heads and lower intake not torqued to spec

[whitebroncoii87]

what are the consequences of not having used a torque wrench to torque the head bolts and lower intake bolts to spec. They are definitely tight but not sure if they are to spec. Anybody had any experience with putting back an engine like that and seeing how it ran afterwards. My engine idles like crap so I'm wondering if that might be a possible culprit. Thanks!

 

[97RangerXLT]

well, having bolts torqued differently and not in proper sequence when installing the heads can cause issues. notably, you will probably shat the head gasket and either the bolts will loosen up (if not tight enough) or break (too tight). Might get a combo of the two..Also, the head bolts are a "torque to yield" style bolt, so once it is torqued, if you remove it you need to replace it, as it will likely fail if you reuse them.

as expensive as head bolts are, I would buy, beg, borrow or steal a torque wrench to do them if you dont have one. Most auto parts stores have a "loan a tool" program. and as much work is involved in replacing heads and the intake gaskets, that is another strong consideration for doing it right the first time.

So yes, if they are not torqued correctly, you can and probably will have leaks (air, coolant, oil or all three) and that will make the truck run badly. Remember, the sequence in which you tighten them is also important.

AJ