Quickity Question on the Engine

[DavesNOThereMAN]

I just picked up a SHO for $400. It is rust free and in very good condition but the owner who had it before me had not done any maintenance.

If want to remove the heads to check the valves and see if I have any burnt ones. What is the best way to do this? Can I re-use the bolts? I am not 100% sure I will do this but I am curious to see the condition.


If I just want to take the intake manifold off to replace the spark plugs, do I need to drain the anti-freeze?

Will the intake gaskets need to be replaced or are they usually re-usable?

If I need to replace the timing belt, do I need to pull the Crank Sprocket off?

I found a set of wire for $44 and theres only 1 auto store in my area that has them in stock, Should I remove the whole intake to chage the plugs or is there a tool or something I can use to avoid that?


The car is a 93 SHO MTX 89k miles on her.

 

[llamaking122]

I just picked up a SHO for $400. It is rust free and in very good condition but the owner who had it before me had not done any maintenance.

If want to remove the heads to check the valves and see if I have any burnt ones. What is the best way to do this? Can I re-use the bolts? I am not 100% sure I will do this but I am curious to see the condition.


If I just want to take the intake manifold off to replace the spark plugs, do I need to drain the anti-freeze?

Will the intake gaskets need to be replaced or are they usually re-usable?

If I need to replace the timing belt, do I need to pull the Crank Sprocket off?

I found a set of wire for $44 and theres only 1 auto store in my area that has them in stock, Should I remove the whole intake to chage the plugs or is there a tool or something I can use to avoid that?


The car is a 93 SHO MTX 89k miles on her.

no to draining the antifreeze
intake gaskets can sometimes need replaced.
GET GOOD WIRES
take the whole intake off to replace the spark plugs etc.

 

[DavesNOThereMAN]

Thanks for the info. Whats a good way to clean the entire intake manifold? Its covered in greasy oily soot all over.

Also should I just leave the old spark plug washers in the wells? How do I remove them if I want to put new ones in? the old ones are still ok and shiney.

 

[sperold]

Start with the idea that it is Ok rather than the other way around. I doubt if any valves are burnt, and you are getting into some very expensive gaskets; and you can use the head bolts again.... but don't take a peek for curiosity's sake.
With only 89K, there is not a lot to worry about even if no maintenance has been done to this point.
Try to remember the parts you are taking off are often better built than the ones you are installing... so do it sparingly.
Poke around on this forum for 60K information: and all the questions you have asked have been answered on this forum.
Enjoy the car for awhile and look for a great shop to do some work for you. There are many on this forum and a road trip is much more enjoyable than tearing into disassembly only to find it is a bigger job than you thought. The masters on this thread do in an hour what will take you all day. And I am not kidding.

 

[hawkeye18]

You don't need to drain the antifreeze, but search "throttle body bypass" for great info on how you can never have to deal with coolant again.

The intake gaskets are nearly infinitely reusable. All they do is seal atmosphere. If the paint has flaked off of them, simply respray with black spray paint. Seriously.

go to http://www.shophoenixproject.com for great info on how to do the timing belt (known as the lower 60k) and check valves, etc. (known as the upper 60k).

Get good wires. They are a PITA to replace since you have to pull the intake, so you don't want to do it more than you have to. AC Delco makes a good set that is fairly cheap. For plugs, go with AGSP32PP or AGSP32FM. The PP is for double platinum and FM is for fine wire. Either will work. There is a hot-rod version of the AGSP32 that will work but has not been shown to give you any appreciable benefit for the price. Make sure you gap them to .044. Or is it .44? I can never remember. Whichever one makes sense.

And yes, everything on the front of the engine will have to come off for the timing belt job.

 

[jayro]

If there was no maintinance I would do a full 60K and change the trans fluid. There is lots of info on this that you can find by a forum search. There are even how to videos. To answer your questions directly:
1. The head bolts can be reused, but unless you think you have a bad valve (or just want to) I would not pull the heads until you see how the car runs after the 60K is done.
2.You do not have to drain the antifreeze to take off the intake. When putting it back on make sure the couplers are loose or else it wont go back on. The intake to head gaskets can be reused if they are in good shape. If you diassemble the intake to clean it you will need a new gasket set.
3. To change the timing belt you will have to remove the crank pully, but not the timing sprocket. If you do a full 60K you will pull the sprocket as well to replace the CPS and front main seal.
4. People have changed the plugs and put on new wires without taking off the intake using extentions and universals, but I would recomend pulling the intake.

It sounds like you scored a pretty good find. Check to see if there is oil in the plug wells. If so dont bother changing the plugs and wires until you replace the valve cover gaskets as it will ruin your wires. Welcome to the forum

Jeremy

I just picked up a SHO for $400. It is rust free and in very good condition but the owner who had it before me had not done any maintenance.

If want to remove the heads to check the valves and see if I have any burnt ones. What is the best way to do this? Can I re-use the bolts? I am not 100% sure I will do this but I am curious to see the condition.


If I just want to take the intake manifold off to replace the spark plugs, do I need to drain the anti-freeze?

Will the intake gaskets need to be replaced or are they usually re-usable?

If I need to replace the timing belt, do I need to pull the Crank Sprocket off?

I found a set of wire for $44 and theres only 1 auto store in my area that has them in stock, Should I remove the whole intake to chage the plugs or is there a tool or something I can use to avoid that?


The car is a 93 SHO MTX 89k miles on her.

 

[DavesNOThereMAN]

I have not taken the spark plugs out, I just unplugged the wires and there is no oil in the wells around the spark plugs. What is a good way to thoroughly clean the intake?

 

[hawkeye18]

I have not taken the spark plugs out, I just unplugged the wires and there is no oil in the wells around the spark plugs. What is a good way to thoroughly clean the intake?

Oven cleaner. Just be careful with it; it'll strip the paint off the exterior if you're not careful.

Carb cleaner is a slower, but more paint friendly way to clean the insides out.

That gunk is normal. It sucks, but it's normal. It's just a by-product of the way the PCV system on the engine is engineered.