stevie boy

Fantastic tutorial, and I really appreciate all your effort landar. Just finished installing a new belt, tensioner/idler pulleys and WP. However, things were not exactly uneventful-- I had two problems that nearly gave me a heart attack, and maybe I can help someone else avoid these issues. The first problem occured using the allen wrench technique to lock the flywheel in place so the crank bolt could be removed. Something terrible happened as I was attempting to break loose the bolt; the 9 mm allen wrench got sucked into the flywheel housing !!! OMG, I thought I would die, because even after trying to fish it out for two hours, there was no way I could pull or pry it out. I finally resorted to VERY CAREFULLY hooking it with a piece of wire, pulling as close to the opening as possible, and cutting it in two with an acetelyne torch, and pulling the pieces out individually. I then used a 6" long 1/2 " hex head bolt to jam/lock the flywheel, which worked very well. This is the approach I would recommend to others. THEN, the second problem; after finishing the job and filling the engine with coolant, it started leaking after running fine for 15 minutes. It was coming from the lower weep hole below the crank pulley. I looked everwhere for signs of origin, but couldn't find anything, which led me to believe it was the new WP!! I was devastated, thinking I would have to tear it apart all over again. Instead, I did a partial teardown, so I could see most of the WP without removing the timing belt or fan bracket. There was no sign of water coming from the WP--so what was going on? Further inspection revealed that it was coming from the thermostat housing assembly, where you have to use FIPG. Took it apart, and sure enough, even though I was very careful to make sure the housing with the O-ring was lubricated and carefully mated, and the housing bolts were tight, the two mating surfaces must have been in a bind, and didn't mate properly, with a .030 gap at the top surface. Apparently, the gasket material blew out once the pressure came up with temperature. Strangely, the leaking fluid ran behind the assembly, where it couldn't be seen, and pooled up right above the weep hole. Needless to say, I was both mad and relieved that this was easy to fix., and I was ultra careful to ensure the housings were properly mated the second time. I guess we all have our horror stories to tell, but in the grand scheme of things, I guess I got off lucky. Now on to my engine mounts replacement; I'm afraid there be dragons there, too! Thanks again for your great tutorial, and all of you who contribute to this forum. Steve

Well, I ordered motor mounts and strut rod bushings; should know if they fixed the engine vibration and clunking sounds (two different problems) in a week or so. If it still clunks, strut mounts are my next project. I know they are the least probable cause, from all the comments I've seen, but my gut tells me different. I'll let you know. Thanks for the info. Steve

Okay, I guess I should have said that I suspect a defective upper strut mount assembly; does the rubber shock isolator inside wear out, allowing a metal to metal contact during quick compression? I know that my struts are not bottoming out, so you are right about the "bumper" not being the problem. Thanks, Steve

Okay, I've read hundreds of posts in multiple forums regarding a variety of loud knocks heard whenever the LS 400 suspension encounters a sudden, perhaps even small (1-2") rise in the pavement, even though the suspension makes no other sounds during more gradual excursions, and dampning is good. Some suggest replacing both front struts, some say replace the rubber "spring cushion" at the very top of the strut, others swear that the strut rod bushings are the culprit. My car makes no noises when physically bouncing the front suspension by hand, or during hard breaking from slow speed, and using a large (6 foot) pry bar, I can not create any front-to-back movement in the front wheel when raised slightly off the ground. Therefore, I believe my problem must be related to the top strut mount, specifically the rubber spring bumper that cushions the strut shaft in the top mounting assembly. I have seen pictures that identify it as a "spring bumper", but I do not have a part number. Does anyone know the part number for this item? Thanks Steve