Hi guys - 92 V6 head gasket replacement. I have everything off except the heads and the bolts and I have two quick dumb questions:

1. How do you guys remove the excess oil that's left when you remove the camshafts before you remove the heads? There are a few little pools of oil which I'd like to remove before I lift the heads. Do you dump some of that granular oil eater in there, or just get in there with lots of rags. Figured there might be some trick to keeping it somewhat tidy - don't want big oil puddles all over the new garage floor.

2. This next question I'm a little embarrassed to ask but - the head bolts look a little different than all the other bolt heads (more 'points' on the heads). Do I need a special ratchet to remove these? Or just use a regular 13mm?

Thanks all - I've finally managed to remove the exhaust bolts (man what a pain in the arse) from the down-pipe, and planning to try and remove both heads with exhaust manifolds at once - with a little help from a friend.

 

1. lots of rags


2..12 point 12mm socket


good luck

 

I agree with DudeBud above - lots and lots of rags

VERY IMPORTANT - I would buy a QUALITY 12mm 12pt 1/2" drive socket(craftsman is fine, just make sure it's a 1/2 drive) -- I broke 4 craftsman 3/8" drive 12mm 12pts when I pulled my heads.

 

and you will need a 4 or 6 inch extension if you don't already have it... 1/2" of course.

FYI be careful to make solid contact with a 12 pt bolt head so that you do not round them off - you don't want to have to figure out how to get that bolt out if you strip it.

 

12 paw ,12mm socket, and used a 12 paw 14mm socket for new ones

 

just one thing,that i missed when i did mine,nobody seems to take care about,if you blew the headgasket ,and coolant was in the oil,id plan on taking off your oil pan and clean it,OR make few premature oil change,in the very near future.i putted syntec mobile one oil with a k&n filter right after my rebuild,and 1000km after ,i made another change and it was REALLY time.deep black almost milky.and dont LOOK at the dipstick oil color,its fooling poeple,the dipstick takes time to get like the rest.

 

Whew - glad I asked. I was about to jump in there and just use my normal sockets.
Thanks guys.

 

I didnt break my craftsman 12pt 12mm socket but I can see how one would!!

Also invest in a 14mm 12pt! Its handy for the bottom end work that youll need to do eventually. But I 100% agree with Kat (Justinking) go craftsman or snap on. Craftsman is preferrential for if you kill a socket a new one is free!

DO NOT REUSE YOUR HEADBOLTS OR YOUR KNOCK SENSOR WIRE

No matter what both of those items MUST be new if you do not want problems in the immediate future.

 

look for a product at the parts store called PIG MAT,its like puppy pads for your car.unless the oil is really heavy it will not soak thru them onto the floor.put em down where you think oil might drop.it comes on a roll,usually grey in color.