Broken Thermo Bolt

scruffboy · 07-02-2006, 12:21 PM

I have a broken bolt topside of my thermostat housing. The Autostore told me to drill a hole and insert an ez out. Problem is, no way to get a drill straight into broken bolt. How difficult is it to take off fan shroud? That should give me enough room, but shroud looks like it goes all the way around. Any other ideas. Would a mechanic shop have a lot more experience with this and be done with it in no time? Any help here would be much appreciated.

Scruff

suprra_girl · 07-02-2006, 12:28 PM

fan shroud ain't too bad
just undo the a/c fan off it, two bolts top, one bolt bottom
then undo bolts holding on fan shroud (only at top from memory) the lift it out
altho it may be difficult with clutch fan still there
may need to undo the fan as well
been a while since i had a fan shroud lol

IHateHacks · 07-02-2006, 02:02 PM

My top thermo housing bolt hole threads were stripped out. I had to use an M6 helicoil and used the stock bolt. Took me 45 minutes. Its harder to drill a new hole and helicoil it than it is to helicoil an exsisting hole. You have to get the entire drill dead center and flush with the thing you are working on because if you are off just a hair, the helicoil will go in crooked and the part will not go on properly.

I hope it works out for you, and good luck.

Edit: The fan/clutch assembly has to come out with the fan shroud, theres no way around it.

mrnickleye · 07-02-2006, 08:38 PM

Matco, Snapon, Mac all sell a 'left-hand' drill set that comes with ez outs. Perhaps a good auto parts store does too. Drilling with a left hand bit can sometimes pull the broken bolt right out.

Its a must for anyone thats gonna do their own repairs.

dcrusupra · 07-03-2006, 04:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by IHateHacks

Edit: The fan/clutch assembly has to come out with the fan shroud, theres no way around it.

I took it out without taking off the fan/clutch assembly. But I took it out with the radiator. Lol. See?

scruffboy · 07-03-2006, 01:42 PM

I bought a small Dremel rechargable hand gaget that should allow me to start a hole with a drill bit. I bought a set of extractors that should let me get it into the hole and then work on backing it out. I've never done this before, and I would hate to screw this up. The one bolt is holding nicely and there are no leaks, but I hate the though of just one bolt holding it in place. Should I go ahead and attempt to back out the broken bolt, or am I just going to make more of a mess then it already is?

Thanks,

Scruffboy

ddmcse · 07-03-2006, 04:33 PM

i vote

do it .

theWeezL · 07-03-2006, 05:33 PM

Ive had some experience trying to get blots out and very little success. first of all the broken part of the bolt is going to be very hard. Harder than the surrounding material. If you slip off and get into the surrounding material your going to make it nearly impossible to get the broken part out.

my best advice is take your time, be very careful about the angle at which you drill. I also recommend you use a very small bit and make a pilot hole first, then work up to larger bits until you have a hole big enough to fit the largest easy out that will still fit into the broken bolt. Go solw and dont put alot of pressure on the drill bit, let it work. Also if yu have some light oil, like 3in1 that gan help remove heat and lubricate the bit so you dont dull it as fast. I also agree on the left hand bits. I got a set of them from Autozone that have worked for me in the past.

mrnickleye · 07-04-2006, 02:49 AM

DO NOT drill too fast ! You will burn/dull the bit real quick. I always try to use a center punch to 'dimple' the center of the bolt where I'm goona drill.

IHateHacks · 07-04-2006, 11:31 AM

"Matco, Snapon, Mac all sell a 'left-hand' drill set that comes with ez outs"

Yea and I bet he has a couple hundred bucks just laying around that he can waste on a snapon drill set. Dem tools aint cheap.

Ive personally never had ANY luck with bolt extracter kits, the kind you drill a pilot hole and then start turning the extracter counterclockwise into the pilot hole. A $60 bolt extractor kit from napa did not help me. The only thing that did work for me for broken bolts was drilling the whole bolt out and tapping a larger hole for a larger bolt.

Using a center punch is a must when drilling. If you dont you are a hack.

Just trying to help with experience Ive had.

Edit: Hmmmm lets see whats harder/more money/time consuming to do, take off 4 nuts, fan and shroud? Or Radiator, upper and lower hoses, (if automatic) tranny lines, 10 qts of coolant, then bleeding the coolant system.... Yea ill take the fan off anyday. LOL

07-02-2006, 12:21 PM	#1
scruffboy walbro fp Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Kearny, New Jersey, USA Posts: 427	Broken Thermo Bolt I have a broken bolt topside of my thermostat housing. The Autostore told me to drill a hole and insert an ez out. Problem is, no way to get a drill straight into broken bolt. How difficult is it to take off fan shroud? That should give me enough room, but shroud looks like it goes all the way around. Any other ideas. Would a mechanic shop have a lot more experience with this and be done with it in no time? Any help here would be much appreciated. Scruff

07-02-2006, 12:28 PM	#2
suprra_girl 7M POWAH! ;) Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: New Zealand Posts: 2,312	fan shroud ain't too bad just undo the a/c fan off it, two bolts top, one bolt bottom then undo bolts holding on fan shroud (only at top from memory) the lift it out altho it may be difficult with clutch fan still there may need to undo the fan as well been a while since i had a fan shroud lol __________________ Please use the forum to ask your questions as they will get replied to much faster than pming me Pics of my build. "Good girls are just bad girls that don't get caught" Do a diagnostic first!

07-02-2006, 02:02 PM	#3
IHateHacks 20psi boost Join Date: May 2006 Location: New Haven/Hamden Posts: 793	My top thermo housing bolt hole threads were stripped out. I had to use an M6 helicoil and used the stock bolt. Took me 45 minutes. Its harder to drill a new hole and helicoil it than it is to helicoil an exsisting hole. You have to get the entire drill dead center and flush with the thing you are working on because if you are off just a hair, the helicoil will go in crooked and the part will not go on properly. I hope it works out for you, and good luck. Edit: The fan/clutch assembly has to come out with the fan shroud, theres no way around it. Last edited by IHateHacks; 07-02-2006 at 02:14 PM.

07-02-2006, 08:38 PM	#4
mrnickleye 1000whp postwhore Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Mojave Desert, Calif. Posts: 1,705	Matco, Snapon, Mac all sell a 'left-hand' drill set that comes with ez outs. Perhaps a good auto parts store does too. Drilling with a left hand bit can sometimes pull the broken bolt right out. Its a must for anyone thats gonna do their own repairs. __________________ Had a Red 1989 N/A. Automatic. Sports Pkg. w/wing. TEMS, and some nice MODS. Sold to a friend 10/08/08.

07-03-2006, 01:42 PM	#6
scruffboy walbro fp Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Kearny, New Jersey, USA Posts: 427	Re: Broken Bolt I bought a small Dremel rechargable hand gaget that should allow me to start a hole with a drill bit. I bought a set of extractors that should let me get it into the hole and then work on backing it out. I've never done this before, and I would hate to screw this up. The one bolt is holding nicely and there are no leaks, but I hate the though of just one bolt holding it in place. Should I go ahead and attempt to back out the broken bolt, or am I just going to make more of a mess then it already is? Thanks, Scruffboy

07-03-2006, 04:33 PM	#7
ddmcse 500whp yet? Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: CT U.S.A. Posts: 966	i vote do it . __________________ 300+ RW HP Dyno run, jdm,mod turbo,3"exh,electfan,greddyboost Blown HeadGasket info My Supra KiXGaS

07-03-2006, 05:33 PM	#8
theWeezL 12psi boost Join Date: May 2006 Location: Oregon Posts: 376	Ive had some experience trying to get blots out and very little success. first of all the broken part of the bolt is going to be very hard. Harder than the surrounding material. If you slip off and get into the surrounding material your going to make it nearly impossible to get the broken part out. my best advice is take your time, be very careful about the angle at which you drill. I also recommend you use a very small bit and make a pilot hole first, then work up to larger bits until you have a hole big enough to fit the largest easy out that will still fit into the broken bolt. Go solw and dont put alot of pressure on the drill bit, let it work. Also if yu have some light oil, like 3in1 that gan help remove heat and lubricate the bit so you dont dull it as fast. I also agree on the left hand bits. I got a set of them from Autozone that have worked for me in the past. __________________ *____________* *Eagles may soar, but weezl's never get sucked into jet engines!*

07-04-2006, 02:49 AM	#9
mrnickleye 1000whp postwhore Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Mojave Desert, Calif. Posts: 1,705	DO NOT drill too fast ! You will burn/dull the bit real quick. I always try to use a center punch to 'dimple' the center of the bolt where I'm goona drill. __________________ Had a Red 1989 N/A. Automatic. Sports Pkg. w/wing. TEMS, and some nice MODS. Sold to a friend 10/08/08.

07-04-2006, 11:31 AM	#10
IHateHacks 20psi boost Join Date: May 2006 Location: New Haven/Hamden Posts: 793	"Matco, Snapon, Mac all sell a 'left-hand' drill set that comes with ez outs" Yea and I bet he has a couple hundred bucks just laying around that he can waste on a snapon drill set. Dem tools aint cheap. Ive personally never had ANY luck with bolt extracter kits, the kind you drill a pilot hole and then start turning the extracter counterclockwise into the pilot hole. A $60 bolt extractor kit from napa did not help me. The only thing that did work for me for broken bolts was drilling the whole bolt out and tapping a larger hole for a larger bolt. Using a center punch is a must when drilling. If you dont you are a hack. Just trying to help with experience Ive had. Edit: Hmmmm lets see whats harder/more money/time consuming to do, take off 4 nuts, fan and shroud? Or Radiator, upper and lower hoses, (if automatic) tranny lines, 10 qts of coolant, then bleeding the coolant system.... Yea ill take the fan off anyday. LOL Last edited by IHateHacks; 07-04-2006 at 11:38 AM.

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