A4LD Rebuild - HELP! Problem removing Extension Housing

[Yankee516]

Hi Folks,

Into my first A4LD rebuild and ran into my first problem. Tranny is out, but can't seem to remove the two studs that also hold the retainer for the gear shift cable. When I turned the nut on the top, the stud came with it and now it is kind of bound up.

The retainer can't move up to provide room for a wrench since it wraps around another stud in the extension housing that holds it (the area between the two circles in the first photo below).

At this point, I'm stuck since the stud bolds don't provide enough room for an open ended wrench to turn the stud:

Not sure if the studs are only screwed into the extension housing or if they pass into the case, in which case the extension housing is just REALLY tighly held to the case. I don't want to risk any damage and hope that someone can provide some assistance so I can tear into the guts tomorrow.

THANKS IN ADVANCE!

--Phil

 

[Spdrcer34]

I would use a modified (read: Cheap Chinese) wrench that is ground down thinner to fit in there on the stud, and then another wrench, or socket on the nut.

Ryan

 

[Yankee516]

UPDATE: Okay, so in the pic above, the stud kind of kinked and can't seem to get it back down to remove the bracket. I'll get a capped nut and try to screw it back down into the hole and see if that helps... will post if successful.

Thanks for the reply, Ryan! Have you taken this piece apart before? It seems that the housing and bracket over the studs don't really provide much depth to get a thinner wrench in there. Don't want to strip the bolt. But even if I could do it this way, how could I possible torque it back to spec like that?

I am going to start fresh today... ended up (smartly) giving up at sundown to avoid further frustration. There just must be a proper (factory sanctioned) way to remove and reinstall the studs with the cable retainer bracket in place.

p.s. I think we have the same two cars

 

[Yankee516]

Got it fixed... bought a capped nut and was able to get the stud fully back into the case hole and remove the bracket.

Could have avoided the angst by working in more light and not being in such an enthusiastic rush.

Cheers!