91 EGT valve cover bolt snapped - Ford Forums - Mustang Forum, Ford Trucks, Ford Focus and Ford Cars

KingKurt · 10-05-2004, 21:24

My 91 EGT was missing rather badly and I couldn't quite figure out why. I tried a lot of things, and swapping plugs helped a lot. I found that the valve cover gasket was leaking, so I replaced that, but didn't have a torque wrench to get it locked down precisely. I wanted to throw on new plug wires, so I went to the local auto parts store & bought some. While I was there I asked if I could loan a wrench. They asked what size and what to set the torque at. I said 60-70 inch and a 10mm socket. He got it all set up and handed it to me. I started tightening with the center bolt and I gave a little twist, and POP the bolt snapped. He had it set to 70 POUNDS! Now, it's not on an edge or anything, and there are 3 center bolts. This one is dead center. I didnt pull the valve cover off to know if the break is flush with the head or not, so Im not sure if I'll be able to back it out with a lock wrench or not. If not, what can I do to get it out without paying a lot for service? Also, if I don't replace this bolt, do you think it will lead to oil leaking or some kind of serious problems? The engine is purring like a kitten now, and I think the problem was more the wires or PCV valve than the oil leaking onto one of the plugs like it was, but I'm not sure how bad of, if any at all, a leak this will cause.

EDXR8 · 10-05-2004, 22:37

Hopefully if it didn't break flush with the head you will be able to get it out with some pliers or multigrips. Otherwise you could try drilling it out, you can get these drill bits which are designed to pull out broken bolts, I did that once and it came out fairly easily. You could also just use some silicon gasket maker on the rocker cover gasket to help stop any leaks.

ebxr8240 · 10-05-2004, 23:39

70 Lp is for head bolts etc..More like 10 Lp on them..If doesn't leak leave it..Could cut across top of broken bolt with hack saw big enough to unscrew with screw driver???
But whole cover will have to come off...

KingKurt · 10-06-2004, 01:11

Yeah, I know 70lbs was too much... I told them 70inch, and he said ok... but when I questioned him later, he didn't know how to convert it or even how to set it on the wrench. I guess he was doing me a favor, but come on.... I was tquite angry to say the least. If I recall correctly, the bots had a good inch of threads, and it snapped about 1/4 inch into the threads, so hopefully some is still poking out past the head. Should I leave the broken bolt in the hole or something else to cover the hole so dirt, air or moisture don't get sucked down into the engine?

EDXR8 · 10-06-2004, 01:17

Quote:

Originally Posted by KingKurt

Should I leave the broken bolt in the hole or something else to cover the hole so dirt, air or moisture don't get sucked down into the engine?

Nothing is going to get sucked into the engine because the rocker covers have positive pressure not vacuum, and there is still a gasket around the bolt hole anyway. At worst it is only going to leak oil, so just keep an eye on it.