Broken Bolt LS6 head
12-20-2012, 12:04 AM
#1
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Broken Bolt LS6 head Well, I have a set of LG long tubes on my C5z and its lowered all the way on factory bolts.
I am in the process of moving into my girls place... anyways I ran over a big speed bump, and even though i went at an extreme angle i got caught up on the ''collector" area of the longtubes.
the complete exhaust got dragged along the speed bump..and the rear header bolt snapped into the drivers side cylinder head.. now its leaking fumes bad.
i have taken it into the Chevy dealer, they put it on the rack and showed me the scrape marks down the entire exhaust..
long story short, the estimate to extract the bolt is very expensive and my insurance company(USAA) wont cover it until Chevy does a tear down and the damage can be proven.
my issue is, this is my only car, and if USAA cant confirm the damage from the speed bump..then i have to eat the entire cost of the work, and the rental car..
WTH can i do now?
i have spoken to a 2nd adjuster, and numerous people at the dealer and the insurance company.. WITH no luck
I am in the process of moving into my girls place... anyways I ran over a big speed bump, and even though i went at an extreme angle i got caught up on the ''collector" area of the longtubes.
the complete exhaust got dragged along the speed bump..and the rear header bolt snapped into the drivers side cylinder head.. now its leaking fumes bad.
i have taken it into the Chevy dealer, they put it on the rack and showed me the scrape marks down the entire exhaust..
long story short, the estimate to extract the bolt is very expensive and my insurance company(USAA) wont cover it until Chevy does a tear down and the damage can be proven.
my issue is, this is my only car, and if USAA cant confirm the damage from the speed bump..then i have to eat the entire cost of the work, and the rental car..
WTH can i do now?
i have spoken to a 2nd adjuster, and numerous people at the dealer and the insurance company.. WITH no luck
12-20-2012, 10:42 AM
#6
I agree with the majority, i was replacing the head gasket on my girls 93' LT1 Z28 and i managed to bust one of the exhuast bolts off, when i got the head off took the head down to be preassured checked and had them drill it out, total for the both heads was 120 out the door, but remember that was two cylinder heads preasured checked and to have one bolt drilled out.
12-20-2012, 11:22 AM
#7
If you get somebody that knows what they are doing and can get to the bolt, they can tack weld a nut to the broke off bolt with a small mig welder and bring it right out. I'm not familiar with the location of the bolt in the engine compartment so I can't say if it is easily accessible. Because of the way the bolt was broke off it should come right out. If it broke off trying to take it out then you would have a problem on your hands where you would almost definetly have to remove the head. I have removed countless bolts from the heads this way.
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12-20-2012, 11:31 AM
#8
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Just took care of three broken exhaust manifold bolts myself the other night. I couldn't get a good bite using nuts (couldn't get a good bead on the bolt because of the thickness of the nut), so I welded a flat washer across the opening by welding to the end of the stud through the washer hole and filling the hole solid, and then welded a bolt to the washer. The broken bolt turned out with very little effort.
I was doing this on an engine stand, so it's much easier than doing it in the car, but I've got a friend who's a GM tech, and he says they do it all the time. They try to use left-hand drill bits first, and if that won't back it out, they try an extractor (which hardly ever works), and the welded nut is the final fix, which always works.
I was doing this on an engine stand, so it's much easier than doing it in the car, but I've got a friend who's a GM tech, and he says they do it all the time. They try to use left-hand drill bits first, and if that won't back it out, they try an extractor (which hardly ever works), and the welded nut is the final fix, which always works.
12-20-2012, 11:55 AM
#9
Good luck getting an insurance company to cover "damage" where the damage is due to aftermarket parts and a lowered car.
Futhermore, shearing a header bolt like you describe is extremely unlikely. And if it is somehow the case, expect the header to be bent junk. I've seen 4000lb+ cars come down off the rear bumper and smash the headers flat as a pancake, and seen a car catch a collector flange on manhole cover at 20mph+. Yet I've NEVER seen a header bolt break like you describe.
You don't want to hear this, but it's best advice you've gotten so far. Stop wasting your time with the insurance claim. Pull the head and have it repaired by a machine shop. Replace the headers. Raise the car back to factory ride height (lowered C5s look stupid).
Futhermore, shearing a header bolt like you describe is extremely unlikely. And if it is somehow the case, expect the header to be bent junk. I've seen 4000lb+ cars come down off the rear bumper and smash the headers flat as a pancake, and seen a car catch a collector flange on manhole cover at 20mph+. Yet I've NEVER seen a header bolt break like you describe.
You don't want to hear this, but it's best advice you've gotten so far. Stop wasting your time with the insurance claim. Pull the head and have it repaired by a machine shop. Replace the headers. Raise the car back to factory ride height (lowered C5s look stupid).
