Has anyone else had broken exhaust manifold studs on their V-10 ??
How tough is it to repair yourself ???
What did it cost to have Ford do it ??

 

About everyone here has had the problem at one point or another. Ford will charge $700+ to repair.

I bought Ebay headers for $130, M8x1.25x35 Stainless bolts and fixed mine for good myself. I had to purchase a dewalt 90* drill (I say dewalt because the head is the smallest in comparison to the others at lowes) some carbide drills and easy outs. I had seven busted studs.

 

I did ebay headers at the same time too...... thre busted studs, didnt have to drill any

 

Having a Ford dealer do it is about the most expensive way to have it fixed.

Nobody is buying cars or trucks. It costs money (lots of it) to keep the average dealership open. Where do you think they have to get that money when vehicle sales are down?

There are a LOT of vehicles out there with similar issues (and definitely NOT just Fords!) so almost all independent shops have plenty of experience extracting and replacing them. And these engines are actually easier to perform the repair on than most.

 

Typical problem with the V10's. Dealership just quoted me $250 just to do one side. And thats if they dont run into any problems (you know they will just for the heck of it to make more $$$) I have a couple on mine, I might be looking into the headers. I just wonder how long it will take Ford and Chevy to come out with headers since Toyota is putting them on now. I just wonder why headers have not come factory for a while now. Cast manifolds are so inefficient compared to headers.

 

Part of the problem with the cast iron manifolds and the studs breaking is that the stud is too short. The iron expands under heat, and the stud can't stretch that far, so after many cycles, it finally breaks. If a longer stud was used, and a placed under the nut, it would help the situation. I am sure it has to do with cost. That is exactly the same reason they do not use headers, cost.
I am an engineer, and work for a engine manufacturer in the mid west. COST, not performance is the first consideration when looking at a particular design.

 

I have several broken studs on my 460 V8. Have drilled the studs for easy outs but I can't seem to get them loose. Seems like the torque required will break the easy out. Any suggestions?

 

Heat the head a little with a torch. Just be careful, as to much heat can either melt the head, cause damage or cause the bolt to blow out.

 

On my engine the exhaust retainers are studs with nuts. The nut has broken of with a portion of the stud flush with the exhaust manifold. Will heating the remaining portion of the stud/manifold help as won't this cause the stud to expand? Will a butane torch provide enough heat? Thanks for your help

 

In this case, heat is your only friend. Do not worry about either issue mentioned by Chaosracing. You would have to apply a tremendous amount of heat to damage the head, and there is absolutely no chance of causing the bolt to blow out. Even if the joint was air tight, which it is not, there simply isn't enough trapped air to build that kind of energy.
If you have a oxy acelylene torch and a welder you have some options.
If you have already drilled the broken bolt for an easy out, and are certain that you have not drilled into the head, you can heat the area with the torch, concentrating the heat on the broken bolt. The expansion of the bolt (and surrounding area) will break up the corrosion that is binding the two together. If the easy out fails, you are not done yet. If you have a wire feed welder, you can take a nut, maybe one size bigger than the bolt and weld the inside of the nut to the end of the broken bolt. The weld will fuse to the bolt, but will not stick to the cast iron. The heat, and the current passing through the corrosion tend to loosen things up a bit. You can then use a wrench on the welded nut to remove the bolt. This may take a couple tries but it is a pretty good process once you get the hang of it.
Your last ditch effort, if all else fails is to just torch the bolt out. The nice thing about steel, is that it burns in the presence of oxygen, and cast iron doesn't. You need to be pretty good with a torch, but it is possible to burn a stud out of a blind hole. Use your cutting torch and heat the broken stud to cherry red, just like you are cutting any other steel with your torch. When it is hot enough to cut, hit the oxygen and burn the entire stud out. Do not stop in the middle of the process or you will leave a portion of the broken bolt in the hole, and it now becomes almost impossible to remove. Use a pick or similar device to remove the slag from the hole prior to running a tap in to clean up the threads. Use plenty of oil when tapping, and do not force the tap or it will break off when you hit the left over slag. If you do it right, you will even leave the threads un damaged in the head. This last method does take some talent with a torch, but believe me, working on farm equipment, I have removed many many broken bolts over the years.

 

With regards to the extractors themselves, I have had the best luck with name brand square style (tap in) extractors.

Import spirals are the worst. They are pretty much guaranteed to fail.

And of course, on critical or expected difficult extractions, postponing the extraction for a couple days to prepare the stud is always a good idea. Patience can really make the job easier.
I like to combine PB Blast soaking with hammer taps and heat/cool cycles for a couple days to break up the corrosion in the threads.
Soak with PB. Let sit a couple hours. Use torch to get everything good and hot. Give the stud a couple good sharp raps with hammer and drift punch. Soak again.
Repeat several times.
THEN try to extract the stud.

 

Please provide a manufacturer name and part number for a name brand square style (tap in) extractors

Thanks

 

I agree with the heat / cool / soak cycles. If you don't have an Oxy acetylene torch, heating and cooling with a propane torch several times is better than nothing. Be patient.

 

I use an old Irwin set of extractors.... Had it for many years.
I have no idea is Irwin are still making the same tool or private labeling some chinese pot metal junk now. I am hoping Irwin is still making their own quality stuff and not getting sucked into the make it cheaper realm...

I recommend going to a tool store and ask them. A real tool store - the little places where all the local mechanics shop. NOT Home Depot or Sears. Check your phone book. Of course, Craftsman does sometimes private label some good stuff and the Depot does offer some quality tools... I just don't know what they have when it comes to extractors.

Yes, they will cost at least 10X what the ones at Harbor Freight cost. But trust me, they're easily worth 100X more. Quality steel and proper heat treatment costs a lot of money and takes a lot of time.

 

Yeah, they are still in business. They are sold at Lowe's.