Exhaust manifold options repair

[Chris57ram]

Hey guys bought my 16 ram 5.7 4x4 about 4 months ago and am going over old parts and replacing them. I’m at 173k truck runs good except pass. Exhaust manifold broken stud. I’m pretty sure it’s broken in the block from feeling the back of the heatshield where it’s broken feels like good bit of bolt left (top left) I’ve had a hard time to find a Mobil mechanic who would come extract it with a welder don’t want to drill it. Should i try calling a Mobil welder to come or bite the bullet and bring it to shop I can remove and install new manifold but would have to have someone come to me to remove the broken bolt. I bought the Dorman ss bolt kit off rock auto also .Anybody have any quotes they were charged on getting one side done at a shop? Only one bolt caused this and I’m getting tired of the sound. I know this topic has been discussed a million times. Thanks for any suggestions. Should I borrow a welder and practice on some scrap metal?

 

[EdGs]

You don't need fancy grade 8 bolts. Proper torque on them is only ~18 ft-lbs. or so.

Weld method is best for removal of studs broken flush with the cylinder head.

Once the manifold is removed, belt sand the manifold flat, replace the gasket, and you'll never have another problem with it.

I used Fel-Pro gaskets from RockAuto and Everbuilt hardware from amazon. Not one issue since repair.

Lots on here swear by Remflex gaskets, I already had the Fel-Pro or else I would've bought the Remflex as well.

 

[Fast69Mopar]

Hey guys bought my 16 ram 5.7 4x4 about 4 months ago and am going over old parts and replacing them. I’m at 173k truck runs good except pass. Exhaust manifold broken stud. I’m pretty sure it’s broken in the block from feeling the back of the heatshield where it’s broken feels like good bit of bolt left (top left) I’ve had a hard time to find a Mobil mechanic who would come extract it with a welder don’t want to drill it. Should i try calling a Mobil welder to come or bite the bullet and bring it to shop I can remove and install new manifold but would have to have someone come to me to remove the broken bolt. I bought the Dorman ss bolt kit off rock auto also .Anybody have any quotes they were charged on getting one side done at a shop? Only one bolt caused this and I’m getting tired of the sound. I know this topic has been discussed a million times. Thanks for any suggestions. Should I borrow a welder and practice on some scrap metal?

You don't need fancy grade 8 bolts. Proper torque on them is only ~18 ft-lbs. or so.

Weld method is best for removal of studs broken flush with the cylinder head.

Once the manifold is removed, belt sand the manifold flat, replace the gasket, and you'll never have another problem with it.

I used Fel-Pro gaskets from RockAuto and Everbuilt hardware from amazon. Not one issue since repair.

Lots on here swear by Remflex gaskets, I already had the Fel-Pro or else I would've bought the Remflex as well.

Welding a nut to the broken bolt is the best way for extraction in my opinion. The RemFlex gaskets do work well and so do the FelPro gaskets.

For the exhaust manifolds, if you do not have the cash for a visit to the local machine shop you can pick up some 12"x18" sheets of sandpaper from your local Home Depot.

What I have done in the past is overlap 3 sheets on a piece of plywood or my shop floor and I sand in one direction. I use a 60-grit to get started and really remove some material and then a 100-120 grit to give them a smoother, more machined-like surface.

Once you have them machined or custom-sanded by yourself you won't have any more problems with broken bolts and leaks.

My local machine shop only charges me $75 per pair to machine the HEMI exhaust manifolds.

 

[Chris57ram]

Thanks for the info. I did purchase a Dorman manifold new and felpro gaskets. Guess resurfacing old is better option. I’ll sell the new manifold as I’m sure someone will need it. Ive gotta find someone who can weld. I called a Mobil welder he quoted me at $375 to come and weld a nut to broken stud sounds a bit steep to me as it would be all broken down ready for him to extract bolt.

 

[Wild one]

Thanks for the info. I did purchase a Dorman manifold new and felpro gaskets. Guess resurfacing old is better option. I’ll sell the new manifold as I’m sure someone will need it. Ive gotta find someone who can weld. I called a Mobil welder he quoted me at $375 to come and weld a nut to broken stud sounds a bit steep to me as it would be all broken down ready for him to extract bolt.

Buy yourself a cheap mig welder ,do some practicing and remove the bolt yourself,then you'll have a welder for down the road for other projects.
I'd search your local market place to,sometimes you can pick up a fairly decent 120 volt mig for cheap.
If you can point and pull a trigger,you can mig weld,lol

https://www.harborfreight.com/welding/welders/mig-flux-welders.html

 

[EdGs]

Thanks for the info. I did purchase a Dorman manifold new and felpro gaskets. Guess resurfacing old is better option. I’ll sell the new manifold as I’m sure someone will need it. Ive gotta find someone who can weld. I called a Mobil welder he quoted me at $375 to come and weld a nut to broken stud sounds a bit steep to me as it would be all broken down ready for him to extract bolt.

So many of us have had this problem, I would bet more than half.

Those manifolds warp like a banana, and sometimes they warp so much that the leak doesn't seal up when the engine warms up.

Some have even had replacement manifolds warp as well. My money is on that the mfr. didn't normalize the manifolds after casting.

Once the warped manifold is sanded/machined flat, they do not warp further because they have been heat-cycled in use.

And once yours are fixed, you will notice those with the same issue, such a distinct sound.

May your repairs go smoothly.

 

[NCRaineman]

If you are going through all the work of removal I'd have just sprung for a set of decent shorty headers instead of putting the stock manifolds back. They're too heavy and don't flow particularly well. Why not gain some performance if you are going to do the work anyways?

 

[Wild one]

If you are going through all the work of removal I'd have just sprung for a set of decent shorty headers instead of putting the stock manifolds back. They're too heavy and don't flow particularly well. Why not gain some performance if you are going to do the work anyways?

Shorties have their own issues from cracked welds to not sealing very well to the mid pipes etc.,and they don't add any torque down low,and at most maybe 10 hp at the stock 5600 rpm shift point. Throw in the fact even if you have to buy a belt sander to sand the stock manifolds flat,you're only into a stock manifold job for a couple hundred at most,a good set of shorties is gonna rock your boat for alot more then that.The cost of a welder doesn't factor in,as you'd have to buy it whether you did stock manifolds or shorties,but the cost differances between sanding and re-installing the stock manifolds and buying a set of shorties would pay for an upgraded mig welder.

 

[Chris57ram]

I’m lucky it’s the passenger side and will be happy just to get rid of the sound in the morning start up. Just ordered some AMSOIL today for next oil change looking forward to seeing how she runs. I bought a belt tensioner off rock auto a gates and it came stamped litens made in Canada. Looks good to me anyone used this tensioner before? Mines working fine but it looks to be original now 9 years old. I like having parts ready then needing it immediately.

 

[mdc1990zr1]

I’m lucky it’s the passenger side and will be happy just to get rid of the sound in the morning start up. Just ordered some AMSOIL today for next oil change looking forward to seeing how she runs. I bought a belt tensioner off rock auto a gates and it came stamped litens made in Canada. Looks good to me anyone used this tensioner before? Mines working fine but it looks to be original now 9 years old. I like having parts ready then needing it immediately.

All of my OEM replacement pulleys and tensioners for GM vehicles have always been stamped or stickered made in Canada. All good stuff there