Header/Exhaust Manifold Bolts??

[inkedin1]

I was wondering if any of you guys that have headers have had any problems with header bolts breaking? I just bought an 02 z71 two months ago, it has the factory exhaust manifolds with no broken bolts as of yet. It has 178,*** on it and to me it looks like the exhaust manifold bolts are original, if not they were replaced a long time ago. I started noticing a slight ticking noise on cold starts a couple weeks ago and found an exhaust leak on the drivers side. Not sure if I want to tackle fixing this myself for fear of bolts breaking when taking them out, plus I'm a chicka!! Is there anyone out there making aftermarket bolts for stock manifolds? If not I'm thinking about going with an inexpensive (only until I can afford better) set of shorty headers just for now if no one has had problems with bolt breakage on a header application. Any input or advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

[rocketman76]

You being a chicka has nothing to do with it if you know what you are doing. I will be installing my headers this weekend. If I break one I will do a write up with pictures on how to remove it or them. I beleive ARP and Stage 8 makes a set of bolts. I usually go to http://www.fastenal.com/web/home.ex and get high quality hardware replacements at a fraction of the cost. Just make sure you purchase equal or higher grade quality. That is were I will be going for my replacements, ( I have a Fastenal distributor close by) I will post a replacement bolt number FYI.

---------- Post added at 12:03 PM ---------- Previous post was at 12:01 PM ----------

Scratch the equal quality bit, go with higher grade and make sure to use Anti Seize, just as you would on your spark plugs.

 

[fiatdale]

Common problem up until 04 I believe. They changed bolts in 04 or 05 which are much stronger and have a larger head. If the heads of the bolts break off, hopefully there is still some stud sticking out, you can use a small pipe wrench to get them out

 

[dlr2416]

I have an 08 Denali with the 6.2 and found a broken header bold in my driveway a month ago. Quality control isn't GM's number one concern and hasn't been for years. From what I have read, the exhaust header bolts are made out of brittle steel and tend to snap off leaving a piece in the head. This issue is a common problem. I called the dealer and they told me it could be over $1000 to fix it because they may need to remove the head. Best bet is to remove all the header bolts and use after market header studs.