pet575
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- June 11, 2008
- Messages
- 529
- Reaction score
- 2
- City, State
- Kansas City, MO
- Year, Model & Trim Level
- 2004 Limited
This job is required when your intake starts to leak coolant around the thermostat housing or leaking coolant in places that you cannot see and dumping the coolant down into the coil pack/spark plug well.
The new part is $400+ at the dealer or you can get it online for $160-ish. It is a Dorman 615-175. I chose to go this route.
There is a lot of unplugging of connectors/removal of parts to do this job and it is time consuming. However, it CAN be done with your everyday tools you'd have in your garage. The only "specialty" tools required are the quick disconnect tools for fuel lines (set of 4 was $10 at O'Reilly) and a torque wrench. I was able to accomplish the rest of the repair with a set of metric/sae sockets (with 3 different length extensions) and a set of metric/sae open end wrenches. A flat head screwdriver, a set of pliers, and some wire or a wire hanger also came in handy. A flat razor, a vacuum of some kind, and a can of compressed air is also nice to have for cleanup once you get the old intake removed.
I didn't take a ton of pics because a lot of what you have to do is self-explanatory when you see the new part: you've got to get everything that sits on top of the engine OFF or at least moved to the side.
First steps:
(1) unhook the negative battery terminal and cover the battery with a heavy cloth (you could also remove the battery but it can be left in). A lesson that I sort of thought of later was "how will I relieve fuel pressure?" because I figured out i needed to do it once I got to the point I was at in the pic below. So, you really should pull the fuses/relays for the fuel pump FIRST and run the vehicle until it dies and THEN disconnect the battery. (More on this later, though)
(2) drain the coolant using the petcock on the bottom, passenger side of the radiator. If the coolant has been the vehicle for several thousand miles, keep it for recycling and replace it with new coolant.
I got to the point shown in the picture below by removing the air intake and unplugging all of the electrical connectors to the air intake and throttle body. I removed the PCV valve's connector to the passenger side valve cover first and then moved the entire tube over to the outside of the driver's side of the hood. I never removed the PCV valve itself.
I also removed all of the coolant hoses on top, the top alternator bracket, and unplugged all of the injectors and coil packs (injector plugs are the grey plugs with the red centers). Then, I removed the bolts from the EGR valve from the side of the throttle body WITHOUT hardly moving the EGR valve at all. I was advised to be very careful with the EGR valve because it is brittle, so I hardly touched it by doing this.
After that, I disconnected all electrical and vacuum connections from the throttle body and removed the 5 throttle body mounting bolts. I left the throttle cables and other complex-looking connections to the throttle body in place and just lifted it up and suspended it using wire.
That got me to the point in the first picture below.
Everything removed with direct access to intake. Throttle body suspended and out of way. EGR valve/tube still in original location-it is the flying saucer looking piece directly to the right of the air intake hole.
Then I disconnected the fuel line from the fuel rail. There is no Schraeder valve on this assembly so fuel pressure could be an issue. I was a little concerned about this because i had NOT pulled the relay or fuse with the vehicle running to relieve pressure. BUT, the vehicle had been sitting for 20+ hours so I pulled the fuse and relay anyway (even though it was too late) and then proceeded on the theory that there would not be too much pressure since it sat for all that time. I was armed with safety goggles and several rags and when I disconnected the fuel line and.........about a thimble full of fuel came out so that was relatively easy and I was able to remove the bolts holding the fuel rail to the intake and then just firmly pulled up on the fuel rails to remove them. Without the mounting bolts, all that holds them in are o-rings.
From this point there are 8 bolts that hold the intake on and one bolt in the front left near the alternator. Once you undo these, the intake lifts out but you MUST remove the alternator in order to actually lift out the intake.
Top of engine with alternator and fuel rails removed and intake lifted out. You can see the EGR valve/tube still in the same place. The intake can be lifted at the front end and then pulled forward toward the radiator to slide it out without disturbing the EGR too much.
More of a pulled-back view of everything.
Close up of everything after a little clean-up. I went back for more cleanup with a flat razor blade and got it a little more clean. Also vacuumed a lot of dust and junk out from the areas around the spark plug wells and the injector wells. I tucked a rag in each injector port and then blew out the plug wells with compressed air while holding the vacuum right next to it. I removed a LOT of busted up plastic pieces from the top of the engine and then vacuumed the top of the engine as well as I could while I was in there.
I had some issues with leakage of coolant in my plug wells and had previously replaced the COP and spark plugs in cylinder #5 (driver's side front) and #8 (driver's side, nearest the firewall) and also the spark plug in cylinder #6. I bought 5 more spark plugs to finish out replacing them all and went ahead and did that after removing the old intake. It was VERY easy with all of this access room and I highly recommending changing your plugs if you are doing this repair and haven't changed them. This vehicle has 204,000 miles on it and those 5 remaining plugs were stock.
Once I got the old intake out, I was in complete disbelief as to its condition. It was in horrible shape!
This is the thermostat housing. The dark metal on the left side of the assembly is what you see on top when installed and it is where the thermostat goes. The plastic on the bottom was literally cracking apart and falling off. No wonder it was leaking so bad!
Zoomed out pic of the entire assembly. Note that I did NO damage to this part while removing it. This is how bad of shape it was in!!!!
Driver side of intake
Under side
Passenger side of intake
After seeing this intake, I understand why a lot of things I'd read indicated that people noticed an increase in power/fuel efficiency after making this repair. It is amazing to me that this vehicle even ran as well as it did with the intake in this condition!
New intake is installed and bolted in. Note that the new part has a map with it indicating the order in which the bolts should be torqued to 25 ft-lbs. Also note that I transferred over the coolant connections on the aluminum portion and installed them with red RTV.
This is just prior to re-installation of the fuel rail on the driver's side. While you're in there you might as well take a close look at your injectors while you've got them out to look for cracking or other damage. Notice that the two injectors in the middle are missing the blue o-ring on the bottom. Some of them stuck in the top of the old intake when they were removed so make sure you fish them out of there. Sometimes the actual fuel rail will separate from the injector and the injector will stick in the intake. No big deal on that either, just make sure the o-ring is still in place and clip it back together once you get the whole fuel rail off. You can also but a kit of 4 o-rings for $3.50 at O'Reilly so if you lose a few (hopefully not down in the cylinder!!!!!) or have a few which are damaged it is no big deal to replace them. I replaced these two with the originals after I picked them out of the old intake.
Once you have gotten to the point of installing the new intake, re-assembly is pretty straightforward because you're just working backwards to re-install everything. When re-installing the fuel rail, make sure you press the injectors down firmly into the new intake so that the o-rings will seat the injectors and THEN tighten the fuel rail mounting bolts onto the new intake. THEN re-connect the fuel line to the fuel rail.
After you've got everything buttoned up, get a bright flashlight and carefully inspect all of the COP and spark plug connections and inspect the fuel rails to make sure there is NO movement at all when you wiggle them. Carefully inspect the back (firewall) side of the throttle body to make sure you reconnected all electrical and vacuum line connections.
After you re-start the vehicle (don't forgot the fuel pump relay/fuse(s)!!!) use the flashlight to make absolutely sure that you do not have any fuel leaks around the fuel rail or injectors. Also make sure that you don't have any coolant leaks coming from either the thermostat housing or anywhere around the top of the engine.
The new part is $400+ at the dealer or you can get it online for $160-ish. It is a Dorman 615-175. I chose to go this route.
There is a lot of unplugging of connectors/removal of parts to do this job and it is time consuming. However, it CAN be done with your everyday tools you'd have in your garage. The only "specialty" tools required are the quick disconnect tools for fuel lines (set of 4 was $10 at O'Reilly) and a torque wrench. I was able to accomplish the rest of the repair with a set of metric/sae sockets (with 3 different length extensions) and a set of metric/sae open end wrenches. A flat head screwdriver, a set of pliers, and some wire or a wire hanger also came in handy. A flat razor, a vacuum of some kind, and a can of compressed air is also nice to have for cleanup once you get the old intake removed.
I didn't take a ton of pics because a lot of what you have to do is self-explanatory when you see the new part: you've got to get everything that sits on top of the engine OFF or at least moved to the side.
First steps:
(1) unhook the negative battery terminal and cover the battery with a heavy cloth (you could also remove the battery but it can be left in). A lesson that I sort of thought of later was "how will I relieve fuel pressure?" because I figured out i needed to do it once I got to the point I was at in the pic below. So, you really should pull the fuses/relays for the fuel pump FIRST and run the vehicle until it dies and THEN disconnect the battery. (More on this later, though)
(2) drain the coolant using the petcock on the bottom, passenger side of the radiator. If the coolant has been the vehicle for several thousand miles, keep it for recycling and replace it with new coolant.
I got to the point shown in the picture below by removing the air intake and unplugging all of the electrical connectors to the air intake and throttle body. I removed the PCV valve's connector to the passenger side valve cover first and then moved the entire tube over to the outside of the driver's side of the hood. I never removed the PCV valve itself.
I also removed all of the coolant hoses on top, the top alternator bracket, and unplugged all of the injectors and coil packs (injector plugs are the grey plugs with the red centers). Then, I removed the bolts from the EGR valve from the side of the throttle body WITHOUT hardly moving the EGR valve at all. I was advised to be very careful with the EGR valve because it is brittle, so I hardly touched it by doing this.
After that, I disconnected all electrical and vacuum connections from the throttle body and removed the 5 throttle body mounting bolts. I left the throttle cables and other complex-looking connections to the throttle body in place and just lifted it up and suspended it using wire.
That got me to the point in the first picture below.
Everything removed with direct access to intake. Throttle body suspended and out of way. EGR valve/tube still in original location-it is the flying saucer looking piece directly to the right of the air intake hole.
Then I disconnected the fuel line from the fuel rail. There is no Schraeder valve on this assembly so fuel pressure could be an issue. I was a little concerned about this because i had NOT pulled the relay or fuse with the vehicle running to relieve pressure. BUT, the vehicle had been sitting for 20+ hours so I pulled the fuse and relay anyway (even though it was too late) and then proceeded on the theory that there would not be too much pressure since it sat for all that time. I was armed with safety goggles and several rags and when I disconnected the fuel line and.........about a thimble full of fuel came out so that was relatively easy and I was able to remove the bolts holding the fuel rail to the intake and then just firmly pulled up on the fuel rails to remove them. Without the mounting bolts, all that holds them in are o-rings.
From this point there are 8 bolts that hold the intake on and one bolt in the front left near the alternator. Once you undo these, the intake lifts out but you MUST remove the alternator in order to actually lift out the intake.
Top of engine with alternator and fuel rails removed and intake lifted out. You can see the EGR valve/tube still in the same place. The intake can be lifted at the front end and then pulled forward toward the radiator to slide it out without disturbing the EGR too much.
More of a pulled-back view of everything.
Close up of everything after a little clean-up. I went back for more cleanup with a flat razor blade and got it a little more clean. Also vacuumed a lot of dust and junk out from the areas around the spark plug wells and the injector wells. I tucked a rag in each injector port and then blew out the plug wells with compressed air while holding the vacuum right next to it. I removed a LOT of busted up plastic pieces from the top of the engine and then vacuumed the top of the engine as well as I could while I was in there.
I had some issues with leakage of coolant in my plug wells and had previously replaced the COP and spark plugs in cylinder #5 (driver's side front) and #8 (driver's side, nearest the firewall) and also the spark plug in cylinder #6. I bought 5 more spark plugs to finish out replacing them all and went ahead and did that after removing the old intake. It was VERY easy with all of this access room and I highly recommending changing your plugs if you are doing this repair and haven't changed them. This vehicle has 204,000 miles on it and those 5 remaining plugs were stock.
Once I got the old intake out, I was in complete disbelief as to its condition. It was in horrible shape!
This is the thermostat housing. The dark metal on the left side of the assembly is what you see on top when installed and it is where the thermostat goes. The plastic on the bottom was literally cracking apart and falling off. No wonder it was leaking so bad!
Zoomed out pic of the entire assembly. Note that I did NO damage to this part while removing it. This is how bad of shape it was in!!!!
Driver side of intake
Under side
Passenger side of intake
After seeing this intake, I understand why a lot of things I'd read indicated that people noticed an increase in power/fuel efficiency after making this repair. It is amazing to me that this vehicle even ran as well as it did with the intake in this condition!
New intake is installed and bolted in. Note that the new part has a map with it indicating the order in which the bolts should be torqued to 25 ft-lbs. Also note that I transferred over the coolant connections on the aluminum portion and installed them with red RTV.
This is just prior to re-installation of the fuel rail on the driver's side. While you're in there you might as well take a close look at your injectors while you've got them out to look for cracking or other damage. Notice that the two injectors in the middle are missing the blue o-ring on the bottom. Some of them stuck in the top of the old intake when they were removed so make sure you fish them out of there. Sometimes the actual fuel rail will separate from the injector and the injector will stick in the intake. No big deal on that either, just make sure the o-ring is still in place and clip it back together once you get the whole fuel rail off. You can also but a kit of 4 o-rings for $3.50 at O'Reilly so if you lose a few (hopefully not down in the cylinder!!!!!) or have a few which are damaged it is no big deal to replace them. I replaced these two with the originals after I picked them out of the old intake.
Once you have gotten to the point of installing the new intake, re-assembly is pretty straightforward because you're just working backwards to re-install everything. When re-installing the fuel rail, make sure you press the injectors down firmly into the new intake so that the o-rings will seat the injectors and THEN tighten the fuel rail mounting bolts onto the new intake. THEN re-connect the fuel line to the fuel rail.
After you've got everything buttoned up, get a bright flashlight and carefully inspect all of the COP and spark plug connections and inspect the fuel rails to make sure there is NO movement at all when you wiggle them. Carefully inspect the back (firewall) side of the throttle body to make sure you reconnected all electrical and vacuum line connections.
After you re-start the vehicle (don't forgot the fuel pump relay/fuse(s)!!!) use the flashlight to make absolutely sure that you do not have any fuel leaks around the fuel rail or injectors. Also make sure that you don't have any coolant leaks coming from either the thermostat housing or anywhere around the top of the engine.
