Burned on an eBay auction

[Deezul_AwT]

if your already going to replaced the upper....the LIM gaskets is right there. all you would have to do is maybe 15more minutes of work to pull off the LIM.

its a toss up. its preventative matinence...........

provided the gunk is gone from your cap....and you oil is not milky. you dont have a leak.

mine developed a mifire..and I had puddles of coolant on the exterior of my LIM by the injectors. thats when I noticed a crack in my UIM..

I think my LIM gaskets cost me 34bux? they were the redesigned version..

ZZP has new intake gaskets for $50, so yes, it's probably worth it to remove them. Haynes manual makes it sound a bit scarier, having to detach EGR valve, alternator, drivebelt, assorted hoses and electrical connectors, etc. Is that necessary? I have found that Haynes does go a little overboard in the removal of things, if only to make access a bit easier. I figured I'd rotate the engine and work it from there. They also recommend draining the coolant. I'd guess that's only because it's likely you're gonna lose some with removal of the UIM. Maybe I'm just being paranoid.

[UR LOSN]

it is actually all part fo getting the LIM out. with the cover off...it is all relatively straight forward. just remoe this to get to that.

the alternator bracket allows coolent to tranfer from the heater core to the LIM.

You can do it. just take it one step at a time. it is not a long and tedious process. if you have any questions post up. if you need to contact someone right then and there. my cell is: 815-566-0052.

or if you have any questions leading up to it. post them up. just remember. YOU CAN DO IT!!!!!

[SyntheticShield]

Mr. Encouragement right there. But he is right. Its not a difficult job, just be sure you keep track of all your bolts and where they go. There are a few that are longer than others and have to go back to the same place obviously.

I would most definitely drain the coolant. And be careful when you remove the LIM as sometimes coolant will pour out when you are lifting it out and its going to pour down in the valley when it does and right into your motor oil.

What I did was drain the motor oil and left the drain plug out so all that could drain through and then I took a couple quarts of motor oil and poured it down into the valley to wash as much of the coolant out as I could. I dont recall spilling any coolant out of my LIM but I wanted to be safe.

Coolant is very persistent in an engine so one you get it all buttoned back up and filled back up with motor oil and a new filter I would drive around the block a few times, maybe a couple miles at best and then change the oil again just for good measure.

You also have to use RTV at the corners of the LIM gaskets but I dont remember how that all went. Chris helped me out with mine and if not for him I would have probably screwed a few things up. I use a lot of masking tape to label things and a lot of zip lock bags when doing this kind of work so I can make sure I get everything back where it belongs. Ive even been known to throw short notes in the zip lock bags for special reminders and such if there was something unusual that needed to be observed.

Be SURE you clean all the LIM bolts off and use thread sealant on them and be sure all of the bolts are torqued to spec.

[Deezul_AwT]

Mr. Encouragement right there. But he is right. Its not a difficult job, just be sure you keep track of all your bolts and where they go. There are a few that are longer than others and have to go back to the same place obviously.

Ok. I was planning on taking a camera out with me as well to take all kinds of pictures to make sure I'm doing things right. I'll be sure to pull out a lot of cardboard that I can push the bolts into approximately in the order they are on the manifolds so I put them back correctly.

I will take the suggestions to drain coolant and oil. Assuming I get to it in the next few weeks, I should be able to reuse most of the coolant, maybe have to add a bit. Oil is cheap enough that unless it looks pristine, I can put new oil in after a drain. Also, since I have another car I an use, I can take my time and do it right instead of rushing to finish it.

[UR LOSN]

you can do it!!!!

[GR8racingfool]

That sucks for sure man, but the price was pretty good from the start considering what they sell for from a dealer etc.

If I ever buy anything that expensive, and its not local, or near by, I would of tried to find a honest person of the club near by willing to go check it out for me. I do that here for people myself, I don't mind doing it to help them from getting burned.

~F~