Problems with pre cat removal.

[Anonymous]

Ok, So I bit the bullet and attempted to remove the pre cats tonight, hasnt gone exactly to plan   s:( s:(  
Firstly I have sheared the head of the bolt that holds the bottom of the top heat shield and top of the bottom heat shield on the left hand side.
Don't panic think I, just carry on and sort out the bolt once the header is removed....  
How the f*** do you undo the nuts that join the header to the main cat pipe?
GSB's write up says "4/ Remove the 3 14mm nuts that secure the main cat pipe to the manifold" Are these the nuts that are just above the piece of pipe with the 'woven; type section? I can get the left one out because i can get to the bolt head on the top but i just cant get a spanner to the other two. What am I doing wrong?

So currently i am running without nappy, or top and bottom heatshields on the header I also already had the drip tray removed. I am sure I have read that others do this as standard but does any one think this will lead to trouble with to much heat in the engine bay? I'm due to drive from Birmingham to Windsor tomorrow evening, dont want it combusting on the mototrway   s:shock: :shock: s:shock:

[GSB]

The heat will be fine, but you're going to need a ratchet, long extension, and 14mm socket to get to the 3 bolts you're having trouble with.

[Anonymous]

i was going to attempt mine today too, but its been pouring down with rain and very cold! maybe tommorrow...

i was wondering where abouts these 3 bolts are too (havnt been under the car to check tho yet mind) are they really hard to get to that you need extensions and stuff? im not much of a handy man   s:lol: :lol: s:lol:

[Tem]

i was wondering where abouts these 3 bolts are too (havnt been under the car to check tho yet mind) are they really hard to get to that you need extensions and stuff? im not much of a handy man   s:lol: :lol: s:lol:

They're not that hard to get to, I actually used a normal wrench to open them, instead of a socket with extension..

[Anonymous]

be cool if someone had some pics to give me a headstart???  s:wink: :wink: s:wink:

[Tem]

Here's an article about installing the PPE header:
 m http://www.spydermagazine.com/2003/Nov/ppe/ppe.htm m

Has pics and how-to about removing the stock manifold  s;) s;)  Just skip the catpipe parts..

[Anonymous]

cheers for that tem! thats helped a lot!   s:wink: :wink: s:wink:   im a bit concerned about removing the 2 bolts that hold that silver heatshield around the precats (the lower one where the pipe goes from 2-1) as they're rusted to hell!

[Anonymous]

That Link is helpful thanks Tem.
What I don't get is how he got such a clear view to take the picture of the underneath.
I'm going to have to have another go.   s:? :? s:?

 

[Anonymous]

i was thinking that aswell rage, its dark as hell underneath, even with the bonnet up! he would have had a powerfull flash on his digi camera.

[Anonymous]

Is there a special code for the bolt I sheared? Or someway to make it easier to describe when I ring Toyota parts tomorrow?

[Tem]

I did mine on a sunny day with the bonnet open and didn't have any issues with light. Could've easily taken similar pics. Get the car out of the garage and enjoy the sun!  s:lol: :lol: s:lol:  

Those heatshield bolts are quite normal, don't remember the size though, but I'm sure a seach would come up with it. I replaced mine with some general bolts that shouldn't rust like the stocks...

[Anonymous]

just bin outside trying to loosen some bolts, and the first bolt i come to i cant undo. theres 2 of them, left and right side of precats which are screwed into the lower heatshield. its difficult to see the right one.

an 11mm spanner/socket wont fit and a 12mm will just round it off?  s:x :x s:x  

can i cut these b&stards off?

[GSB]

They're 12mm. If your spanner and socket is too loose and is going to round it off, stop now. Could your socket set be a little on the cheap/worn side?

They can be cut off and replaced, but if you round off the 14mm's underneath the car, you are officially in shit street, as it'll be a real pain in the arse to fix...

[Anonymous]

ive tried a 12mm spanner and a socket and they were both too big

[Anonymous]

Try using a 2' breaker bar (that is what we call it over here!) with your extension and 14mm socket to get those tough lower nuts off. You could also slide a piece of pipe (cheater) over the end of your rachet as well. This does the same thing as the breaker bar but be careful.... skinned knuckles abound here. Be sure to use plenty of PB Blaster/WD 40 or whatever type of penetrating oil you have on hand and let it sit a while before you start. Since I am a pretty smallish person (5' 7", 135 lb) the breaker bar and a lot of patience was needed to loosen some of these nuts/bolts. LOL.

[Anonymous]

Ok so i've had another go. Took Tems advice got the car outside and completly removed the flat plastic cover under the car. And i can now get at the three nuts underneath much easier. The first two I can losen but not the third. Not wanting to damage it I give it a good spray of penetrating oil and move on to the 5 nuts holding the header to the engine. I get 4 of Ok and round the head of the 5th #*&%. Its the second one in from the left. So what are my options.

1. Give in. ( hardly the spirit)
2. Use a Dremmel to cut of the nut (but what happens if i damage the thread of the bolt part, and i dont own a Dremmel)
3 Drill into the side of the nut and try and break it off (still worried about damage to the thread)

Any other ideas?   s:? :? s:?

[GSB]

Hmmm,

I'm going to re-write the how-to on this, from
"be careful not to damage any nuts"
to
"you will be damaging some nuts - make sure you know how to deal with it..."

Try this, take one of the nuts you've already removed, screw it on to the stud with the knackered nut, lock them together, and unscrew the stud from the cylinder head.

[Anonymous]

if you round off the 14mm's underneath the car, you are officially in s**t street, as it'll be a real pain in the arse to fix...

guess what thats exactly what ive just done! loosened the other 2, but ive rounded one of them off. what do i do now, or am i fcuked?  s:x :x s:x

[GSB]

Hmmm....

My first thoughts would be to use;

Molegrips,
A nut splitter,
An angle grinder,
or a Gas-Axe on it,

Although I do keep a stock of old sockets in wierd sizes for just this sort of emergency. I fint that getting a socket thats slightly to small, and then hammering it onto the nut not only allows you to get a grip on it again, but it compacts the threads enough to loosen them slightly as well. Of course you then have to invest in 3 new studs and nuts, and the socket will be forever bonded to a rusty old exhasut nut, but you at least get the manifold out.

[Anonymous]

there's not a lot of room under there so i dont know if ill be able to hammer a 13mm socket onto the nut?

when i cut off the head of one of the manifold heatshield bolts, the thread wasnt seized at all an i was able to easily remove it, could i do this with the cat/manifold bolt and then replace it with a new one from toyota?

im not sure what a "nut spliter" is?

[GSB]

Use the extension bar when hammering the socket on.

A nut splitter looks like this:



You slip it over the siezed nut, and turn the bolt on the end of it. this drives a blade into the side of the nut that cuts it open and allows you to remove it without unscrewing it.