Hey Camaro Z28.com board-

I had problems with what should have been the easiest of modifications and would like your input on two questions...

I installed an MBA aluminum water pump cover. It looks pretty good now that it is on, but I ran into a problem with the fasteners that hold it on. It comes with aluminum ones that complement the cover. The stock torque spec said 30lbs, the fastener stripped out at about 15-20 ft/lb (it is a hex head bit). I used the stock bolts on the other 5 and tightened then to about 15 ft/lb.

Question 1 - How do I get the stripped one out? I tried a vise grip and it just shred the aluminum fastener more. Should I just break it off and try to drill it out?

I had the car out today, no leaks or anything, but the engine output did not seem to be normal. The car was not missing, but just not as powerful as I remember. If I got the unvented opti a little wet when I swapped the cover, would it sap power?

Question 2 - When an opti fails, is it like a miss or just an overall drop in power? I have 73K on the stock opti on my 94 hotcammed Z28.

Thanks in advance for any assistance you can provide.

 

Ok,

RKSPORT got back with me and had the following to say:

The bolts in question are only supposed to be torqued to 50
INCH / pounds, not 30 foot / pounds. The large 9/16ths inch bolts that
hold the water pump to the block is the 30 ft./lbs of torque you
mistakenly read. You may have to replace the water pump as you may have
cracked the pump itself. I would pull it off the engine and have it
inspected to make sure.

My torque specs from the Brent Franker site say 30 lbs/ft for the water pump cover bolts.

Can someone verify this for me with the factory service manual?

Thanks in advance.

Paul

 

A few thoughts:
No way those little screws need 30 ft lbs.
Your opti is a ticking time bomb. I'd change it now before it leaves you stranded like mine did at 77k. If you had the water pump off to install that MBA cover, that was the perfect time to do it.
As far as getting that screw out, pulling the water pump back off and using a screw extractor is probably your best bet, but be careful drilling out that screw so you don't damage the threads on the water pump housing.

 

Bud-

I only had the cover off - not the whole water pump. I got my torque #s off the specs on the Brett Franker site a while back.

What I am looking for is the correct torque #.

Thanks for the tip on the opti, but for the kinda money they are asking for a new one, I am gonna wait till it fails. I was asking how it fails, if it can be a overall loss of power or just a miss or hesitation.

Thanks.

Paul

 

I learned my lesson to never use a torque bar unless your torqing down heads and intake manifold. That Chilton and Haynes manual may leave out information thats overlooked or misinterpreted. Hand tighten everything with your hand ratchet, get a feel for each bolt and part you work on...
Im glad I have an old Dodge to practice on..duck tape the would be bolt-ons on and fred flintstone/foot-power that puppy down the street...

 

Just tighten them until they're snug. Get an idea of the size of the bolt compared to how tight you should make them (and what they're supporting). It just seals on the O-ring around the cover so it just needs to be pulled up tight so they don't work out loose.

I'm with you on the opti, seems people are trigger-happy on replacing it (I don't have spare hundreds to replace working stuff...)

 

Long story short, got the bolt out with vise grips, tighened to 1/4 turn past hand tight - looks good.

Case Closed.

 

FWIW my factory 94 manual does say 33 ft lb for 'water pump cover' bolts..
No way is that correct tho..

 

Interesting...