> http://tg2.vantagep.com/Worst_Case_Scenario.pdf Acrobat crashed my computer as expected when viewing stuff online. I'm working on a tech-page template that will have clickable thumbnails. If you like, e-mail me some higher res versions of the photos and I'll get it all plugged in and online. > My engine > is mighty dirty from the last oil change! I bet you have a leaky oil pressure switch. They all leak. I replaced mine with a new one from PJ Grady, and now that one leaks too. I think that the only cure is to goop up the inside with Permatex Form-a-gasket. > At this point, my weakened muffler heat shield broke. The stress of the > dangling muffler was just too much. Because of this, I was able to swing the > brackets down and free it from the cat. Cost of mistake: $75 (for new, > improved PJ Grady heat shield) I removed the heat shield before this could be a problem. A nice cloud of asbestos dust went everywhere. I promised myself that if I touch another heat shield I would spray it down with WD-40 to keep the cancer causing particles under control. The new PJ Grady heat shields are very brittle. Make sure it stays flat as you bolt it in or else it will crack. Or you can get a shield made of an unusual stainless alloy made to reflect heat. I have this for my car. These are available from http://www.delorean-steel-products.com/ They also have a heat shield extension made to protect the lower a/c idler pulley & belt. This design was my idea because I noticed that mine was getting cooked a lot faster than the alternator belt. > The nut had rusted and actually fused itself to the bolt. No amount of heat > or oil would save it. Did you heat it until it glowed red? Most of mine unthreaded this way. If you get it hot enough you will have a puddle on the floor. Even if they break, as long as you still have something sticking out to grab then you are doing well so far. Luckily I didn't have any sheer off even with the block. > After 2 more broke just like the first, I resigned myself to the fact that > this was not going to work out like I had planned. So, out came the Dremel. > I cut out all 6 nuts off the left side and went ahead and cut the two off > the right side. Why did you cut them? If they didn't unscrew for me then I just let them break off. There was always enough stud left to grab onto once the manifold was off. I did use the dremel with a wire brush to clean the exposed threads off hoping that the nuts would come off easier. I'm wondering now if it would be okay to wet the nuts with hydrochloric acid and follow up with a little baking soda to keep it under control. HCl eats rust to no end. > WORST CASE SCENARIO 3: STUCK CAT I couldn't get the nuts holding the cat to unthread either. I just applied brute force and let the studs shear off. > This left me with the most amount of options > (wink wink) and the smallest financial penalty. Cost of mistake: $100-275 I have 2 cats laying around here. I'll make you a deal on one if you don't opt for Ed Uding's pipe. > To prepare for the delicate removal, I took out the cat heat shield. It's > held to the engine with 2 bolts. They come out very easily. Your cat heat shield looks a lot better than the one I took out. There was hardly anything left of it. > The vibration > shredded the honeycomb inside and now it sounds like a freakin' maraca. I thought that those honeycombs were more resilient to vibration unless yours was coming apart anyway. To get the remaining studs out of the block, I suggest first running the engine (oh yeah, loud!) to get the block hot. Then use electrician's component cooler to freeze and hopefully shrink the studs in relation to the expanded hot block. For the studs that still had threads on them, I double-nutted them and then shook them loose with a pneumatic wrench. Well, some came out this way. The rest required a stud remover. We should make DeLorean ownership like the Boy Scouts and have little merit badges for "exhaust system", "door adjustment", "steering column bushing", etc. Walt Yahoo! Groups Sponsor <http://rd.yahoo.com/M=251812.3170658.4537139.1261774/D=egroupweb/S=170512 6215:HM/A=1564415/R=0/SIG=11t6t7kdo/*http://www.netflix.com/Default?mqso=6 0164784&partid=3170658> <http://us.adserver.yahoo.com/l?M=251812.3170658.4537139.1261774/D=egroupm ail/S=:HM/A=1564415/rand=946688893> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: DMCForum-unsubscribe@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! Terms of Service <http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/> .
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