Welsh plgus on back of head

[pranksta]

hey guys need some info on the welsh plugs on the back of the head, my drivers side one has gone, how hard is it to do yourself and how much would i be looking at to get a mechanic to change them?
thanks
paul

[m3taL]

hey,

they are tricky, stuck tight and very annoying.

i find that they require a lot of persistence and just when u think its not going to come out.. it will.

a mechanics Square Flat bladed screwdriver and a lot of fun will get it out but if your not confident don't attempt it.

i can nearly guarantee that if one is gone.. the day u fix it...the next one will go.and they will keep going until u do them all. happened to me twice in 2 different cars..

i ended up pullin my engine and box out, and doing them all in one go. most people will think this is massive overkill but hell it was so simple and its so simple to take a v6 n box out (iv got a manual so no tranny lines) all done within a few hours and never had a cooling problem.

id also check the condidtion of ur waterpump, themostat, pressure cap, hoses and radiator due to the nature of these issues its likely that most of the components will on their way out. cooling problems can create so many more.. so its good to fix them spech before summer.

m3tal.

[Benboy]

If doing it yourself, make sure that you DON'T knock it into the head or engine block, you could have a major job on your hands to retrieve it.

[pranksta]

so i pretty much need to take the engine out to get it?

[vnv8driver]

The one your talking about can be done with the motor in but its tricky, better off taking the motor.box out and replacing them all with brass plugs that wont wear out.

[pranksta]

the plugs on the bottom of the block and front of the heads have already been changed...how would you do it inside the car?

[vnv8driver]

which one exactly?? theres 1 that needs the transmission taken out to replace.

[pranksta]

they are on the head, at the back, i can feel it with my hands, just under the stainless steel pipe that goes to the inlet manifold

[vnv8driver]

you should be able to get it with out removing the motor or box, ive done them on the 5 litre and can say its possible.. if your good with tools and have a bit of back bone you will have no dramas, like said above be persistent as it may take a while.

[pranksta]

i got a quote from a mechanic today he quoted me $550 just in labour, he says he is too hard to do without removing the engine, will try do it myself, stuff paying that!

[vnv8driver]

all in all thats not a bad price, most of that would be for removing and replacing the motor.. just make sure you get aftermarket brass plugs instead of the stock gmh ones. if you need a hand give us a yell

[pranksta]

yea but i broke it down to this, $50 an hour labour, 550 divided by 50 equals 11 hours, and i highly doubt its going to take him 11 hours to change 2 welsh plugs, my mate is a 3rd yr apprentice and with the right tools reckons it can be done without removing the engine, but he had a hoist, he cant come till next weekend so fingers crossed, thanks heaps for your help mate its much appreciated! any other advice or tips would be great as well
cheers
paul

[vxcalais_01]

I know its a silly question, but why werent these holes plugged and welded with better material ?

[vnv8driver]

I believe strongly that manufacturers design things and put certain part in there cars to break, so you can go back to them and get it fixed. That and brass plugs are more expensive.

[pranksta]

i have a mate who is an apprentice and he tells me that brass plugs actually take longer to rust out for the block so they are actually worse for your car than steel ones because the damage is done before they rust ouyt

[Thomas1]

yea but i broke it down to this, $50 an hour labour, 550 divided by 50 equals 11 hours, and i highly doubt its going to take him 11 hours to change 2 welsh plugs, my mate is a 3rd yr apprentice and with the right tools reckons it can be done without removing the engine, but he had a hoist, he cant come till next weekend so fingers crossed, thanks heaps for your help mate its much appreciated! any other advice or tips would be great as well
cheers
paul

$50 an hour????

Most places I've been too charge more then that...

[pranksta]

i duno, he told me he charges $50 an hour labour

[Pub247]

brass ones wont ruin your every motor and head we do we replace them with braas ones. We'd go through about 100 plugs per day. getting them to sit flush and straight is main thing you want when installing them otherwise they might leak.

[Blown V6 Hatch]

you should be able to get it with out removing the motor or box, ive done them on the 5 litre and can say its possible.. if your good with tools and have a bit of back bone you will have no dramas, like said above be persistent as it may take a while.

That's interesting, considering 5 litres don't have welsh plugs in the heads.....

Anyway, no two ways about it replace them with brass ones and you will never look back!

[vnv8driver]

id appriciate it that you didnt be a smart ass, you know i meant welsh pliugs in general. you do know im trade qualified dont you, so dont explain things like i dont understand.

[Blown V6 Hatch]

Well, i can't see how you could do all the welsh plugs on a 5 litre without removing the engine and/or Trans.....All you could do in the car is the 3 on each side. What about the 4 in the back of the engine?? Being qualified, surely you would give the advice to remove the engine/trans and do all the welch plugs in one go.....

[vnv8driver]

if you read my post i mentioned the transmission needs to be removed to access 2 of the plugs, i dont see why your stirring **** so just leave it at that.

[pranksta]

hey does anybody kow of a way to block up the rust hole in the welsh plug so the car can be driven, i wont make it to the mechanics the way it is now, i remember someone having some sort of putty or glue and using it to block a hole in a radiator, does anyone have any ideas?
thanks heaps
paul

[vnv8driver]

depends on how big it is, if its a minor leak then just leave the radiator cap off when your drive down to the mechanics so it cant build up pressure.. exactly how big are we talking??

[pranksta]

na its a decent hole, even when filling up the water with car off it comes out