Freeze plug

[srt-rex]

What's the best way to get at the rear freeze plug that's farthest to the driver's side. Keeping in mind I have an 88 horizon 2.2 tbi auto. Basically how much do I have to take off to get at this thing? Is it something I'll have to get at from the bottom? Any help is appreciated.

Thanks, Paul Baker

[22dodge]

bottom only, put it on a hoist and the job is easy! probably could pull the passenger axle shaft and maybe the starter to make things easier to get at. shouldn't take more than an hour to change it

[srt-rex]

Cool, I guess haha. I was really hoping to get at it from the top, but guess not. No lift unfortunately.

[22dodge]

well if you pulled off the intake and exhaust and starter, you could get at it from the top

[srt-rex]

That's what I was intending to do originally. Which way is easier, considering I don't have access to a lift?

[22dodge]

so wouldn't you need to lift the vehicle to get at the exhaust bolts, turbo lines, turbo support bracket. it only adds another 3-5 hrs to the job. when I had my frost plug fail on the back of the engine, I found a ditch that I strattled the car over and slid under the car, popped out the bad plug and installed a new one. all I had to do was remove the starter, used a flat blade screwdriver, and a hammer to pop out the old plug, used a hammer and a block of wood the pound in the new one. Installed the starter. Total time took less than an hour.

Maybe you should contact a local repair shop and get a quote on having them do the plug. if it costs under $100, wouldn't that make more sence than spending 2 days removing and installing the intake/exhaust, having to buy and intake gasket, and also dealing with the chances of rusted/broken bolts.

[srt-rex]

I didn't realize how intensive it would have been to remove the intake and exhaust, I was just curious which way made more sense. I guess its more obvious than I thought in hindsight. I'm going to try to do it from underneath without removing the drive axle and just removing the starter. Thanks for the help. BTW what did you do this on? I'm working on an l body and figure it'd have the least amount of room and may not be able to do it the same way, if you were say, doing it on a baron or spirit or something.

[22dodge]

Quote:

Originally Posted by srt-rex I didn't realize how intensive it would have been to remove the intake and exhaust, I was just curious which way made more sense. I guess its more obvious than I thought in hindsight. I'm going to try to do it from underneath without removing the drive axle and just removing the starter. Thanks for the help. BTW what did you do this on? I'm working on an l body and figure it'd have the least amount of room and may not be able to do it the same way, if you were say, doing it on a baron or spirit or something.

I've done it on several omni's, turbo shelby chargers, lebarons, minivans, K-cars, ford trucks and cars, GM trucks and cars. basically in my 25+ years of wrenching for a living, there's probably 100 or so that I've done

[srt-rex]

Cool, that's the good thing about this community. Is it a real pain to do it in an L body? Can I get the starter out of the way without removing the pass. axel shaft? At least there isn't a turbo brace to get in the way.

[22dodge]

Quote:

Originally Posted by srt-rex Cool, that's the good thing about this community. Is it a real pain to do it in an L body? Can I get the starter out of the way without removing the pass. axel shaft? At least there isn't a turbo brace to get in the way.

do you have proper safety equipment like quality jackstands, good floor jack (not a cheap $20 walmart peice of crap), wheel blocks? I'd hate to see an amature want to be mechanic get killed trying to save a buck!. My best friend was killed when his racecar fell on him and crushed his chest. He left behind a wife and 2 little girls (7 and 4). he had jack stands and was working on changing rear end gears. he pulled himself out from under the car and the car rolled, slid off the jack stands and fuel cell crushed him to death.

It's because of things like this, I encourage inexperienced people to leave some things to professionals with proper equipment.

[srt-rex]

Yes, I have two sets of quality stands, a set of ramps, a level garage floor, rubber wheel blocks, and a two ton sears jack. I also have the assistance of a skilled individual, although they are not well versed in fwd vehicles. That out of the way, is it likely I can get the starter out to get the freeze plug out/ new one in, considering its an auto L body? Or should I just commit myself to pulling the pass. drive axel? Also, that's very tragic what happened to your friend and even more so for his children.

[22dodge]

Quote:

Originally Posted by srt-rex Yes, I have two sets of quality stands, a set of ramps, a level garage floor, rubber wheel blocks, and a two ton sears jack. I also have the assistance of a skilled individual, although they are not well versed in fwd vehicles. That out of the way, is it likely I can get the starter out to get the freeze plug out/ new one in, considering its an auto L body? Or should I just commit myself to pulling the pass. drive axel? Also, that's very tragic what happened to your friend and even more so for his children.

before you ask anymore questions, get you head under the car and have a look for yourself. all the time you've wasted over the past several days, you could have had the job done in under an hour instead of 2days of internet playing.

[srt-rex]

Damn dude, if you don't know just say it. I'll be under there soon enough. I'm trying to research before I start tearing stuff apart and do the job right. Thanks for your help, but you've ducked that question twice and questioned my intent twice instead of answering it. I really do appreciate the help though.

[22dodge]

Quote:

Originally Posted by srt-rex Damn dude, if you don't know just say it. I'll be under there soon enough. I'm trying to research before I start tearing stuff apart and do the job right. Thanks for your help, but you've ducked that question twice and questioned my intent twice instead of answering it. I really do appreciate the help though.

so you're saying you need to have someone hold you hand thru the whole process. Ok then here you go. First jack up the car (put a floor jack under the front cross member ½way between the front wheels so the car is balanced and lifts evenly). when the car is high enough, put 2 jackstands under the car in a safe and suitable position where they are secure (frame rails, rocker panel pinch welds or crossmember are all good places to put the jack stands), slowly lower the jack onto the jackstands. leave the jack up to the jack's saddle is in contact with the crossmember. Block the rear wheels so the car doesn't roll. Drain the cooling system into a clean container if you plan on reusing. a clean 5 gal bucket works well for this task. put the bucket under the radiator at the drain petcock. loosen petcock to drain the fluid. also remove the radiator cap, this will aid in draining the coolant. while the coolant is draining, disconnect the Neg (-) cable from the battery. this will require a ½" wrench if the clamp bolt is orignial. after disconnecting the battery, you can safely remove the starter. there are 2 bolts and one nut that hold the starter to the transmission. depending on what year, most likely they are 15mm. You may want to remove the 2 wires to the starter and completely remove the starter from the car... or you may want to leave the wires on and just move the starter to a more convient location making it easier to access the defective frost plug (assuming you correctly diagnosed this is truely the problem). once you have gained access to the plug, you will need to remove it. there are several ways to do so. I use a punch and hammer to deform the plug and twist it in the hole, then I grab the plug with a channel lock type pliers and pry out the old plug. to install the new plug, make sure the hole in the block is clean. I use fine sandpaper to clean the bore. Now using I use a frost plug installation tool (I'm sure you don't have one) so use a block of wood and a hammer to put in the plug. Make sure you have it facing the correct way... dish side out. dont use and sealer on the plug especially never use RTV on these plugs. RTV will cause the plug to pop out over time. if you feel you must use some type of sealer use only Permatex #2 non hardening. Reinstall the starter, connect battery, close petcock, refill coolant, start car and burp cooling system, verify repairs were complete and successful./

because of the location of your plug that had failed, you CAN leave in the axle shaft. when doing the middle and right plug, the 10 min it takes to remove the axle makes a world of difference in working room

there, is that CLEAR enough for you or do you need someone to wipe your nose also?

[srt-rex]

Good God Damn!!

If you don't want to help people, don't. Being an absolute asshole about it doesn't help anyone. I never said I needed help with jacking the car up, draining fluid, or anything of the sort as I've done it hundreds of times. The only thing I asked was if the starter could be removed without pulling the axel shaft. Your horrible condescending attitude was not warranted, necessary, or appreciated. I was fully respectful, diplomatic, and gracious. So why the hell then do you feel the need to be so utterly disrespectful in your replies. The fact is you know nothing of my experience, abilities, or equipment, and your assumptions make you look more ignorant than an actually ignorant person. Any help in the future would be appreciated, just let it be known the shitty attitude an elitist behaviour will not.

Thanks, Paul Baker