Stupid plastic elbows...now inside my motor....

[DebinNY]

Sooooooooooo...decided to replace the alt bracket Andrew sent me (last year!!) and put in the metal elbows since I am/was going to attempt replacing the waterpump....everything was going so nice this morning...then the elbow snapped in half and is now lost in the whatchamacallit manifold? I simply cannot find the darn piece...I had it in sight, tried to fish it out (failed!) and now it's just...gone... any suggestions on how to find it/remove it? It is half the elbow piece so I dont suppose I can just leave it in there..

Taking a break from my self-imposed madness...

[RJolly87]

Shopvac would be my first guess, especially if it is loose.

[RJolly87]

Compressed air would be my next bit, or water hose depending on where it is and how the coolant passages route.

[harofreak00]

If it truly did go all the way inside the manifold you will have to remove the manifold to get it out. Are you sure you can't use a long screwdriver to pry it out?

[Steelworker26]

Am I wrong thinking that there is a lip on the block that won't allow the elbows to over penetrate?

[DebinNY]

I went back out this morning, put a rag around/under the water pump and put some water in the radiator...antifreeze is pouring out of somewhere lower...I dont have a floor jack to get underneath, but assuming its leaking from the LIM or even the block...with 149k and needing other repairs, I just dont see putting more money into this car to fix it....as much as I dont want to...I think it may be time to say goodbye to my beloved bonne....

[xcbullet]

That's only half life of the motor do the intake. That's what it usely is at that mileage.

[1oldman]

That's only half life of the motor do the intake. That's what it usely is at that mileage.

X2 my '92 has 305k and still sounds and runs great! Only, I have an undetermined/unknown sound coming from the powertrain that just started. - BC

[redzmonte]

If you cannot get the piece out, serious its not hard to do a LIM.. drain a little coolant, remove the intake manifold, clean it install new gaskets and reinstall.. it took me 2hrs doing it myself when i did my blower swap.. If you dont want to put the money into it.. then leave the piece floating around drive it.. worse thing that will happen is it will work its way into the coolant passage of the head and block a little coolant flow. if you dont want to spend the couple hours and the 50-60 bux to do it the right way..

S

[DebinNY]

Ok, so I'm hoping a few of you will give me some estimates of the time and costs of parts to do the upper and lower intake gaskets...I may take it to a garage since I dont have anywhere to really work in a parking lot...

THANKS!!!

[harofreak00]

I shop is going to charge around $400-500 to do it. You can do it yourself on a Saturday for around $100 in parts. Directions in Techinfo.

[1oldman]

I shop is going to charge around $400-500 to do it. You can do it yourself on a Saturday for around $100 in parts. Directions in Techinfo.

These instructions work great. I'm sure many members have used these instructions without difficulty. I know my son and I have. They made the process as un-complicated as it can get, jmho. - BC

[DebinNY]

I've read it several times...I honestly think I could do it but I just dont have anywhere to work, no place to put parts...one lost bolt and I am in trouble....anyone in syracuse have an empty garage? lol

[DebinNY]

Would having a coolant pressure test be needed? Wouldnt it just force antifreeze into places it shouldnt be if the gaskets are bad???

[1oldman]

Would having a coolant pressure test be needed? Wouldnt it just force antifreeze into places it shouldnt be if the gaskets are bad???

into the combustion chamber and the oil passageways (which kills the bearings in your engine) - BC

[DebinNY]

Thanks BC - Some "mechanic" said that was the "best" way to figure out exactly where the antifreeze was leaking from. I just knew that was a really bad idea...

On the good side, I found a shop that will fix my car for $250 plus parts/supplies...so I ordered the upper/lower gaskets from Rock Auto and will get my car fixed next week!!

[RJolly87]

Did you plan on having the UIM replaced while everything is off?

I would hate to see you pay labor twice...

[DebinNY]

Yes, Randell, upper and lower gaskets, water pump, plugs, pcv, 2 oil changes, new metal elbows, and new antifreeze....I think that is it...If I'm missing something, I'm hoping someone on here will post ....car is going to be towed tomorrow Deb