Modification Blues

[JaiJai]

My story begins with purchasing the split dump/front pipe from the Batmbl group buy. Having seen the quality of the parts of had to invest in one of his high flow cats. Friday came and as promised the cat was in received via express post. Excellent had the replacements now to perform the surgery! Friday had a little rain but after reading all the DIY guides I had the confidence to install it all by myself (being a hands on guy). Friday night 2 hours in the cold miserable rain (no garage) only to discover the socket set I had was worthless having ruined both the 13mm and 1/2”. Ok Saturday comes and a trip to supercheap, invested in WD40 and a new set of tools to assist in the job. 2 hours, turbo shield off and one bolt removed 5 left. Didn’t wanna do it but called dad for advice and he said to get a spanner with some spray (dunno what its called but white with a red lid, CRO55 or something – threw the can away in anger after much swearing). Sunday morning a little hungover time to finish the job… attacked the remaining bolts and got another one off – this might work! Tried the next bolt ‘snap’ broke the bloody spanner. Went to supercheap got a new one and waited for the turbo to cool. Snap again! (lesson don’t buy $2 tools…)

Went to bunnings maybe some “quality” tools will help even got the guy to have a look – his answer – go to a mechanic its too tight to get a tool down there.

So the story ends with me being a little pissed that even as simple a job as removing a few bolts is a pain in the ass. Monday morning I’ll call up Ben and see if they can loosen the bolts for me, I still wanna try n install it myself but I have to say that I lost this war in the “I’m going to modify this car myself to the point where ill need to invest in an engine hoist!”

Just wanting to know, do you most jobs yourself or rely on the mechanic to do it for you?

[StinkyPoo]

I almost everything myself. Too many dodge mechanics in Canberra and people don't have a clue of what is good work and what is shit.

And another problem is some mechanics CAN do good work, but unless it's on their own car/gettin paid well/for a good mate, they are only good do just enough to get it done!

Best thing is, don't listen to what people say and make a decision by yourself. If you get a chance, inspect a similar/equivalent job they've done before you geet yours done.

If you do things yourself, invest in good tools. My spanner set of only 7 cost around $150!!!

[supadan]

yer was in supercheep yester day and seen the $2 spanners and sed to my bro they will berak with in seconds lol seems that they do

[Amaru]

Dont buy crappy tools and you wont have a problem Supercheap sell one set of decent tools, its the superworks gold or platinum or something, they retail for well over $200 though for a basic socket set. Deep impact sockets and stuidly large breaker bars do wonders as well for removing those stubborn bolts.

Id say keep at it, but make sure you have a decent floor/trolley jack that can lift the car up quite high (or chuck it on car stands)... makes the job so much easier with a large amount of space under the car for you to move around in.

[tridentt150v]

You just can't beat sidchrome/snap on/dowidat/vbw/etc etc

As the other guys say, buy good quality 'unconditional gaurantee' tools. For example sidchrome will replace any tool that fails and it doesn't even matter if you were swinging off a 11mm spanner with a 1 metre pipe extension and bent the spanner, they will replace it no questions asked. And most top brands are the same, they are expensive, but they stand by their product!!!

BTW you tackled a job that is probably one of the worst for nuts/bolts seizing on/stripping/breaking. Anything turbo or exhaust is sure to end in tears [i used the blue spanner to heat then undid the nuts while they were still too hot to hold].

Just seen the poll, do a lot myself, but I also visit a mechanic.......don't have a dyno etc.......so how to i vote?

[low200]

yeh turbo bolts and manifold studs are the WORST things to have a go at by yourself. without great tools and prior experience im not suprised, it took me and mate a full day to get the dump and front pipe changed on my car, and that was with several trips to bunnings for random stuff, luckily we have good tools

dont ever do a manifold unless your engine is already out. its just asking for trouble, i took mine to a shop and was glad i did after the hassles even they had with it.

[race_snooze]

yeah good tools really help, I have spanner / socket set from JBS John Blackwood and Son, very very good stuff. Also on bolts anywhere near heat, use a liquid called penitrine works wonders on rusted heat soaked bolts.

[leech_]

i was to scared of snapping the studs so i got powertone to do it. they did a good job on mine.

[CEF11E]

I have replaced 3 turbos all at home with low quality tools. all had a siezed bolt or 2.

Lots of crc leave the car for 1/2 hour then try. sometimes a quick hard tap on the side of the spanner to get it unstuck.

[tridentt150v]

I have replaced 3 turbos all at home with low quality tools. all had a siezed bolt or 2.

Lots of crc leave the car for 1/2 hour then try. sometimes a quick hard tap on the side of the spanner to get it unstuck.

You can get lucky.........................but each step brings you closer you know...............

[low200]

as somone else said, big breaker bars and deep sockets do wonders for cracking tough nuts.

[JaiJai]

So whatcha recon invest in a quality spanner and give it another go?

[Howie]

I gave it a crack on the stockie pipe yesterday just seeing if i could undo the bolts.

Thought i'd see how hard it was before i bought my split front pipe from batmbl also.

No dramas with my dad's tools. The 6 bolts on the turbo required heaps of wd-40, me to buy a 13mm socket (didn't want to chance it on my worn ones), and another big spanner as leverage and it cracked open without any problems at all. There is one bolt (bottom right, looking from the bonnet side) which i didn't have a chance to have a go at, guess i'll wait till it's up on engine stands before attempting that one, but shouldn't present a problem.

So good set of tools -- no furries. Plus you get satisfaction of having done -it-yourself.

[JaiJai]

sidchrome spanner in 13mm or 1/2" personally i think that the 1/2" is a better fit!

[StinkyPoo]

Should be metric dude, it's japanese. WD-40 it good, let it soak(if it can), and/or give it a tap with a hammer to see if it'll loosen up a bit. Which side of Canberra are ya on?? I might come and take a look if you want.

[JaiJai]

gave ben a call said that hed do it for a killer price so thats that! basically it needs some welding i believe and that im not keen on at all

thanks to all for contributing

[Terminal]

i usually get mechanics to do my work because

1) i work full time and can afford it.

2) it's a lot more convenient to get someone else to do, which is what you pay for.

3) i don't know evyerthing there is to know about cars and have had bad things happen before while doing home grown mods

4) only have 1 car and need it finished to get to work/training.

In a few weeks i'm getting my old skyline back so i can pull the stagea apart however, my one chance in the last 2 years to get underneath the wagon for a decent amount of time

[MANWHORE]

Removing the dump pipe bolts is easy.

Seriously, if you're buying shit cheap tools that break, you shouldn't be doing the job.Think about how much it would cost to have it done at the mechanics. Think about all the other work that you might do in the future.

My socket + spanners costed me over 1k, but i'm anal. you don't have to spend that mcuh. just a sidchrome or kingchrome set for 200$ will be alright.

I mean, if you're using $2 spanners that snap, what happens if you smash your hand into something and cut it?

Just spray it with wd40 - it's good enough. then use a spanner you can rely on and apply force.

Tehre's no room for sockets/breaker bar down the bottom. Spanner is plenty. Once you've done it, you'll realise how easy it was in retrospect.

But seriously, use tools you can trust.

[MKDR33]

i prefer to do the work myself as its educational, i can learn more about my car aswell as know that im doing a reliable job..

i took my r33 to a mechanic in fyshwick to get a cracked exhaust manifold off when i first bought my car.. he snapped 3 studs inside the head, which is fair enough as they were old and worn.. the thing that got to me the most, was that when he attempted to drill them out, he drilled through the head which resulted in me having oil leaks from the head.. had to call a thread specialist to fix the problem..

after this i started doing all the work myself, and have learned a great deal about my car.. cant trust another mechanic again..