Mercruiser 3.7L
What is the correct process to retorque the head bolts? Do I loosen them first? I have a maunaul, but it just says to retorque them after break-in at their noted specs, but nothing about loosening them first.
Perfect....thanks guys! I did not think I would have to loosen them, but read on some websites to looosen like an 1/8th of a turn. That did not seem right, so I had to ask the experts here on the forum.
Stupid question.....
Do I need to get a special socket for the bolts under the rocker cover? Nothing I have will fit under the rockers. I tried to find the shortest/thin walled sockets I have...
Sometimes you need to loosen the rocker arms to get access to the head bolts. Just a FYI - did you oil beneath the heads of the bolts before torqueing them down? If not, your torque values are probably not accurate.
I will try that...
I put a torque wrench on outiside bolts just to see how tight they were and they turned with 35#...So needless to day they need to be retorqued. I just want to do it correctly.
I agree. I am not really happy with the workmanship the people did on the rebuild. I would take it back to them, but my warranty expired, and I think I could do a better job anyway!!!
I went ahead and loosened the rockers and was able to torque the head bolts....and they were in fact a bit loose. I made sure to tighten the rockers back to spec per my manual (20#) when the valves were in the appropriate position. A word to all the folks that are on here and do not have a manual....Get one!! They are cheap and save you a ton of time!!!!!
