i like to leave the exhaust manifolds atached to the head pipes and just pull them back out of the way, you can jam a hunk of wood between the tranny and the exhaust to hold it.
for the belts i just walk em off so i don't need to screw with the adjustment, to remove loosen the 13mm on the top back side and the 13mm nut/bolt on the bottom then you can back it down with the 19mm adjuster.
the hoses you are going to need to deal with as you see fit, they usually hang in there but with the intake off it's the easy time to do em, i like to bypass the shitty little leak master on the side of the throttle body, by running a piece of heater hose from the nipple on the bottom of the thermostat housing (which can and does rot off) to the fitting thats screwed into the block by the starter.
one thing that helps when installing the intake onto the head do not remove and clean the spring loaded vent tube that comes up out of the block, instead squash it down and if you're lucky theres enough grunge on there to make it stick and it will stay out of the way till you pull it back up into the bottom of the intake, leaving it in also plugs up a bolt/screw/nut sucking hole.
it's a easy head job, torque's are #1 22lb #2 90 degrees #3 90 degrees (90 degrees = 1/4 turn) do not reuse the head bolts dealer list on a new set is $24 (the m30 is the one that they say you can reuse them on, i don't reuse them on that motor ether it's cheep insurance) you will feel the bolts give on the 2nd 90* pull, it's strange but when you've done as many as i have you get use to it.
extra tip, the m20 e34 is a notorious bitch to bleed the cooling system, drill a small (1/8" or less) hole in the thermostat and place it in the 12:00 position when in the housing this will burp the block
Originally Posted by
Mr. BILL
The rebuilt cylinder head I bought on Ebay came yesterday, along with a black powder coated valve cover. I picked up the necessary stuff to complete the job today and started the demolition, I mean dis-assembly. So far things are going OK. I'm about 70% ready to pull it out.
I'm planning on taking the head, along with the intake and exhaust manifolds out as a unit. I'm not sure how I'll handle the install. I'd be appreciative of any suggestions, hints, tips ect.
One thing I'm not sure of, is how you loosen the belts on an M20. It has a gear type adjustment and Bentley just glosses over how to tighten/loosen. I could use some clarification how that works.
Also, it seems like a good time to replace all those hard to get to coolant hoses that run thriugh the intake. Should I, or are those 14 year old hoses going to last a good while longer? I'd also appreciate any suggestions as to what else I should replace while I'm in there.
Thanks in advance.
Bill
Last edited by winfred; 09-01-2004 at 09:38 PM.
all america wants is cold beer warm cat and a place to take a poop with a door on it