Hi All

Was going to tackle a coolant flush today...before i start reefing on the drain bolts, is it counter-clockwise to loosen?I can't tell from the pic in Dwayne's write up.(wedding band in the picture is throwing me off)


Thanks!

 

Yes standard thread. Righty tighty, lefty loosey.

You don't torque them down hard when you put them back in. Just snug them up like (10ft lbs)and put some anti seize on them. Some people want to crank them in at 30 ftlbs and bust the block.

 

Many Thanks Jeff!

Cheers,

 

Yup, lefty loosy like Jeff said. Also all the other usual tricks help too like PB blaster, tapping bolt head, cheater pipe, or applying a little heat. Mine was a knuckle buster when it finally broke free so gloves aren't a bad idea either.

Also it's a good time to clean the engine ground strap that will inevitable take a good ethylene glycol bath.

 

Spray it with PB blaster and make sure whatever you use is on their tight. If not, it will round it out and life will suck. My passenger side got rounded out a bit but it came off. I ended up filing down the edges to get it straight again. Anti-seize, torqued properly and it's still good to screw on and off.

I used a 13mm socket, made sure it was seated properly then used a pipe extension on the socket wrench to break it loose cleanly. Proper seating and grip and maximum torque and you'll be fine.

 

Job done...without any drama.
Kurt thanks for the reminder about the ground strap...done.
Was able to get the car high enough that i could loosen the bolts with a breaker bar, so no knuckle crusher for me :-)
Note to self for next time...kiddie pool...must... use... kiddie pool.

Thanks Fellas!

Cheers,

 

As a footnote; I used my newly acquired digital torque wrench from Brown Line Metalworks for the first time. Very happy with it...the audio beep is an excellent feature when you are under the car and struggling for room to maneuver.
(No Affiliation), just a happy customer.

Cheers,

 

Yep, love my Snap On digital torque wrench. beeps and vibrates when you get to the prescribed torque (or angle).

 

Because that's what the WSM says to do... a huge printing error. I learned the hard way.