If anyone can give me advice, it is greatly appreciated.
2004 SCrew, FX4, 5.4

I had the dreaded exhaust manifold leak on the passenger side. After reading the horror stories of this repair and living in the rust belt I decided against fixing it myself. I took it to a local repair shop to have done.
Initially the mechanic could see that the front 2 studs were snapped off (before even trying to remove them).
After a full day of fighting the studs (engine loose & lifted up) everything is out but the front 2 studs. the top one has about 1/2" exposed, but it is frozen in place (penetrant on it overnight). The biggest problem is the bottom stud. it is broken off about 1/8" below the surface of the head. The guy doesnt have a small enough right angle drill to get between the frame & head to attempt to drill it out. I will gladly go buy a drill for him to do this, as it will likely save me money if it will work to drill out the stud.

Anyone have advice on getting the 2 studs out, particluarly the bottom one, or any one have an idea what right angle drill may fit in there?

 

In all honesty I wouldn't attempt to drill the stud with the engine in the truck due to the high risk of getting crooked and drilling into the head. Especially the front bottom stud. Aluminum is a lot softer than steel and he will have to get the bit centered plus keep it straight and that's hard enough to do with plenty of room to work. All the bit has to do is touch the aluminum and it will want to dig in.

 

I understand your point. However, we have a tool that uses the top hole/stud to fasten to the block, and has a sleeve that locates into the bottom hole. The sleeve is just big enough to allow the drill to pass though, so it keeps the bit centered & square (if i can find a drill that will fit).

Other than that, I think the cab has to be removed from the truck to pull the engine.

 

I extracted all 20 of my studs after cutting them off to remove my manifold, then had 5 more break off using an extractor. I drilled out two sunk in the head and three more exposed by taking an old stud and drilling through it then threading it in to the head and drilling through it to center. For the exposed one I took the same stud I drilled and thread it into a nut then threaded the nut onto the exposed stud.

Holding the stud I made as a centering guide in my hand


Same stud to be used on an exposed thread


Never moved the engine, used a RA drill and dremel.
Where I started


Where I ended


It can be done!
Threads on the project - it's an Excursion not a 150 but studs are studs.

Ford Truck Enthusiasts Forums - sammie0126's Album: Exhaust/Manifold
Ford Truck Enthusiasts Forums - sammie0126's Album: Banks Torque Tubes Monster Exhaust

 

Thats an excellent idea Sammie and may work on krys' truck but my concern is the amount of room there is to work on a F-150. Their frames are completely different than an Excursion and the coil spring perch blocks access to the studs. I'm just saying I would not try to drill the stud with the engine in the truck. I have tried using a MAC right angle drill before and there just was not enough room even with short bits.

 

Dremel with a Right Angle attachment and diamond burr bits - cuts like butter and you need just a couple inches of clearance.

Here is a picture of it (but with a cutting wheel on it)


They also have a flexible wand attachments that has a coiled flex between the shaft.

I have no idea the clearance on his truck, but a $200 tool might be worth a look before spending the dollars to have the engine or cab pulled. I have a lifted EX and it was a very tight working space so imagine its much worse in his truck. But again just a suggestion, might save him some bucks.

 

Thanks for the input Sammie. I will definately look into the dremel & bits. seems like something I could also pick up locally & try out pretty quickly, especially if it will work.
I looked up diamond burr bits, and they seem like something used for grinding, not boring into a shaft. Did you use them to drill holes in the studs, if not what did you use to bore into the studs in the block before you extracted them?

 

That dremel attachment may just work. It will help to remove the a/c compressor too for a little more room. You could also take the engine mounts out and lower and rotate the engine or maybe dropping the front diff or taking out the steering gear. Good luck with drilling.

 

Actually I used the diamond burr bits for two things...

The very first starting hole before switching to 1/8" colbat bits and the RA regular drill. Second, I also broke an easy out in one, and I used all diamond head burr bits to remove it. The are extremely hard and at 25k rpm they cut the studs easily. If you don't have clearance for a regular RA drill then I would start with a diamond burr bit to get the 1st hole, then switch to the dremel tungsten carbide boring bit. They are also labeled for grinding, sanding and routing I think, but trust me I used about 30 of them and they make quick work of those studs. If you can get a hole large enough to then extract with a square easy out you are good.

Only issue I see if that if you have to drill it all the way out (I did on 4 of mine) you aren't going to find a dremel bit big enough.

Whatever you do - don't break an easy out off in the stud. I learned that lesson the hard way, if you have exposed stud now and it won't budge, you have tried heat and all the tricks to break it free, drilling a tiny hole in it and then cranking on it with an easy out is going to cause you nothing but grief and more money. I had used every heat source, welders heated cherry red, and why I thought a 1/8" hole in the middle of it with an easy out stuck in it was going to change anything idk....well live an learn.

Easy out worked on one of mine, which was one that wasn't really seized but just broken off just below the surface, easy out worked here because all I needed was something to grab it.

Once I drilled the other 4 down to really nothing but threads left I used a square easy out to turn the collapsed threads out of the head.

 

Well, I didnt get to even try the suggestions above. The mechanic/shop would not try anything that involved drilling (??!!!).

Instead they tried to remove the broken stud by welding to it, for 4 hours- which did not work because they called and told me it is back to together, with the broken stud in the block, and to come pick it up. I am not happy with how they acted and treated me, but as of right now I want to get it home and look at it. I may attemt something myself, but if I don't I am taking it to another shop where I normally have work done (which I should have taken it there to begin with) who have more skilled technicians that can remove the stud.

 

Krys, how did this turn out? I was considering tackling mine as I found a popped stud a few weeks ago. I've got it on a lift now with the inner fender removed but with the coil/over and all its mounting I don't see how to even begin to get to the front 4 bolts.

 

You should be able to get to all the studs but the front bottom if you loosen the engine & lift it up. The bottom is tucked in too far to get to. My shop could not get the stud out with the engine in the truck, so they buttoned it back up with a stud in the block.
I took it to a very high end shop ($$) for a second opinion, and they could not do it either. There are no tools that could get in there. Second shop could have attempted to try to weld to the bottom stud, but the first shop couldn't do it so I didn't have faith that the second shop could get it out that way. Last thing I wanted was to drop more $ and still have the stud in the block.

Had to pull the engine to get the stud out. I would recommend biting the bullet and pulling the engine from the start. It is not cheap, but go ahead and have both manifolds replaced, and anything else that could be easily done with the engine out (mine needed spark plugs, cam phasors, steering shaft). It is expensive, but at least that way you get a lot for the money.

 

Is there no "permanent" solution to the broken stud problem? I had broken studs replaced on my 2010 F-150 with 5.4 engine two years ago. I have just sold it to a friend. The dealer only offered me $3000 trade-in on a new 2020 as soon as he heard the exhaust leak. The truck only had 124,000 km on it when I sold it. My friend happily paid me more and spent $1600 (Cdn) on it to replace the broken studs and two manifolds. From what I read, people end up drilling out stainless steel aftermarket studs too. What really bums me out is reading that the 3.5 litre engines are subject to stud breakage too. I have a 2020 3.5 coming from KC.

 

IMO the studs are undersized. Those rear studs not only hold the manifolds on, they're also taking the weight and strain of the front of the exhaust system.