I had my heads machined because of a leak and I'm ready to put the 96 Caravan back together. The question is what to do to the head bolts before I tighten them. The guy at the machine shop said to pump a drop or two on the threads and let them drip dry the best they can. Another mechanic says he puts a little liquid wrench on the threads first. I also read that some people lube the washer on top and bottom and some say don't lube the washer at all. I know to torque them at three different lbs. I am going to clean the head bolt holes before I start tighening the bolts.The gaskets are Fel Pro. Any other tips before I start? I only want to do it once. The engine only had 73,000 miles. I also bought a crank seal and a new water pump. Thanks for any help.
TORQUING HEADS 3.0?
Aug 09, 2003
2 Replies
Why did you retorque? Did you find the same torque reading or did they need to be turned more?
I'm curious because I did some work on my 3.0 and it works fine without the retorque. I was told by an old salt I know that there was no need to retorque on these engines (3.0 Mits). I'm the nervous type when I'm in new territory. :)
Ric
With the FEL-PRO gasket you do NOT need to retorque the bolts. Wirebrush the threads and a few drops of oil on them should work fine when getting ready to torque them.
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