Kooks header install issue

[donk_316]

Good morning.
My son and I started this project on Tuesday and so far every single step has been a nightmare.

Starter top bolt nearly impossible to get my hand and ratchet on but we got it.

Y pipe is completely unbolted but will not clear bottom stud on passenger exhaust manifold so it can drop out of the truck. I'll have to lift engine.

Drivers manifold is unbolted except for ONE bolt underneath above strange looking engine mount. I managed to break it loose but the angle and motor mount make this nearly impossible to get a socket in there with a universal joint.

My plan was to lift entire engine. as per kooks instructions I removed the 2 - 22mm nuts on the passenger side (actually the nuts and studs came out together) but when I try and lift the engine the entire truck comes with it. I tried from below and above.

So is there some super top secret way to lift engine high enough to get to bottom manifold bolts? How does the engine "raise" when only one engine mount is unbolted?

I really should have just took the truck to a shop to have this done.

 

[Riddick]

I found you have to have the correct length socket/extension combo, but the starter bolts can be removed pretty easily. As far as lifting the enigine, I found removing the lower mount bolts on the driver side and lifting the whole engine up by a block of wood and jack under the oil pan. Be very very careful not to lift the engine too high and lift the truck up with it. I found out the hard way. The instructions don't say this, but I made my life easier. The driver side pipes are pretty easy to manipulate in but on the passenger side, lower the engine back down. Another words I found the higher the engine was jacked up the worse it was to manipulate the pipes up in. The passenger side motor mount is going to be a pain to put back in, but just be patient with it.

I forgot to also mention, I removed the wheel well liners. Made life easier as well

Trust me, it's going to be a marathon

 

[donk_316]

Thank you Riddick,
I'll crawl back under the truck and have a look for the drivers side motor mount. I didn't see it last time I was under there but maybe I missed something.
Do you suggest unbolting the entire passenger side mount from the engine and frame? Or just the 2 - 21mm nuts/studs hanging down.

Someone else mentioned to me to take the inner fenders off... I was hoping to not do that

 

[Riddick]

I took the passenger side engine mount cmpletely out. I think you have to in order to remove the dipstick.

 

[donk_316]

Thanks.
Drivers side is nearly 100% complete. I ended up not using the Kooks hardware and reusing the stud and nut oem system. Much easier to run the studs in and then it holds the header in place. Me and 2 kids fought with the header and the Kooks bolt for 20 min then I just told them to go play and used the studs.

One super helpful hint for people in the future. Get an E8 torx socket ( not a torx bit but a socket) for the studs. Instead of fighting with the 15mm nuts and reaching way up inside with big ratchets and extensions and so on. You can use a 1/4" E8 torx socket, 1/4-3/8 adaptor and 3" 3/8 extension.

Once I swapped from fighting with the nuts and just loosing the studs, things became 50 times easier and faster.

 

[RangerRob]

I have Kooks headers and did the install myself. Like Riddick said, you do need to completely remove the passenger side motor mount. Once it is out of the way you should be able to jack the engine up about 4 inches to get enough room to slide the header into place. Also, I would NOT recommend jacking the engine up by the oil pan. It can be done if you are extremely careful (I jacked mine up from the oil pan), but the pan is thin metal and you can easily dent the pan by jacking up on it. My buddy dented his pan when jacking the engine up, didn't realize he had dented the pan, ran the truck for 5 minutes after the install was complete, and the engine started knocking really bad. The dent in the pan blocked the oil pick up which caused the engine knock. He ended up having to buy a new engine. So I would be very careful using that method. Also, I would recommend looking in to Stage 8 locking header bolts rather than reusing the OE bolts. The Stage 8's are pretty much install and forget. They can't back out once installed so you shouldn't have to worry about having to retorque the bolts periodically. If you chose to go with the Stage 8 bolts and need the specific part number let me know. Good Luck!

-Rob

 

[donk_316]

Thanks for that. I used a floor jack and a 2x4 on end to jack the engine up on the passenger side by the air conditioning compressor(?)

You're right about the engine mount. I took it out to be able to access all the manifold bolts. I reinstalled the mount (but not the bolts) before sliding the header in the place. Was no problem.

I've heard of the header bolts before. I did end up using all OEM hardware on the passenger side and all but 2 of the OEM on the drivers side.

I did break the dip stick tube off at the engine and so I rigged up a "broken dip stick puller" tool which worked well.

I'm so close to being done now. Only tighten the passenger side is left.

I put my order in for a SVC tune tonight also.

 

[Riddick]

Thanks for that. I used a floor jack and a 2x4 on end to jack the engine up on the passenger side by the air conditioning compressor(?)

You're right about the engine mount. I took it out to be able to access all the manifold bolts. I reinstalled the mount (but not the bolts) before sliding the header in the place. Was no problem.

I've heard of the header bolts before. I did end up using all OEM hardware on the passenger side and all but 2 of the OEM on the drivers side.

I did break the dip stick tube off at the engine and so I rigged up a "broken dip stick puller" tool which worked well.

I'm so close to being done now. Only tighten the passenger side is left.

I put my order in for a SVC tune tonight also.

Sounds like you're all over it. Glad to hear the dipstick didn't give you too much trouble. Just sucks you have to get anther one. I pulled one of those bone head moves on mine which cost me more money. On the bright side this will be the most tedious and time consuming mod you'll do. Enjoy the new sound. I grin from ear to ear every time I mash the pedal.

I'll also add that I went ahead and got the kooks true dual exhaust. Couldn't be happier. Quiet at cruse. Nice, deep, moderately loud, during acceleration. Highly recommended with the headers.

 

[donk_316]

Thanks again man. I appreciate all the input.

I'm going to mod my Roush catback to work with the Kooks Y pipe. So basically it's just going to be a flowmaster muffler... haha

 

[Jeff-Ohio]

This thread made me tired just reading it. How much extra HP are we gaining by doing this job? Is it worth it?