Adamant1971

Removing cam covers on an 86.5 and 3 bolts on the driver side will not budge and of course, they are all lower bolts. The bolts feel like they will snap if I apply more torque, so I chose to walk away for the evening.

Any tips for breaking these free without snapping them? I suppose I could heat from below directly on the head, it's getting all new seals anyway. ?????

Mrmerlin

strike the heads of the bolts with a small mallet , then,
get a pencil torch and heat the heads of the bolts you may damage the powder coat
then remove them if possible use an impact driver to loosen the bolts

Petza914

If you have some hammer swinging room, a manual impact driver is probably the way to go.

Adamant1971

The engine is still in the car and the bolts that are giving me grief are all lower bolts so no room for a hammer or impact driver.

I will try heating them up with a pencil torch, fingers crossed. These are coming off to get powder coated plus new seals and timing chain pads, so no issue using heat at this point.

Geza

The good thing it that if they do shear in torsion, you will most likely be left with the stub sticking out from which to grab hold of, not a threaded portion buried in a tapped hole.

It's not surprising that loosening these bolts feels weird. Rarely are you applying a wrench with torque to a torsion bar. It's going to feel very rubbery, in comparison to a normal bolt. Mine all came loose, some easier than others, and most finally gave way with loud snap, when the mating seat eventually broke free of the cylinder head.

Adamant1971

Success! Got them all out without much drama. I heated the stubborn bolts up, let them cool down and they all came out in one piece.
But I thought an 86.5 would have the older 2 piece bolts? There is evidence that the cam seals were re-done at some point in the past since I found grey RTV in a few spots. But they were leaking badly.

Oh and that tool on the right is fantastic, not for breaking them loose but great for screwing and unscrewing long bolts in tight spots.

skpyle

Good Job, Adam!

Nope, 86.5 has the hybrid S3/S4 hardware. It is S4 style, but shorter, and uses flat, rubber backed sealing washers as opposed to the rubber cone/donuts of the S4.

Adamant1971

Thanks for confirming Seth. Now everything is going for powder coating and plating (if these businesses are still open, we had a new round of closures at midnight last night for this Covid crap).

Ramp

Following as I'm planning on starting this week on an S3. Are your going to switch bolts ?

Adamant1971

No the hardware is fine and will be re-used once re-plated. Obvioulsy with new washers and o rings.

dr bob

... And the torque-limiting wrench set for about 70 lbs/inch with anti-seize on the threads and the mating face at the head boss.

Kevin in Atlanta

You owe a debt of gratitude to the PO and his mechanic who upgraded the cam cover hardware.

skpyle

Kevin, to my understanding, that hardware is stock for 1986.5 S3’s.

1985 and 1986 S3’s had the two piece, hex head hardware and stand offs.

Kevin in Atlanta

My first 928 was an 86.5. My memory does not go back that far. I know the 86 and 85 I owned had 2 piece cam bolts and the joy of heating them with a torch to back them out.

Ramp

I'm pretty sure my 86.5 cam covers have never been touched so I will report on what I have. I'm kicking myself for not doing this when I did my intake refresh.

I am not looking for an extended project so how often are stuck cam cover bolts an issue ? The last thing I need is a snapped bolt in a hard/impossible place to reach.