Okay . . . What's The Trick To Getting This Thing Off? (Head Removal)

[it's paid for]

I have all the nuts off the intake manifold . . . at least I think I do, I took off five (four had thick washers, the center one didn't) . . . so, am I supposed to do what next - take a rubber mallet and knock it off?

. . . please, please, please don't tell me I'm going to have to go in under the car to remove more nuts with the exhaust or intake manifold . . . this is a horrible pain . . . did they design these engines to torture the mechanics . . . it certainly wasn't to provide much horsepower . . .

. . . thanks for any helpful advice . . .

:burn:

http://www.bloomyourbusiness.com/honda/26_nov_03_01.jpg
http://www.bloomyourbusiness.com/honda/26_nov_03_02.jpg

[BootMachine]

You want to get the head off eh!

OK...well YES these engines are designed to torture mechanics!

Separate the exhaust manifold from the down pipe by two bolts under the flange where they join.

Remove the intake and throttle body assembly. There is a bracket on the BOTTOM of the intake manifold that bolts to the BACK of the block and needs to be taken off.

The only way to get this is to do it by feel. You cant really see it when you are under the car.

Take out the head bolts....obviously.

Unbolt the BOTTOM of the exhaust manifold form the BOTTOM of the block with two bolts and a bracket.

Remove the timing belt cover and cut the belt

Remove the plug wires .

Remove the clutch and throttle cables and the speedo cable from the tranni.

Unbolt the VAC control box from the firewall and keep it with the head...its easier to unbolt it from the firewall than to try and remember how all the vac lines go back together!

THEN....wiggle and pull from the thermo housing on the left and the cam sprocket on the right. be carefull!

When you take the cam sprocket off there is a dowel pin you will need to keep that falls off and gets lost VERY easy!

[k-roy]

Never did that on the 2G but I'll try to help.
Dont use a mallet. If you can not pull it off by hand there is probably something else you missed.
Hmm. Did you get the intake bolts from the underside? I believe there should be more than that. Its usually 2 bolts per intake port and a couple more on each end. On a 3G and other Hondas there is a support bracket to hold the intake up that connects to the block.

In that first pic I believe you are pointing to the egr tube. No you do not have to remove it from the header. But you will have to remove it from the intake. as long as you can slide the header away from the block without that tbe getting in the way of anything it should be ok.

Or you can be like me and do this to your egr system.
http://www.3geez.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=26393&highlight=egr+how+tos

[k-roy]

Originally posted by BootMachine
Remove the intake and throttle body assembly.

Umm. He has a second gen accord so that would be kinda odd to have a TB. Good info though.

[BootMachine]

All I know is preludes..not accords!

[it's paid for]

DANG!

What quick, awesome advice!!!

MEGA-THANKS . . . my wife just brought home Chineese . . . after that, I'll go to the basement & continue as per the directions . . .





. . . and this is free, right?


. . . amazing!

[k-roy]

Originally posted by it's paid for
DANG!and this is free, right?

Pay up bitch!
My Paypal is [email protected]

[POS carb]

you are missing 2 nuts on the bottom of the intake manifold, they are where the #3 is.
yes, you mst remove the exhaust, you have to separate the header from the downpipe, then the downpipe hanger's 2 nuts (behind the oil pan). Once you've done this you can remove the header from the head. This is almost impossible to remove though, you should take out your radiator.

[shepherd79]

you don't have to cut your timing belt. use some zip ties and tie timing belt and cam gear together so they don't move. loosen the timing belt adjuster and remove the cam gear. this way you can put it back without screwing up your timing.

because your car is carbed you have two brakets on the bottom of the intake. if you remove the oil filter you should see them.
remove the bolts and you should be able to get to 2 or 3 more nuts on the intake manifold.
i am not sure how much room in 2G between header and the radiator, but on the 3G you don't have to remove the radiator to pull out the header. all you have to do is move some hoses out of the way.
i hope that helps.

[it's paid for]

. . . i am not sure how much room in 2G between header and the radiator . . .
. . . on my 2G, the exhaust manifold is directly below the intake manifold . . . basically, the only thing between the radiator and the engine are the spark plugs, clutch cable, power steering hose, and other stuff . . . both exhaust and intake are on the firewall side of the engine . . .

. . . I think I'm way over my head . . . I have near-zero confidence I can finish this job . . . anyone want an '83 Accord . . . body & interior are in good condition . . . I feel like such an idiot for trying . . . I should've stuck to simple stuff & simple cars . . . oh well . . .

. . . & I need a car so bad . . . DANG! . . . DANG! DANG! DANGIT!!!

[TJ89Accord]

keep trying, take a little break. YOU CAN DO IT!!!!!!!!!!!

tim

[shepherd79]

Originally posted by it's paid for
. . . on my 2G, the exhaust manifold is directly below the intake manifold . . . basically, the only thing between the radiator and the engine are the spark plugs, clutch cable, power steering hose, and other stuff . . . both exhaust and intake are on the firewall side of the engine . . .



Exhaust manifold below intake manifold? i have no idea what kind crack you are smoking but on A18 and A20 engines the exaust manifold in the front of the engine. it is between radiator and engine block.

[k-roy]

Originally posted by shepherd79
Exhaust manifold below intake manifold? i have no idea what kind crack you are smoking but on A18 and A20 engines the exaust manifold in the front of the engine. it is between radiator and engine block.

My memory is kinda fuzzy about the 83 I worked on. But I do think he is correct. It is definitly not an A motor though.

[it's paid for]

Exhaust manifold below intake manifold? i have no idea what kind crack you are smoking but on A18 and A20 engines the exaust manifold in the front of the engine. it is between radiator and engine block.
Dude . . . I really wish there was a 2geez web site . . . so comments like yours wouldn't pop up . . . hey, I might be ignorant about these cars - and fixing cars in general - but I dang sure know what's an intake & exhaust manifold . . . in fact, if you look carefully in each photo above, you can see what I'm talking about . . .

. . . I think this was a popular engine design way back then . . . thank goodness it's no longer being done . . .

. . . I'm probably going to be moving in a couple or three weeks to Kentucky where I'll be starting my new job . . . somehow, I'm going to have to have a car . . . I have enough to get the head done and that's about it . . . in addition to driving to work, I was planning on driving home every other weekend . . . that's about 350 miles each way . . . I need this thing to work and it'll be a gigantic miracle if I can do it . . .

. . . at this point, I don't believe in gigantic miracles . . . :mad:

. . . maybe I'll start a 2geez web site . . . after I shoot, burn, crush, pee on, spit on & then bury mine first . . .

[carotman]

I remember my EFI conversion.... those intake bolts were a pain to reach.

[Justin86]

Originally posted by BootMachine
All I know is preludes..not accords!
But still mechanics is a universal language and all car have basic stuff in common. What is holding the head on, head bolts, exhaust and little extra stuff depending on the car. Also you don't have to remove the intake manifold to remove the head, I know that on the 3G's inorder to pull the intake you have to also pull the head with it, unless you are smarter then the average noob. :sadwave:

[it's paid for]

Also you don't have to remove the intake manifold to remove the head, I know that on the 3G's inorder to pull the intake you have to also pull the head with it, unless you are smarter then the average noob.
So . . . does this mean it's possible to remove the head with the intake & exhaust manifold attached? If so, I guess all I'd have to do is disconnect the exhaust header from the tube it runs into, remove the nuts/bolts from the head and then bingo, the head comes off, right?

I feel pretty stupid saying this, but the possibility of removing the head w/the intake & exhaust manifold's attached never occurred to me . . . cool . . . that might make my job much easier . . . now if I can just get the crank pulley off . . . grrrr . . .

------- T H A N K S ! ----------

[k-roy]

You can probably pull the head off with the manifolds as long as all the brackets are unbolted. The crank pully is a real bitch, especially in the car. There is a special tool for that. You just might be better off pulling the whole motor at this point. Then the manifolds will come right off and you can get the whole engine and the bay super clean.

[Justin86]

don't pull the engine it is even more more. Seriously I can pull the head in easily in a hour and the whole engine took me 4hrs. You still want to disconnect the exhaust and the tube connected to it. I hope you sprayed everything with some bolt penetraring oil to loosen everything up cause the exhaust bolts can be a real bitch to get off. The exhaust it the hard part, everthing else is easy.

Oh crap I forgot the exhaust was on the same side as the intake. If you can remove the exhaust manifold from the down pipe then you could pull it with the head but that SOB is heavy and when you put the head back on you will want to remove the exhaust manifold.

[it's paid for]

Oh crap I forgot the exhaust was on the same side as the intake. If you can remove the exhaust manifold from the down pipe then you could pull it with the head but that SOB is heavy and when you put the head back on you will want to remove the exhaust manifold.
And to think . . . before I reached for the first tool, I thought this project was going to be fun . . .

[Justin86]

Well no it won't be harder to take off just harder to put on, but if you can get some help putting the head back on with the manifold connected it will help a lot. With the timming belt now that is a problem. I know how to get it off but it only works on engines with the torque converter on and the tranny off, and a big ass socket. I need to a 19mm socket that is bigger then 1/2" drive cause I keep breaking the adapters. :mad:

[njpeter]

I pulled the head from my 87 ( the gasket was leaking coolant),,I didn't pull either manifold just premoved the emission box and all removeable items ( distributor etc) from the firewall..A littel hairy, but I was able to lift it clean off ( almost missed the oil control valve..that would have been the end if I did) Now that I have a cherry picker...I could do it all by myself. The bolts are much easier to deal with when that bugger is off the car.

I still have that engine/tranny swap hanging over my head..damm auto tranny shift cable is going to be a problem..anybody ever do one? Looks like I have to (be ready to) split the engine/tranny to get a new one in.

[Justin86]

Originally posted by njpeter
I pulled the head from my 87 ( the gasket was leaking coolant),,I didn't pull either manifold just premoved the emission box and all removeable items ( distributor etc) from the firewall..A littel hairy, but I was able to lift it clean off ( almost missed the oil control valve..that would have been the end if I did) Now that I have a cherry picker...I could do it all by myself. The bolts are much easier to deal with when that bugger is off the car.

I still have that engine/tranny swap hanging over my head..damm auto tranny shift cable is going to be a problem..anybody ever do one? Looks like I have to (be ready to) split the engine/tranny to get a new one in.

Well I'm a little lost on what you are asking here. :confused:

[k-roy]

Me too. This guy is working on a 2G. I think its the EK1 motor. Much differant.

[Justin86]

Yea EK1, 75hp & 96tq

[it's paid for]

. . . okay . . . now, I'm really depressed . . . last night, I had a phone conversation with my friend - the ex-Honda mechanic (hasn't worked in a shop in over ten years) and he told me what a complete idiot I was to have removed the vacuum lines and that I'll have to put them all back together or I can forget EVER having a reliable idle again (plus other problems w/distributor & blah, blah, blah) . . .

. . . he also said I'd need to use a special tool to remove the crank pulley . . . something like a chain that wraps around the pulley and tightens up so you can then use another tool to undo the crank pulley bolt . . .

. . . if there was any possible way to get out of this mess I would . . . but I need a car really bad and I have no money . . . so . . . what other choice do I have but to continue to work on it . . .

. . . I feel like the guy who got stranded in the desert . . . 115 degree heat and no water . . . a car hasn't been by in hours and then one comes by and stops . . . the car has two occupants - both are retirement-age religious zealots who are intent on "saving" the guy . . . one of them is wearing a tan leisure suit and obviously haven't bathed in what smells like several months . . . the other has greasy hair and is wearing white socks with shiny black shoes, and has a pack of cigarettes rolled up in his tattered plaid sleeve . . . the driver pleads emphatically for the stranded motorist to hop in . . . it's 38 miles to the closest form of human life and the decision to join them doesn't come easy . . . lingering for an uncomfortable amount of time with uncertainty and contemplating the buzzards have been following for about an hour, the stranded motorist grudingly gets into the drastically faded red Ford Fairlane with the zealots . . . all the while wondering why things like this always seem to happen to him . . .

. . . sometimes, life just really sucks . . . I hate my car!!!

DIE CAR!!! DIE!!!

[Justin86]

I don't belive you answered this before nut what is the reson for you remove the head. I hope you just don't have to change the head gasket cause I could have told you how to do it within 2hrs. :sadwave:

[it's paid for]

. . . I hope you just don't have to change the head gasket cause . . .
No . . . the car needs a valve job and rings . . . I can only afford the valve job . . .

. . . thanks for the comments and suggestions . . .

IPF

[Justin86]

OK :wave:

[blown89lxi]

hey guys i have been reading about this project to get ready for my head gasket job. justin 86-please tell me how to do it in 2hrs. that would be awesome. any other advice would be great . BTW my car is 89 lxi coupe with auto and fuel injected if that matters.

[k-roy]

2 Hours? I could do it with the user Nota3g.

1. Remove the downpipe from the header.

2 Remove the lower bracket that hold the intake to the block

3. Disconnect all hoses and wires from the intake.

4. Take off the valve cover and timing chain cover

5. Remove timing belt

6. Remove head bolts

7. Pull the head off.

8. Clean it all up.

9. put in new gasket

10. Blot head back on

11. replace timing belt

13. Hook everything back up

14. There a a few small things I missed but they are small.

2 hours is a little ambitious, but it could be done with 2 people with the right tools.

[blown89lxi]

this will be the 1st work i do to my honda, but when i did the timing belt on my eclipse i had to remove all the pulleys and the crankshaft pulley as well as the ps pump, a mount and a lower t belt cover is the honda just like that? as far as tools i have basic tools, im on a budget what tools wold be especially helpful, and as far as the crank pulley i have the chain wrench that helps but i might just get the shop to break it for me. ideas? comments ?