We just got a used car (2001 f150 5.4L)in at the dealership and it has an exhaust leak in the rear of the manifold because the last two studs/nuts are broken on the passenger side. BTW it’s a Hyundai dealership. I’m I gonna get this job because i usually do all the used cars and i just wanted to get some ideas before I begin. I did full length headers on my mustang but there was no rust at all. Now this truck has a lot of rust and it looks like all the nuts are rusted and frozen on. I have no idea why the two rear nuts just snapped like that it doesn’t look like any of the other nuts have been touched. They are all just covered in rust. Im definitely going to soak them for a while in penetrating oil.

My service manager is hoping when the manifold comes off there will enough stud sticking out to try and extract it. He mentioned using the torch but i don’t think that’s a good idea since these are aluminum heads. Im going to have the parts guy order 8 studs and 8 nuts including the gasket and manifold just in case. Anyone ever do this with two studs stuck in the head while keeping the head in the car? Of course it has to be the two closest to the firewall. Thanks for any advice

 

Ive never actually seen it done... The shop i took mine too said they used an extractor, i had 3 broken studs i think. I wouldnt even say mine snapped off, he said as soon as he put the wrench on them they fell off. Its a common problem on the f150's. With a fresh gasket it shouldnt give you anymore problems unless its been leaking for a long time and the manifold is warped and doesnt seat right. Good luck

I paid $300 at a shop and that was expensive, my dad paid $220, might be worth the no hastle, i hear its no fun

 

I bought my manifolds and gaskets online, bought the studs from Ford and manifold to cat bolts from napa. so $230 in parts and $225 labor so $455 total. Not bad. I helped my mechanic do it and it wasn't fun. What seemed to cause studs to break off is the corrosion in the aluminum heads, called "galvonic corrosion". Looks like powerder sugar falling when the studs break loose. Anyways, used alot of low heat around the stud and each one came right out. Had to vise grip a few of them. Other than that, if you have a car life, its no big deal. Nice to have a stud extractor that goes on the end of a socket. Mechanic also had about a 3 foot extension with a u joint for the ratchet, that seemed to really help.

 

I’m just going to have the parts dept all the parts i need and hope for the best. I have everything I should need at work but I have to see if I could find any of those extractors. That’s the only part I’m concerned about. Between the lift and air tools it shouldn’t be too bad. Ill probably do it Wed or Thurs whenever we get the parts. Ill let u guys know it goes.

 

i see it all the time. mostly rear studs on the passenger side from the engine rocking under load. sometimes driver side but not near as often. Most of the time there is about 1/4 of an inch sticking out so u can get it out with vise grips or if its really in there weld a nut on.

 

Well this truck had so much rust on the frame and underbody we think it was either in a flood or sat for a long time. Well I was able to get all the studs on top off but the bottom gave me so much trouble. With a bunch of extensions, joints, sockets, extractors, and ratchets the bottom right were still impossible. We ended up having to used a rotary saw and cut the manifold in half to remove the left side of the manifold and then cut other pieces in order to position the sockets to where we could hammer a socket on. With all the rust the nuts weren’t strong enough and didn’t have the proper fitment for a regular socket. Even with the extractor i couldn’t break a couple of them loose. So now in the morning i need to get the bottom right stud out which still has part of the manifold connected to it.

Some of the guys at work said this is normal for a ford but i told them there is no way. They know im a Ford guy so they just try to get under my skin. Does anyone else have a rust problem im going to make sure to remove all the salt every time it snows just to make sure i never have this problem.

Adam06FX4 Do you lift the motor at all to get to the bottom studs? Since the frame is right there there isnt enough room to smack these sockets / extractors on with a hammer.
Sorry for the long post...

 

If there's enough stud sticking out from the head, the only way to go is weld a nut onto the stud and spin it out. I've done both sides with the engine in the truck, no need for lifting the engine or any of that crazy business.

 

^^ditto. remove splash guard and access through the wheel well is your best bet.