I stripped one of the bolt holes on my friend's 5.0 Mustang..but luckily it was easy to reach..
stripped header bolt hole!!
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From: Montgomery County, MD
stripped header bolt hole!! putting in the last bolt on the far back on the drivers side all the bolt will do is cross thread itself. so then i took off all the bolts and took of the header and the bolt still wont go in, it still does the same thing and i assume the hole is messed up. if anyone has had the same problem id love to hear the solution 
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From: Southaven, MS (near Memphis, TN)
Sorry to hijack, but same problem on passenger side. Am I going to have to get a drill back there or just go in with a tap that is the same size thread and slowly thread it in and then back out?
/hijack
-J
/hijack
-J
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From: Southaven, MS (near Memphis, TN)
I doubt a drill will fit back there. The tap is going to be the easiest way...use a tiny wrench like I said in earlier post... it helps better than the tool that comes in the kit.
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From: Montgomery County, MD
haha you make me feel better atleast i have some room to move around on the drivers side that passenger side isn't so forgiving. also id definatly try tapping it before you have to drill it out and end up with a bigger hole and have to drill out the header and everything.
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Verdad Gallardo 11 Second Club
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From: Southaven, MS (near Memphis, TN)
A crossed bolt is a tight bolt! Just kidding. Anytime you start one crossed...STOP, grap a tap and clean that phucker up. A little grease on the tap will make things easier and any debris will stick to it when you back it out. Also, you should always check the bolt pattern on the header flanges with the factory gasket and make any adjustments with a dremel. Most headers will be off by a few C hairs.
Been there, done that. It's a horrible feeling when the bolt suddenly goes soft and you know you either stripped it out snapped it. Like what was already said, you can try and re-tap the thread but if that doesn't work, you'll need to helicoil it, and at that location, you're better off pulling the head and doing it right.
another thing to consider is to put in a stud back there. there may be a few good threads left in the bottom of the hole that the bolt won't reach and be enough to hold if you don't over tighten it, or try a longer bolt if you (sorda) fix the threads.
Well, you could get creative and put some jb weld on a stud and put it back there. Granted, it's then going to be permanently there, which will make putting the headers on and off harder.
Your best option is to pull the head and have it tapped and helicoiled. You can try running a reamer through the thread, but that will always be a weaker bolt hole.
Your best option is to pull the head and have it tapped and helicoiled. You can try running a reamer through the thread, but that will always be a weaker bolt hole.
Try the tap first, some cutting oil and a steady hand, most likely your going to have to lay across the motor and be very careful. Since you didnt snap off a bolt your half way there. if you cant get it, the head has to come off. It sucks. I know I came VERY close to removing but its worth a shot trying it 1st.
Yea not looking forward to removing the thread. What I do know is that the bolt is not even all the way in, I felt some bad resistance and stopped, backed it out, tried it again, stopped in same spot. I didn't force the damn thing all the way in so maybe I have some hope. What a stupid reason to have to pull the head 
-J
-J
Well just went to Sears on lunch and picked up a drill/tap set for 8mm x 1.25 so we'll see how it goes. I must say this thing is a lot smaller than I thought, and getting a little speedster on it with the header out of the car and the coil pack off doesn't seem too out of the question. I'll see how it goes this weekend when I take the headers off and put the others on.
-J
-J
Same thing happened to mine on my passenger side rear. A buddy cross threaded it for me. No big deal though. It would go in a little ways and that is it. Just filled the gap with some washers and put the bolt back in. No leaks whatsoever. Try that guys. If it doesn't leak, you're good to go.
Would be alot easyer to helicoil it. But same thing happend to me and here in my area we have a tap and di place that comes to your door with all the tools needed and solved my problem in about 15 mins for 120 bucks. See if you have a Tap removal guy in your area call the junk yards thats how i found my guy.
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From: Montgomery County, MD
thanks for all the help guys but i just ended up using a different bolt that corrected the threads that were messed up when i cross threaded it and got out of the pinch withouth having to do any real work. if you still want to help me the car wont start now haha that thread is here https://ls1tech.com/forums/generation-iii-external-engine/885213-car-wont-start-after-header-install.html
