Advice for not snapping turbo/downpipe bolts

[Nopp2]

Seems like there is a high chance of this happening - any advice to avoid it?

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[Jester04]

Seems like there is a high chance of this happening - any advice to avoid it?

Hey! I just removed my downpipe last weekend and 0 broken studs.

My process was being very patient with the studs and bolts. PB blaster or any penetrating oil. Let it sit for a little bit then take a blow torch and heat them up pretty good. Then have your breaker bar ready, I tried to apply progressive torque as smooth as I could do it using my body weight and they all came out without a hitch.

As a safety precaution for the future I applied anti-seize to all bolts I took out.

 

[Nopp2]

thank you - i will hit the studs with some kroil. The best stuff there is imo beats PB blaster by miles

 

[chopsuey34]

Seems like there is a high chance of this happening - any advice to avoid it?

I own an MR2 Spyder and I installed a catback exhaust in it a few years back. The exhaust was very rusty, and to avoid snapping bolts, I took 2 days and maybe 15-20 PB sessions to undo the bolts. I would hit the bolts with PB Blaster, wait 5 minutes, undo bolts by a 1/4 or 1/2 turn, hit bolts with more PB, come back after 1-2 hours and repeat. You probably don't have to be so careful or conservative with a newer car. But it's better to be safe and slow than sorry. Just go slow and feel it out.

 

[Jester04]

thank you - i will hit the studs with some kroil. The best stuff there is imo beats PB blaster by miles

Don’t forget the heat. It will really help with breaking the bolt loose with little chance of snapping.

 

[PointByPatrol]

It's worth it to be prepared in the event that you do snap one. I unfortunately snapped one off, and had to remove the turbo to fix the issue. Having a nice set of carbide bits for situations like this is an absolute MUST, and a high quality tap and die set is extremely important. If you feel the stud "give" while you're trying to loosen it then go ahead and be prepared to snap the sucker off. I too used PB blaster prior to my attempt at removal of the downpipe and was unfortunately met with disaster despite my best efforts.

I removed the turbo, then split the turbo at the center v-band clamp. Tossed the offending exhaust side housing in a vice, and slowly worked my way up in drill bit size. I have numbered bits, and I believe the correct size was "S" to get just under the tapping threshold. Once I drilled out to an "S" I then used the appropriate sized tap, and it literally pulled the stud threads out the remainder of the way, which exposed perfectly good threads for me to install a new stud. Be sure to use oil to keep your drill bits cool, and Tap Magic when cutting the threads, and GO SLOW do not get into a rush!

 

[jtrader]

I think I watched a youtube video comparing all the penetrating fluids and Liquid Wrench beat all the others (kroil, PB, wd40, etc) so that's what I used and the nuts/bolts came off no problem on a 4 year old car with 60k miles. Good luck!

 

[Two Step Performance]

Unfortunately broken studs can happen, even if you are careful. I've done countless downpipe swaps and thankfully have only broken one stud. It was on our FL5 with only 200 miles on it.

We used a carbide burr to cut out the rest of the stud, being careful to avoid damaging the treads in the turbo. Replaced the studs with titanium studs and have been golden since. The downpipe has probably been removed a dozen or more times since with the titanium studs.

https://www.twostepperformance.com/products/titanium-exhaust-stud-kit-for-honda-1-5t-and-2-0t

It would be nice if we could get Honda to start using titanium at the factory!

 

[Jester04]

Unfortunately broken studs can happen, even if you are careful. I've done countless downpipe swaps and thankfully have only broken one stud. It was on our FL5 with only 200 miles on it.

We used a carbide burr to cut out the rest of the stud, being careful to avoid damaging the treads in the turbo. Replaced the studs with titanium studs and have been golden since. The downpipe has probably been removed a dozen or more times since with the titanium studs.

https://www.twostepperformance.com/products/titanium-exhaust-stud-kit-for-honda-1-5t-and-2-0t

It would be nice if we could get Honda to start using titanium at the factory!

Agree the titanium studs went in like butter and look so nice.

 

[CaryH]

Soak, soak, and soak again with with whatever lubrication you choose.....you be fine..it's pretty simple, it's not rocket science...Hahahahahha.

 

[Romeoridgee]

the earlier you do this the better; remove a nut, apply anti seize to threads, retorque, move on to next nut. it will save you in the long run.

 

[Jester04]

the earlier you do this the better; remove a nut, apply anti seize to threads, retorque, move on to next nut. it will save you in the long run.

When I put everything back together I did that same thing. Anti seize the world

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