greetings, new member here. there is a TON of good info on this site. the bad thing is, most of it will end up costing me money.

i took my 2002 F350 V10 in for inspection today and the garage told me a bunch of the exhaust manifold studs are broken off at the head. being cheap (and not having $1000 laying around) i want to attempt this repair myself. i've rebuilt cars, motorcycles, farm tractors, etc. so i'm not a novice mechanic, but i have never worked on a V10. how big of a pain in the butt is it to get at these studs? i'm guessing i will need to drill some of them out. are there any other tips anyone has to offer me? should i replace all of them while i'm in there? any guidance, tips or photos are appreciated.

thanks,

andy b.

 

Heres a link to a thread with some pics and info.

https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/5...ghlight=header

You will have to remove the front inner fender liner to get to the studs for the best acces. When I got my headers on the mechanic didn't remove the fender liners though, which amazed me I don't know how he could get in there. He was a thin little guy though.

If the studs are broken off flush with the head or below the head surface obviously removing them will be harder. An easy out or drilling the studs out completly may be what you need to do to get them out. The studs can be hard to drill or will work harden (SS studs) when your drilling them out, use cutting oil or a water soluable cutting fluid to prevent work hardening. If the stud sticks up above the head you may be able to work it out with a vise grip. The studs usually don't turn out hard.

 

if your mechanically inclined it won't be a problem,just time consuming,I recently done mine,replaced the manifold gaskets with fel pro gaskets,replaced the studs with grade 8 bolts and plenty of nickel antisieze.

 

thanks guys!!!! and DKF, that was EXACTLY the type of thread i tried searching for. it sounds like it will be a little of a pain, but nothing i can't handle. i may have to get some new drill bits though if these studs are stainless. heck, any excuse to buy more tools is a good one though.

i'm going to start this project friday, so i'll post back on the weekend how it goes.

thanks again.

andy b.

 

You may want to pick up a center drill or drill/countersink like pictured below.


You can center punch the stud and use the center drill to start the hole. I use them all the time and they help keep the drill from wandering.

A cobalt drill bit will hold up to the stainless better. You can either resharpen the bits by hand or use a drill doctor. I've been using a drill doctor for several years and it works well for re-sharpening bits. I also use it on solid carbide drills to.

Good luck with your project.

 

well i started friday morning at 8AM and ended saturday night at 8PM. it actually went VERY smooth except for one stud on each side. one i had to drill out, and one the nut would not come loose and i had to chisel it off (of course, that nut had to be on the bottom of the middle cylinder ). 8 studs were broken off and 2 or 3 others looked like they probably wouldn't last much longer. the truck is noticeably quieter in the cab.

cost for parts $185
cost for tools $130, but at least i have new tools to use for other projects

thanks for the tips, they all came in handy!

i guess the next project i'll have is spark plug replacement, but with only 60k miles i'll wait a bit longer.

andy b.

 

You might want to replace the plugs ASAP. My dads 03' started getting a missfire when cold at about 65k. We replaced the plugs and boots and the missfire went away. The modular motors come from the factory with single platinum plugs, but they wear fast and everyone here agrees 50k is about the max to get out of a set. The V10 runs best on the single platinum Autolite or Motorcraft plugs.

 

dkf,

thanks for the tip! i guess i will gather up the parts (new plugs and boots) and give it a go when it gets a little warmer out.

oh, i took the truck to work today and i definitely noticed it was quieter out on the highway. i think it's back to where the tires are louder than anything else (well, except the radio ).

andy b.

 

Yeah an exhaust leak at the manifolds can really make noise.

When I got my headers on the gasket got cracked and leaked. It was one little leak but made alot of noise. It sucks spending over a grand for a set of headers and not being able to test them out because your waiting for a new gasket.

My dads 6.8l had 5 broken studs, but no leaks. I had 28k on my truck when I got the headers on and the shop said I had one broken stud.

 

If your lucky most haven't broke off so deep you can't get a vise grip on them. I had only 2 deep ones on the p/s to extract.

 

I don't frequent this forum, obviously, but it IS a good reference for issues related to my 2002 F350. I still have the truck (since new) and I was going back over old links for....
you guessed it, broken manifold studs. LOL!!!
I replaced all of them on the passenger side yesterday. Five were broken off. Only one is broken on the driver's side, so I left it alone for now.
The repair back in '08 was with factory hardware from Ford. That was about 60k miles ago (I'm at 111k now).
Anyway, just thought I'd post a long-term update, if anyone cares.

Andy B.

 

WOW!!! 9 year update, Sweet thanks for replying back Andy,

 

z31,

I don't know if you were being serious or sarcastic, but it is pretty funny for me to reply to a 9-year-old thread.

But hey, if anyone was wondering, it gives another data point on the exhaust stud issue. LOL

Andy B.