Input please.....welding Saturday

new 4/6/04

Group,

Thanks to all those who have contributed to website regarding welding cams. Its appears to be a tremendous resource.
I have Saturday set aside to weld the cams on my '97 SHO (66k) and I need feedback on my plan.....

Friday: Disassemble intake and remove valve covers. 4 hrs.
1) I have a digital camera ready to document where everything goes for reassembly on Sat afternoon.
2) I am armed with printouts from the website on how to remove everything down to the valve covers.
3) Carb cleaner for surge tanks and runners.
4) IMRC cleaning. I suppose I'll use a brake clean.
5) Soak injectors. CLEANING SOLUTION RECOMMENDATION?
6) Inspect wiring harness for damage. Thermal protect.
7) Install new plugs. ANY REASON NOT TO DO THIS AT THIS POINT?
8) Degrease sprockets and shaft for welds. BRAKE CLEAN?
9) Change power steering fluid. CAN THIS BE DONE AT THIS POINT?

Saturday am: Weld. 3 hrs.
1) Welder is a friend from work. Welds for a living. Certified.
2) Wire is stainless 308 as recommended by John Hamilton.
3) Welder is a MIG.
4) Protect engine from spatter and debris with fiber welding blanket.
5) Practice parts will be old sockets and wrenches.
6) Plan to turn motor using Kirk's crank-shaft technique.

Saturday pm: Reassembly 4 hrs.
1) Clean up. Vacuum off the top of the heads w/wet vac. OVERKILL?
2) Drain crank case oil. Flush with 2 more quarts of clean oil poured over the heads.
3) New valve cover gaskets, injector o-rings, lower and upper intake gaskets and plenum gaskets. OVERKILL?

Thanks for your input.

Brent R.
'97 T.R.

Berryman’s B-12 Chemtool. I believe Kirk buys it by the case!

Paul L Fisher

> 1) I have a digital camera ready to document where everything goes
> for reassembly on Sat afternoon.

You can bag and tag bolts as they come out and that might help you. If nothing else, before reassembly spread out all of your bolts and group them by size, length, etc. Then through a process of elimination you can figure out what bolts go where. There are a few intake runner bolts and a few valve cover bolts with studs, so you might want to make a note of which ones have studs before you remove them.

The order of reassembly is somewhat important. The ventilation hoses that connect to the valve covers have to go back a certain way. Also if you take the IMRC cable loose from the secondaries, reconnect it before you install the intake runners so you still have some access.

> 7) Install new plugs. ANY REASON NOT TO DO THIS AT THIS POINT?

Definitely change the plugs. I think the 100,000 mile change interval is too long. If you have over 50,000 miles on the engine it is worthwhile to change the plugs. Separate the coils when you disassemble and when you reassemble put the front coils in the back and back coils in the front.

> 4) Protect engine from spatter and debris with fiber welding blanket.

This won't work as well as it sounds. It is easier to use damp rags, and it helps if you have a few old rags that you can tear into 2" to 3" strips. There just isn't much room in there to be stuffing rags and you can get smaller rags to conform better than big pieces of stiff rags.

You need a little bit of RTV before you put the valve covers back on. I don't think you mentioned that.

Definitely change the plugs. I think the 100,000 mile change interval
> is too long. If you have over 50,000 miles on the engine it is
> worthwhile to change the plugs. Separate the coils when you disassemble
> and when you reassemble put the front coils in the back and back coils
> in the front.

At 50k, mine were "well used" - yep, change 'em.

>
> You need a little bit of RTV before you put the valve covers back on. I
> don't think you mentioned that.
>

Operative words are "a little bit" - doesn't take much.

yep I had 45000kms on mine from we they were put it just before i bought to when i swapped them out and they were a mess. No idea how this car is supposed to go 100000kms on them which is only 62000 miles.. reminds me i have to check my records to see when they are due to be changed again... I did the set in there now about 125K. Thinking also the acting up coils added to the condition due to to in proper light off. Platinum tip plugs as supposed to be self cleaning at operating temperature but mine were just covered in crap and one had a gap plugged with carbon when swapped out.

Did ony say check the wire harness and insulate properly?? might also be a good idea to clean any ground strap contact points, one near the PCM and the one to the rear brackets

100,000 km? They are supposed to go 100,000 miles, which is 160,000 km. I agree. On my ’93, I changed them every 50,000-60,000 miles.

Paul L Fisher

> 100,000 km? They are supposed to go 100,000 miles, which is 160,000
> km. I agree. On my '93, I changed them every 50,000-60,000 miles.

I changed mine a few weeks ago at 83k miles and they looked like they were still working. They didn't look great but looked a little better than some I have pulled with 60k miles. After changing plugs and cleaning the secondaries, I could detect NO difference in the way the car ran. :-(

I had a stalling issue with my SHO I would throttle down for a sharp corner and the engine would die.

For me, new plugs at 68k with cam weld solved the problem.

Tim

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