Prior to my owning my '84 944, some #%$@*!!! managed to totally round out
one of the hex head bolts to the flywheel sensor block. <img src="graemlins/cussing.gif" border="0" alt="[grrrrrrr]" /> How they managed to
get the thing tight I have no idea. I have pretty much exhausted all my
ideas for removing the damn thing, and am hoping someone has an idea or two
for me. Anyone? George B?? Surely you have seen this before, how did you
remove it?

Currently, I have the intake manifold and oil/air separator off the car,this
particular projected started as a seal replacement on the oil/air separator,
and I decided to do the flywheel sensors at the same time, since one of them
had pretty much fallen apart and was being held together by tape. I was
able to remove one of the flywheel sensors from the block, but the other
finished disentigrating while attempting to remove it. I tried removing the
magnetic part of the sensor and using an e-z out with no luck, I then taped
it and ran a bolt into it, hoping to be able to pull it out, so that I
wouldn't have to remove the sensor block. Unfortunately, while I have been
able to get a good sized bolt threaded in the remaining part of the sensor,
I am still unable to pull it out of the bore.

As for trying to remove the remaining hex head bolt, I took a look at the
head with a mirror, and confirmed that it is rounded out. I tried for about
an hour to use various hex head wrenches of various sizes, hoping that I
could get one to grab, without luck. I have also been unable to grab the
outside of the bolt head securely enough to turn it, and anyone who has done
this job knows that it has limited space available to work on it. Short of
chisling the head off and trying to remove the remaining stud with pliers
(which would not be a lot of fun, given the lack of space), I am out of
ideas. If anyone has a good idea that works, I will be VERY appreciative if
you would share it!

Regards, ...Scott

 

Dremel tool and grind or cut the head off.

Try to leave enough of the shank to loosen with vice grips.

 

On my 86 na the bolt holding the sensor braket is round, it's a shcs removed by a 6mm (I think it was 6mm) allen wrench. Not the easiest place to work in.

nh3

 

You're right, its a 6 mm allen (also referred to as "hex" head) bolt. My problem is that some yutz didn't get his 6mm wrench in it properly, and rounded it out so that now, no wrench fits it. I am guessing the "remove the head and get pliers on the remaining stud" will wind up being my solution, but I was hoping to avoid that, due to the space constraints.

Regards, ...Scott

 

I had this same problem a couple of weeks ago. What I did was take a monster screw driver and pound it down between the sensor bracket and the clutch bellhousing with a hammer. It snapped off pretty quickly and I was able to turn the hex out by hand afterward.

HTH

 

No No No, hex head is like you know the type you would put a socket or box wrench on. It's a socket head cap screw. But anyway be very friking careful not to drop anything in the inspection hole next to that bracket. I went through all this before and spent 2 weeks every day after work in 10* cold trying to surgicaly remove a bolt that had dropped in that hole and was hitting the set screws that the sensors read. It was either fish it out or drop the tranny tourqe tube and clutch. My solution to removing the 6mm screw was to cut it at the head, remove the stud. Cutting that screw is not easy, there is no room back there. In the process I did destroy the bracket.

nh3

 

Wow, that was NOT a lot of fun...

Wound up breaking the flywheel sensor bracket off to remove it. After that, it was fairly easy to remove what was left of the bolt. Sheesh....

Anyone who wants to point fingers and yell "hack!"... I challenge them to do better. After two days of working to try and remove a single bolt, it finally dawned on me that I would rather buy a new sensor bracket than fight any longer. I was done about five minutes later...

Anyone want to sell me a new bracket? lol

Regards, ...Scott

 

Scott, Do some research or somebody here should know but there was a change in brackets at some point. I believe the change was a sleeve that was added to one of the sensors hence making the hole larger to accomodate the sleeve. I originaly had the sensor with the sleeve but found the whole 9 yards on ebay and that did not have a sleeve.

nh3

 

Don't waste any more time - break the bracket off and replace with the updated unit w/sleeve.
(bolt will be easy to remove at this point)

The bracket's cost is insignificant compared to the lost time and frustration, even if your only source in your area is the dealer.

 

Yup, as Mark suggested, and as I finally did... the bracket broke off fairly quickly and now i am hunting a new one. Question, tho... I already have two new sensors that I was planning on installing. This updated bracket that you guys mentioned... it would require two different sensors, correct? Anyone happen to have the part numbers handy?

Regards, ...Scott