Help - Tips on How to reach the Exhaust manifold to head bolts?

[JohnelP]

3.5 NA AWD - Bank1 /Firewall (Back) Catalytic converter Removal - Tips on How to reach the Exhaust manifold to head bolts?

Need to replace the rear /bank1 cat converter, and the AWD PTU makes the reach to the exhaust manifold to head bolts a "challenge".
Is there any way to reach those bolts without removing the PTU or the Electric power steering?

Anybody did this? Any tips or tricks?

The exhaust manifold upper heatshield bolts. Are they supposed to be removed from above?

 

[runningonfords]

I did mine on my '14, but it was the front mani/cat, not the rear. Kikinz24 commented in my thread about his rear mani/cat replacement on a '15. Follow link here. Maybe you have to get crafty with your socket wrench extensions and a universal joint at the end to get access to a tight spot for the heat shield removal, but this is just a guess. Its only 2 bolts, get in there and get them off. The manifold sounds like it goes out the top.

When I did the bolts for the manifold to head, it was all with a little 1/4" socket because they were like 8mm hex head bolts or something. START ALL THE BOLTS BY HAND!!! Some of the head outer threads may be corroded off at the top so you gotta be careful and line up the bolts right and get the threads to engage. I had 1 that wasn't going in at all, and I was very upset for about 15 minutes, but it ended well with some pressure and careful alignment of the bolt. Good luck and go for it!!!

 

[JohnelP]

thinking out loud. Getting the bolts out might be done in this century.... But torqueing them back with the torque wrench is a mystery on how i can do it in that space. Would a universal joint transmit the torque unaltered from the torque wrench?

 

[BrettS.]

I recently changed both front and rear exhaust manifolds on my 14 PIU 3.5TT. What an absolute pain. Every bolt was rusted and took a 3 ft breaker bar to bust loose. Then every bolt was tight getting out all the way to the end. You know how you can normally break a bolt loose then twist it out by hand. Not my bolts. Every exhaust and turbo bolt fought me. Broke about a half dozen. Never thought it would take a 3ft breaker bar to break free 8mm bolts and I am not a weak guy. Had one stud hole that stripped out that I had to helicoil. Just a fun job overall that took 3 times longer then it should have. All my exhaust manifold heat shield bolts broke. Too rusted to remove. I removed all bolts by hand as my air ratchet would just break them. You need to remove the heat shields to access the manifold nuts. On the rear manifold I removed all the nuts and manifold from the top by feel. Removed and replaced all the studs from the bottom. On the front manifold I did all from the top except two that are easy to access from the bottom. I used a 5mm socket for the studs. If it began to slip I stopped and switched to a 3/16 which is slightly smaller. Pound it on and crank the stud out. Easier to do underneath on the rear where you can see what you are doing. Been an ASE cert mechanic for close to 20 years and this was not a fun job! You can do it without dropping the front subframe but its a challenge. Both my front and rear exhaust manifolds had multiple cracks in them.