Cylinder Head Bolt Removal, In Car

[WadeK]

Hi everyone,

 

New to the forum and I think I have a pretty good question. I'm working on replacing the headgaskets on the wife's 2001 Outback, along with the water pump, timing belt, and tensioner and idlers.

 

I had been led to understand that this can be done with the engine in the car but its tight. Tight like a (insert obscene reference), I'd say. Who has some good advice on how to get the lower rear bolt out far enough to move the head out of there? This car just doesn't seem to have enough distance between the face of the block and the body to get the bolt clear of the block. It's completely unthreaded, but the tip is still in the hole.

 

Thanks, Wade

[idosubaru]

if everything is removed have you tried actually pulling the head off yet? maybe it'll come off once the head starts to wiggle free and gets an angle to it?

 

or try putting a jack (with whatever 2x4 or whatever) under that side of the engine and jacking it up some. the engine will have some "give" to it though you don't want to go bonkers as it'll strain bushings. but you should have some amount of room for it to move/rock back and forth, maybe that will help?

[Fairtax4me]

Unbolt the motor mounts and lift the engine. Use a floor jack with a 2x4 under the oil pan.

[WadeK]

if everything is removed have you tried actually pulling the head off yet? maybe it'll come off once the head starts to wiggle free and gets an angle to it?

 

or try putting a jack (with whatever 2x4 or whatever) under that side of the engine and jacking it up some. the engine will have some "give" to it though you don't want to go bonkers as it'll strain bushings. but you should have some amount of room for it to move/rock back and forth, maybe that will help?

 

The head is off - it's just sort of dangling on the lower bolt that doesn't have enough room to come out of the block and the one above it that doesn't have enough room to come out of the block and clear the bodywork. If I could get the lower rear bolt out of the block that last 1/8" or so it would be clear sailing.

 

From what I've read on various forums and whatnot on the internet and in the Subaru factory manual I downloaded, there has been no mention of having to remove or jack up the engine to do this. It just about acts like if it were tilted just the right direction, it could be convinced out of there, but what way to tilt it?? I'll wait and see if anyone else has any other ideas, but if loosening mounts (or unbolting altogether) and jacking up is what i gotta do, that's what I gotta do. Brilliant design ... absolutely brilliant.

 

Thanks, Wade

[J A Blazer]

I saw this done at my dealer a while back, on a 2nd gen 4 cyl OBW. They loosened or removed at least one engine mount and lifted that side of the engine slightly with either a jack or a hoist.

[subaru360]

Unbolt the motor mounts and lift the engine. Use a floor jack with a 2x4 under the oil pan.

 

Do not do this. You will smash the pan up into the oil pump pickup. Then it starves the engine of oil and wipes out the bearings. I've seen it 2 times already. Lift the engine under the trans case with a block of wood.

[Fairtax4me]

Is the oil pan really that flimsy on these? I've done that dozens of times on other cars, including my old Cadillac that had the Northstar, never had a problem.

[ericem]

not really that flimsy but really why risk it? There are better places to jack it up by.

[idosubaru]

right - it *can* work but *can* also deform the pan. not a black or white thing, but considering all the other options it's the least best option to ever jack an engine up with the pan.

[WadeK]

Thought I'd update for anyone else searching info on the topic. The heads are off and getting skimmed. Only .001" off max tolerance (off .003" total from flat), so things could've been a lot worse for the heads and gaskets.

 

I did not need to lift the block at all. I loosened the nuts holding the mounts to the crossmember and that apparently let off enough tension (or something??) to let me easily get the heads out. Not enough room between the block face and the logitudinal members to get the bolts loosened and clear of the block face (especially the lower rear bolts) with the mounts tight, but with the mounts loosened there was enough room for all bolts to clear the block and allow the head to be lifted out. So try that first before just going ahead and lifting the engine. By the way, if the need arose I was never going to lift the engine by the oil pan. Oil pans are for holding oil.

 

I found no need to dismantle the intake or FI system beyond unbolting the four bolts connecting the intakes from the heads. With the exhaust unbolted and dropped away, there's plenty of room to lower the heads away, then forward in the engine bay, then up and out. Don't worry about lining up the intake manifold gaskets; the head has locating roll pins for it so you can put them on the head and they won't go anywhere as you fit up the head to the block.

 

Hope these two hints help others.