Did you treat them with a penetrating lubricant before starting. If not, do that now and let it soak in for a while.

The best way to get stuck bolts out is with one of those manual impact tools. You hold it against the direction you want to twist the fastener then hit it with a hammer. The hammer blow applies both a twisting force and a linear impact force which breaks the threads loose and allows it to twist. If it's very stripped now, you'll probably have to find the next size up bit (a standard instead of metric one might be the next physical size up) and expect to sacrifice that one to the job. Tap it into the the bolt head until it seats well, then try the impact hammer. Don't continue until you have the right tool as you'll just make the situation with the bolt head worse. If that doesn't work or there's not enough room for that type of tool, you may have to weld a nut onto the perimeter of the torx socket cap bolt top so you can use a wrench from the outside instead of on the inside. If you don't have a welder or a friend with one, you might try getting the bolt really hot with a propane torch as long as heat right in that area won't melt or burn something else that's' important. The heat will expand the fastener in the holes and then as it contracts, shrink it and this little bit of movement may be enough to break the corrosion that has the threads stuck. Be careful with the combination of penetrating lubricant and torch heat as the lubricant is flammable.

 

UPDATE: Got through it, used some penetrating oil and tapped the T40 in with hammer. All removed. Thermostat and water-pump replaced.
It said I have to bleed the system, any pointers on this? The info I found states, fill it up, drive around and top it of couple of times. Is that right?

 

Good for you. Did you beat your chest like King Kong upon conquering it?

Assuming you don't have an AirLift where you can do a vacuum refill, I find it effective to park the car on a compound angle that makes the coolant reservoir the absolute highest point. It will take a couple of stationary run cycles getting it warm then letting g it cool down, opening the cap when cool, topping up, repeat etc before the level gets close to stable. Then a couple short drive cycles doing the same thing.

Use Porsche pink coolant in a 50/50 mix with distilled water.

 

Petza, thank you for the support. The real victory was getting the thermostat out :-) I did few 10 minute drive cycles and topped of the fluid, job done as far as bleeding the system,I assume.

FEW POINTERS: I had a insanely hard time pulling the thermostat out. I chose to use hammer and a screwdriver to carefully break up the socket, then it came out easily.
My replacement socket is the one made of aluminum, so I won't have the option to repeat this process in the future. My only hope is that the aluminum one will not expand over time as the plastic one did.

For now, job done, not bad at all. Hoping the P2181 is gone now. Fingers crossed.

 

Keep an eye on the level each day over the next few days. I would bet you'll need to add a bit more coolant before you're all done and it's fully stable at a set level, but nice work !

 

FYI, the transmission disc valve and changeover valve replacement fixed this for me (link below). The dealership and indy shops will run you thru the wringer with $ and time to replace other cooling system components (thermostat, sensor, water pump, etc.).

https://www.porscheclubgb.com/forum/tm.aspx?m=969310

 

The dreaded P2181 code is back, I cleared it, but I’m sure it’s coming back. This is going to my second time around. I see my own part list right above :-)

QUESTION: anyone had a chance to face off with the Hamburg Technic Aluminum Thermostat Socket (948100610103) ???

Last time I did this job, I upgraded to this unit, hoping it would prevent it from expanding and make it easier to remove, but I guess it could go both ways, last time I was able to break up the plastic unit and remove it, it was the best option, So no option this time this being aluminum.

Anyone had a chance to deal with this? I would love to hear back before I start tackling this job.

 

When you did it the first time with the plastic one did you try the technique of attaching wires to both sides of the thermostat spring and using that to remove the transfer pipe? I'd think that would work just as well with an aluminum transfer pipe.

 

This video shows the technique:

 

Yes, I did as mentioned in PelicanParts DIY. After a major struggle, it turned out to be my alternative option to use a little screwdriver and crack the plastic unit and just rip it out when I broke it.

The video is great, I will check it out for sure.

I am hoping to hear if anyone had a chance to deal with the aluminum unit yet.

 

UPDATE:
I tackled the job today, the aluminum socket came out like butter, nearly no extra strength to pull it out. Nothing like the plastic unit last time around. Do yourself a favor and get one, you will be happy if you go back the second time. Plus you will reuse it, just replacing the O-rings.



Came right out. Good day today:-)))


Three zip ties and a pry bar.

New thermostat in its new home. Hamburg Technic Aluminum socket for the WIN

 

IDK about them zipties. I had to whip out some steel cables, as even the "12 gauge" wire ripped. On the bright side, I think steel cable to proper cable clamps is a great choice.
I did have the original ~118k mi thermostat in there it seems, and it was not fun to remove.

 

Zero chance using the zip ties the first time when I had the plastic socket……it was not coming out, I was destroying the thermostat spring pulling it out. I had to break up the plastic socket to free it up.

With the aluminum socket, no extra effort needed, actually fun task to replace the thermostat this time around.

 

I don't see how aluminum vs plastic coupler makes any difference for installation/removal, as the o-rings are what gets stuck. You probably lubricated the o-rings on the initial replacement, as did I, to make installation easier, and that lube helped the coupler slide out the 2nd time. Factory probably installs them dry, as all parts are nice and shiny and slide in easily.

 

I suspect the plastic expanded due to the heat, aluminum did not, I could be wrong.