just as long as it doesn't get much worse.

broncoguy

I don't believe there is any one that goes more than others, although by coincidence the 2 outside (driver's side)ones front and back are broken on mine. Remember from other posts that several people find others broken once they get into it, or break more trying to get the others out. Basically, once they start, it only gets worse until you fix it.

billy bronco

So what is the best way to do this, to fix one or two studs? Do you have to remove all bolts, probibly breaking more and take the manafold off ? Or can you just drill out broken ones with manifold still attached? I haven't crawled under to take a close look at this situation, not sure I want to. Also how can you be sure you have purchased the alloy studs?

Matt93SE

iTrader: (44)

do some searching on manifold studs. it's a VERY common problem. ALL studs should be replaced. If you pay more than $400 per side for this work, then the mechanic is either screwing you, or you're going to a place that charges way too much to work on a 10 year old car.

the studs you buy at the dealer are the correct studs. nissan has replaced that part numbe rin their computer, so when they look it up, the computer tells them to use the studs that were also used on the VG30ET. problem solved.

and yes, the outside corner studs are ALWAYS the ones that break-- first. namely the ones on the right side of the engine bay behind the AC compressor and power steering pump. the ones on the left side are common, but not quite as common. and once those are broken, it's not long before the next ones in line snap off.

http://www.mattblehm.com/pics/car/clutch/MVC-027S.JPG
http://www.mattblehm.com/pics/car/clutch/MVC-029S.JPG

there's a few pics of the correct parts for a VG. (note the round gasket holes). if you've got a VE, then you'll need different gaskets, but I think the studs are the same.

billy bronco

Okay need to understand clearly before I attack:

1) remove ex manafold
2) remove all studs
3) drill out & tap broken ones
4) replace studs will alloy ones

Do I need any special tools, drills? Do they drill easy (soft cast)? Can you get to them straight on? Will some come out with vice grips? Any tips?

broncoguy

Seriously, do a search on manifold studs. I did it the other day, and there are several very detailed posts about the whole job. Not that people don't want to help, but nobody wants to re-type everything...know what I mean?

billy bronco

I'll check it out, thanks.

LittlePiggie

try and drill the stud out so you miss the threads and use an ez-out so you don't have to re-tap or use a heli-coid insert.

billy bronco

Ya , your right, lots of post on the subject. I just want to know the exact proceedure or advice from someone who has done this already. I don't have time to read every thread with its hundreds of post. Can you direct me to one that details the procedure, or can you answer my questions asked? I suppose if this is such a common problem there must be a link out there taht details exactly what need to be done, how. Thanks.

Matt93SE

iTrader: (44)

okay, let me get this straight..... (without being rude..)
you don't have time to look for the proper posts, so you want US to look for you and tell you where it is?

RMAX54

One slight modifcation. You don't drill out the broken studs. You drill smaller holes in them and try to use and EZ-Out to get them out. Works most of the time. Attempting to drill the entire stud out will amost certainly require you to remove the heads to drill out and tap for heli-coil kits - much added expence, maybe doubling the repair cost. Removing the cylinder heads is not necessary unless your mechanic can't get a broken stud out with the EZ-Out.

On my car, we used #2 EZ-outs and 7/64"drill bits made of Nitro-Carburized Hi-Moly Tool Steel to drill and remove the studs. These drills are far superior for drilling studs, but are inexpensive. $3.50 or a pkg of 3 bits is what I paid. You may have to go to tool supply place to get them, however.

RMAX54

I'll take a little pity on the poor guy; here's one thread I happend to have bookmarked where the stud replacement operation was discussed recently. However, there's lots more where this came from. Learn to use the forum search engine. No one wants to hand every link to every newbie on a silver platter that he could easily find by little searching.

One of my Exhaust Studs is Broke???

broncoguy

Don't get me wrong, I'm sure I'll ask questions once I start to do the studs on mine, but I guarantee I will have at least read what's already out there. Also, IMO, what makes a forum like this great is that you get tips and suggestions from more than one source- so it is an ADVANTAGE to read through all the posts on a certain topic before you tackle anything. I agree that some of them (including mine) may not always be as helpful as you need, but there's a ton on info out there if you just look for it. My .02, for what it's worth.

RMAX54

Ya got that right. A BIG Advantage. I'm quickly acquiring a list of posts about common problems where something critical was left out. Bose amp repair is at the top of the list - two major caps got left out, and those were two of the four that fail the most often.

Mizeree_X

iTrader: (9)

When my mechanic replaced my snapped stud, he got the old one out by welding a nut to it and trying to unscrew it. Took him 5 tries, but he got it out. I asked him why he didn't drill and EZ-out it and he said that the welding method was easier for him. Just something to consider.

billy bronco

Did he just replace the one broken one?
Did he have to remove the exhaust manafold to do this?

LittlePiggie

you always have to remove the manifold to do it...

abunai

If you have the room, and some of the broken stud is sticking out, the easiest way is to MIG a nut to the broken stud. The heat from weld will help loosen it. Spray some WD40 and let it cool. Should come right out.
If you need to drill, make sure you drill straight and all the way through. If you drill crooked and hit the thread, your screwed. Once you drill the hole all the way through, spray some penetrating oil in the hole and let it sit over night if you have the time. If not heat it up to dark red, spray oil, let it cool, and EZ out.
One word of caution. If the EZ out will not turn DO NOT FORCE IT!!!! if you do and it brakes off, your really screwed. The head will have to come off.