96' Cherokee Sport 4.0 How easy / involved to change the exhaust manifold ?

Same bolts hold on both the intake and exhaust manifolds.

It's not a hard job to do, but sometimes it gets tricky getting the exhaust off back by the firewall.

It's important to make sure the block is clean of any leftover gasket material. A light scrubbing with a scotchbrite works well. Put a smear (very light coat) of permatex ultracopper on the block to help the new gasket seal and don't forget to retorque the bolts after you have ran the engine for a few hours and let it cool back down. You will also have to check the bolts for the next couple of days.

The lower bolts are nearly impossible to get at with a torque wrench. My suggestion is to learn about how tight they need to get by feel with a box end wrench. They don't go that tight.

The lower collector bolts are almost always rusted. I've found it easier to just cut the old ones off. Spray these with some PB Blaster and let it work overnight.

Good ref.

evbeergoggles.com

Hi Doug,

Thank you a great deal for taking the time to write up the reply. This is good information. I have worked for years (weekends) on mostly Japanese and VW, Audi. I have stayed away from the USA trucks / cars. It's the truck of a family friend so I may offload it to a local mechanic.

Thanks again

Phil