P6 V8 expert Essex

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pedalpusher

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Its all going a bit wrong for me. The bolts snapped when fitting the water pump. One of the long ones has the thread snapped off deep in the timing cover. Reading my manual I think removing the timing cover is beyond me.

Can anyone recommend anyone in the Essex area who would take the job on.

I can trailer the car if needed.
 
I feel your pain. I did this to mine :( careful drilling fixed it myself, but it was a bit hair-raising...
 
I ended up with some diamond tipped circular tile drills, drilling around a bolt that wouldnt move, then helicoiled it. If you're luck the snap wont be flush with the block.
 
Thanks for your support, really appreciated. One of the long bolts that has just a thread on the end is my main problem. Does this end in the timing cover or actually pass through into the block? I was hoping to find someone local on the forum who is local to Essex and knows these engines and would be prepared to take the job on. I am posting in the wrong section?

My thoughts at the moment are:-

1) be brave and try to change the timing cover, but I am working outside and really don't feel up to this.

2)Try to tap a thread where the shaft of the long bolt goes into

3)Chemical metal the stud into the timing cover, as I will have to replace the timing cover at some stage anyway.

4)Take the engine to a V8 specialist and have a timing cover, chain, oil pump and cam done professionally, this will be major money and RPI etc are miles away.

6) Give up

Any thoughts much appreciated.
 
1) I really do not think removing the timing cover is beyond anyone - I wouldn't worry about it although I do know the feeling of not wanting to do stuff outside! You don't even have to go with the view of doing it all at the same time - do it bit by bit and take it easy. Getting the pully off can be a bit tight sometimes and of course you need to be able to drain the oil from the sump before you take that off. You *might* get lucky and be able to get to the head off the bolt once the timing cover is off. At least by taking it off you will know where you stand.

2) Let's not make the assumption that you actually need to do that until you have the cover off. But if you are going to do that, you would not just tap a thread, you would hellicoil it (putting in a threaded insert). Any reasonable garage could do this for you, but of course you could buy the correct size kit and do it yourself - it is not difficult to do, but take your time.

3) Not sure what you mean by this - do mean just cover up the hole with chemical metal? That might be a "get me home" solution but no more than that.

4) I don't see why you need a V8 specialist to do any of this if you do not do it by yourself - you just need a proper mechanics garage and not a "fitter".

5) what was 5 :p

6) Don't do that :)
 
Like RoverALex said, the pulley nut is the worst of the job. I am trying to wrack my brain to remember how I did mine, yonks ago, and you basically need to pull the radiator, remove the fan/fan belts/pulley, distributor, (I think) the water pump and then the cover. You need to note the bolt length/positions for reassembly.

The long bolts go into the block, if you are lucky, it will have broken proud of the block, meaning it is reasonably easy to remove. Start by soaking it with a penetrating oil, I use a mix of ATF and Lacquer Thinners and the more for longer, the better. Then, if you can get access, grab it with a vise-grip and wiggle it to and fro and it will come out, eventually. If you have the machine and the skill, you can place a nut over the stub and weld it on, as it cools, the cooling action causes it to shrink ever so slightly and the heat helps loosen it, too. Quite often, with the penetrating oil, you end up turning it out by hand.

When you assemble it all, use liberal amounts of Never-Seez or Coppa-Slip to prevent seizure after assembly, and some of the bolts go into the water jacket of the block and they need a sealer on the thread.

If I have got anything wrong or left anything out, please correct/edit for me.
 
I think you are correct, distributor needs to come out (I'd have thought getting it to TDC and marking the dizzy and mark the position of the dizzy and the clamp for easily assembly would be wise) as the cover isn't just a cover it is part of the assembly. I think you can just about do it with the radiator in situ? As for taking off the pulley, possibly not the correct way to do it, but I took off the flywheel plate off and jammed a crowbar on the teeth - worked for an engine that had sat for 30 years.

And thinking about it I didn't remove the sump the second and third time I removed the timing cover - I just undid the bolts at the front of the sump. Saves a bit more work and draining oil if you don't need to.
 
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if you can get cover off and you can get to the end of the boult? there is a tool that looks like a chuk of a drill aply some heat the put the chuck dit oc and undo idohave this tool but where are you from se19?
 
Thanks guys, I feel more motivated now. I think I will have a go. Doing some more reading and forums say I should change the timing gears, uprate the oil pump and think about a camshaft whilst the cover is off. My engine was always sweet for the last 12 years of ownership, What are your thoughts?

Re the pulley I have the radiator out, where is the flywheel plate to remove?, or should I take the starter out to jam the ring gear?

My chemical metal idea was to chemical weld the long stud into the timing cover, but perhaps I could helicoil the long stud into the cover instead of the block as it is meant to be.

I am in Essex, I have stud removers which I sourced to remove the broken water pump bolts...how my saga started.

Your replies are building my confidence, thanks for the support.
 
pedalpusher said:
Doing some more reading and forums say I should change the timing gears, uprate the oil pump and think about a camshaft whilst the cover is off. My engine was always sweet for the last 12 years of ownership, What are your thoughts?
Click to expand...

How many miles has your engine covered? When you look inside the the rocker cover with the oil filler cap removed, what colour do you see? Silver, brown or black? The colour provides an indication of how well the engine has been looked after.

Ron.
 
Hi, The four long bolts go through the water pump, front cover and into the block each side of of two water gallery connections. Chemical welding of the fixings into the front cover is not advised. If the front cover is not pulled up to the block there could be water leaks from around this connection, either out and down the block or in and down into the sump. Removing the front cover will allow you better access to the broken bolt for removal. If you can drill it centrally you can either drill it out to leave just the thread which should can be extracted like a spring, Or drilled right out and heli-coiled. I would strongly advise you NOT to use your stud extractors they invariably break off in the stud and leave you worse off.

You have the classic conundrum of how far do you go now you've got this far. As Ron says what is the engine like inside? The pistons and bores will be OK if it doesn't smoke. If the engine held good oil pressure before that indicates the bearings are OK. The camshaft? Remove the rocker covers and rotate the engine and check that all valves are being opened enough and the same amount. You could also the rocker shafts as well,as they are another wear point, by sliding the rocker along the shaft and feeling for the wear ridge underneath. Check and change the timing chain and sprockets if the wear and slack is significant. I know this all sounds daunting but parts are readily available and fairly priced. It's all pretty simple engineering.

Good luck.

Colin
 
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