Exhaust Manifold

[BLK6T]

Hey guys,

I want to give the T a quick service this weekend, oil change, throttle body clean etc and also want to tighten the exhaust manifold bolts. Can I just tighten them or do they need to use a torque wrench and if so what tension?

If I need to tighten the bolts around the turbo again can I just tighten or torque wrench?

I think there is definitely a leak as its sounding raspy and lagging a little bit especially this last week.

Thanks for the advice.

Cheers

[ETM]

Hey guys,

I want to give the T a quick service this weekend, oil change, throttle body clean etc and also want to tighten the exhaust manifold bolts. Can I just tighten them or do they need to use a torque wrench and if so what tension?

If I need to tighten the bolts around the turbo again can I just tighten or torque wrench?

I think there is definitely a leak as its sounding raspy and lagging a little bit especially this last week.

Thanks for the advice.

Cheers

just tighten them up to what feels tight, its not a job you can use a torque wrench on because some of those bolts are very hard to get to.

[PSYCHO XRT]

Mate dont just tighten them as they'll come loose again... Your best to use something like loctite threadlocker or Permatex Medium Strength Threadlocker which you can get from your local Autobarn store for about $12 or alternitavely just get new bolts from Ford which will set you back about $18.

While your at it do the same thing to your inlet manifold bolts and check the dump pipe bolts also as 2 of mine were fairly loose while one of them went missing.

If you decide down the loctite path, use the Loctite 243 Medium Strength (the blue coloured threadlocker) or Permatex medium strength as the red one will be too strong and cause headaches when undoing them in the future...

[IH8TOADS]

If you go to the hassle of tightening the exhaust manifold bolts, it maybe worth replacing them with studs as these are less prone to coming loose. Don't overtighten as the high tensile bolt will quickly strip the soft alloy head thread.

[BLK6T]

Thanks guys, I will definitely take the advice on board. I really don't want to keep tightening the bolts up as it will just become a pain.

[Smoke them tyres]

The std bolts probably don't actually come loose (initially). They probably elongate due to heat and thermal expansion of the parts they hold and then lose the clamp load at lower temps and then fall out due to no tension. A better metal spec/quality would be the go.

Loctite will be no good at the heat range they operate at....about 250C is the limit for Loctite.

I have used on previous turbo cars a good quality stud with nickel anti seize so that you can get the bloody thing apart if you need to. Copper anti seize doesn't have a high enough temp capability, so nickel is the go.

If the nut still comes loose, double nut it.

[SAM80R]

Hi all

I am tightening my exhaust manifold bolts for the second time since owning the car and am concerned with strippping the alloy thread in the head of the engine. Especially the 3 or four bolts that you have to completely remove in order to get the heat shield off.

Does any one kknow where I can get exhaust studs to replace these bolts, if not at least what size stud I need to order from my local bolt shop?

Cheers

Sam

[Panda Eyes]

go get some g locks. I had to have mine tightened eevery couple months until I put g locks on and have had no probs for 6 months.

[FAST-XR]

g lock? is that like a spring washer?

[Panda Eyes]

nah they ar an L shaped washer. they have 2 tabs on the side. when the nut is tight, 1 gets bent on a flat side of the nut, and the other gets bent onto the side of the manifold. the nut cannot undo. ask your tuner, he should know where to get em...