1995 Lumina 3.1L valve adjustment procedure?

Well, I'm going to spend my Thanksgiving holiday replacing the lower intake manifold gaskets on my 1995 Lumina. It's a 3.1L, vin M, w/Ball & Pivot rocker arms. I've done a lot of research and got the Fel-Pro MS98004T gasket set.

The thing is, I'm getting conflicting advice on how to adjust the valves during re-assembly.

One of my (older) Haynes books says they need to be adjusted like older valves... find TDC, determine 0-lash point, then 3/4 turn more. Turn crank one turn and repeat for other half. (blah, blah, blah, you know the routine.)

But yet my other (slightly newer) Haynes book says to just torque them to 18 Ft-lbs. !?!?

Before I start this I'd like to know which procedure is correct. Does anyone have hands-on experience with this particular engine? I've pretty much got the rest down pat, but I just can't get a definitive answer to the above question.

Thanks!

Just torque. The lifters will take up any slack in the valvetrain, to an extent. None of that adjustment babble like solid lifters. If you're not taking the heads off, then just do the usual checks for wear and tear in the rocker arms and pull a lifter or two and check it. Just be sure every nut and bolt goes back where it came from.

Are you replacing the gasket due to a confirmed leak, or just as a precaution? If it is a leak into the lifter valley, and thusly contaminating oil, you'll want to make sure you get rid of all the coolant from the oil galleys and such.

18ft/lbs is close enough, do not mix up the pushrods, different lengths here. You should be getting the updated intake bolts also with the revised torquing procedure.

18 ft/lb MAXIMUM! And you might want to clean and dry the threads, then apply a couple drops of LocTite 242 (service removable) thread locker upon assembly. The bolt bosses in the heads will strip very easily, and inadequate torque can allow the bolts to back out, causing untold carnage:

http://72.19.213.157/files/3,4L1-3-5ValveTrainA.jpg

Saving that pic for the right occasions, cool.

You remember that "P300 - Random Misfire" error code, eh? ;)

Thanks guys! - Ok, I just found this on AutoZone's site: Install the pushrods in their original location, making sure they seat in the lifter sockets. Install the rocker arms and ball, then tighten the nuts to 14-20 ft. lbs. (19-27 Nm).

I'll be starting this tomorrow (Friday), and since I got till Sunday night to get it finished, I'll be taking my time. (And my old back ain't what it used to be!) And yes, I'm doing this due to a confirmed leak. Several actually. The three corners of the engine that I can see all are damp with coolant, right where the intake manifold seats against the heads.

I've known about the gasket issue with these engines for a few years now, so I've been checking this one about once a week. I'm the original owner, and over the years I don't normally have to top off the coolant reservoir more then once a year. But in the last month I needed to fill it twice. Still didn't see anything unusual under the oil cap though. And no puddles under the car.

That is until the other day, when I noticed some of the tell-tall mayonnaise goo on the oil cap and on the under side of the valve cover. (Oil on rockers and head still looks pretty good.) There’s no "visible" coolant in the oil yet, (though I know it's there). The oil on the dip stick still looks great. The engine has NEVER over heated so I'm going to leave the heads on. And the car still runs fine with no unusual noises. Oh, and there's no oil in the coolant. So I'm fairly confident I caught it in time.

I'm planing to reuse the intake bolts, if I can. And of course use the revised torquing procedure. I will clean the threads using the wire wheel on the bench grinder and reapply blue (medium) thread-lock. I'll also chase the threads in the holes if I can find my Tap&Die set. And I might as well change the water pump too, since it's the original pump with 142000 miles on it. ;)

OH, a couple more questions... Do I really need to use a crows foot on some of the intake bolts? Or can I get away with a flexible extension and socket? I guess if I need to use a crows foot I'll need to readjust the torque wrench setting on those. (Depending on the amount of offset on the crows foot... man I hate math!)

Wow Blue Bowtie, that's some carnage! But those are Roller rocker arms, I have the older Ball & Pivot rocker arms. I know there’s a big difference in the torque spec between mine and yours.

That wasn't mine, but, yes, they are different in that respect, but the result of incorrect torque could be the same. I probably would have stopped driving it after the first one came off and killed one cylinder, instead of waiting until five rockers had pulled out.

Instead of LocTite medium on the intake bolts threading into the water jackets, you might consider using a true thread sealant:

http://72.19.213.157/files/PSTSealants.jpg

As for the blinded bolts through the intake, even if using a universal joint or flexible extension, there can be torque multiplication (and falloff) in the drive arrangement. However, a truly flexible extension (wirewound cable type) is going to act more like a constant velocity joint, and therefore create less torque multiplication and falloff - It should be close enough.

Well, I was just about to put it all together when I noticed that the coolant tube's quick disconnect internal parts had disintegrated. I'm referring to the the plastic parts that fit into the nipple behind the o-ring. I'm sure this thing's going to leak without those plastic parts. :p Does anyone know what I should be asking for at a parts counter? And can anyone tell me where I can find these on a Sunday? (OK, about now I'd settle any day of the week!) The plastic parts that stayed on the tube look OK, but my guess is everything will be included in the (whatever it's called) kit. Called AutoZone and the guy had no idea what I was talking about. LOL

http://i223.photobucket.com/albums/dd5/kenrap/quickdis.jpg

As for the rest of the job, it looks like I really did catch this in time. VERY little signs of contamination. Except for a little mayonnaise goo under the valve cover, but mostly the front one, it looks very good inside. Just a little pitting of the aluminum intake, but nothing some J-B Weld won’t take care of.

Any (quick) help would be GREATLY appreciated!!!

Try a " real " parts store this time, Napa, Carquest, Dorman makes these fittings.

Well unfortunately I'm not lucky enough to live anywhere near one of those. But if I knew what to ask for I still may be able to find it locally. - Does this thing even have a name?

heater hose/water hose quick connect?? may just wana take it with you and goto autozone, they seem to be able to figure it out if they can see it...rofl. best of luck.

heater hose/water hose quick connect?? may just wana take it with you and goto autozone, they seem to be able to figure it out if they can see it...rofl. best of luck.

I remember seeing those at the parts store (All Pro) that I worked at...maybe in the "HELP" accessories section...?

Whoops...it was probably a Dorman part...

http://www.dormanproducts.com/catalog/OESolutions2006/327-342QuickDisconnect.pdf

Should find it here...

The part is called a "coolant pipe nipple" for intake manifold.

The Dorman part number is 800-401 for that quick-connect nipple. I know Advance Auto Parts carries them, Auto-Zone may also (although they still may not be able to find it even if you give them the part number).

Hey all, just to update... I finished putting her back together two days ago. I turned the key and she started right up! Like all of this had never happened. And no leaks! During reassembly I changed the water pump, plugs & wires, thermostat, and camshaft position sensor (looked pretty bad with bare wires showing right where they go into the sensor). Of course I changed the antifreeze and oil/filter too. Put a 1/2 can of Seafoam in with the oil to give her a good cleaning, then in about 200 miles I'll do another oil & filter change. Oh, and I changed that leaky o-ring on the oil pump drive, and added the Fel-Pro gasket as recommended elsewhere in this forum.

I'd like to thank everyone for helping me locate that coolant pipe nipple I needed, and for confirming the proper torque specs. (I actually got the nipple at the very same AutoZone that told me they don't stock it, and can't get it!) LOL

Thanks again all! - Cheers!

I'm in the middle of the same job again (different car this time) and I've run into something my old Lumina didn't have a problem with. There is pitting on the manifold and it is pretty deep. The heads have it too but it is less severe. You mentioned JB weld but I don't have any. Would blue RTV fill the pitting and seal the mating surfaces or should I pick up the JB next time I'm out?

Personally I would not use RTV. Especially if you are using the new metal and silicone Fel-Pro gasket set as I did.

My pitting wasn't that bad (the worst part is no deeper than the head of a pin), but here's how I did it...

Go to your local autoparts place and pick up some fresh JB Weld. (I opted for the standard gray version, not the 4 min quick dry black stuff... and don't ask me why.) And some 400 grit wet/dry sandpaper. (About 6-8 sheets.) Scrape as much of the gasket material off as you can using a good quality gasket scraper. Dab some gasket remover on to the surface, and use straight pins to dig out the remaining gasket material (or whatever) that's stuck in the pits. Dab some more gasket remover on and use a small (clean) brass brush to get the rest of the junk out. (You may be surprised just how deep the pits really are.) Once you're sure no gasket material is left in the pits, prep the area with acetone or alcohol using a clean toothbrush, then wipe dry.

Mix up some JB Weld on a paper plate and use the corner of a razor blade to fill in just the pits. (You need to push it into every nook and cranny.) Then take the same razor blade and smooth out a thin coating over the entire pitted area. Try not to make the whole thing any thicker than 2 or 3 sheets of paper, you don't want to kill yourself sanding it off. I had very little pitting on the heads, so I just used a VERY thin skim coat on those areas. That also reduced the amount of epoxy dust that I needed to keep out of the engine.

Now here's the hard part, let it cure! - I let mine cure for about 48 hours. When you pick up the paper plate and bend the left over epoxy, it should snap like hard candy. When it does, the manifold's ready to sand.

I then wraped the 400 grit sandpaper around a 3" by 3" slab of perfectly flat milled steel. Some people like to use plate glass. Sand the area using only the 400 grit sandpaper. It's not as bad as it sounds, I think all four water ports on the manifold took me less than an hour. When the sandpaper clogs, just use a fresh area.

If you left the injectors in the manifold, you may want to cover those open ports with tape to keep the dust out. And use the sandpaper dry, not wet. When the epoxy looks like it's becoming invisible (you can see the pit marks through it) your pretty much done. I took mine down to the point where the only epoxy on the manifold was between the milling marks. (And in the pits of course.) You should end up with a continuous, hard, smooth-as-glass finish. You must not be able to feel where the JB Weld stops, and the aluminium begins.

That's about it. But note... everybody I know does it a little differently, but this is what worked for me. :)