*Turbo "fluttering" while boosted*

[jr_ss]

Archer, just remove the manifold from the head.... Spray some PB blaster on the bolts and let it soak for a bit. As far as the banjo bolts go, make sure you have all your fluids drained before you start removing them. I suggest getting SS lines for the re-install of the turbo, it's much easier to remove/install if you ever have too again. Save yourself the trouble and do it like the manual says. Like Ian said, he gets paid to do this kind of stuff for a living so he has more know-how on doing it...

[ArcherV20]

You guys are right. I'm going to try it again next week with less partying and more work on the vehicle.

Thanks for the support guys. I'm not quite at the level some of you are But I try to do what I can on my own. I'll keep updating this thread with my progress, I might as well order up a new exhaust manifold gasket along with the SS lines.

[exhsturbine]

most importantly, try not to get angry. thats when things begin to break. and talk about even more frustration. and trust us when we say that this is relatively simple compared to those of us who have to take our engine completely apart to fix them when they break. but! we did it in little steps, starting with little stupid gaskets but just keep your head cool and you will be fine, just make sure you listen to some good music while you work. and stay positive and focused and you can drive to work tomorrow doing burnouts.

[IanS]

most importantly, try not to get angry. thats when things begin to break. and talk about even more frustration. we did it in little steps, starting with little stupid gaskets make sure you listen to some good music while you work. and stay positive and focused and you can drive to work tomorrow doing burnouts.

Have you been sneaking into my garage late at night to watch me work? You just described a typical night of wrenching.

Dont worry Harry, we were all in your position at one point or another, however long ago it was, we all had to start somewhere. When I really began wrenching on cars, internet forums were few and far between, I learned by breaking stuff.

And remember, have some fun.

[ArcherV20]

***UPDATE***

Back to work today!

Pulled everything off in record time, dropped the exhaust, and I'm now working on removing the manifold nuts to get that damn manifold off!

Everything WAS going smoothly, until we decided that there are several bolts on the manifold that was SUPER hard to reach and unbolt. We've gotten off 3 of 8.

Any tips on getting those really hard to reach manifold bolts? I'm going out to buy a longer 14mm wrench tomorrow morning. Aside from that it's been my ratchet and a LOT of hulk power.

I'll keep you guys updated

[IanS]

As far as getting tough nuts off, either use a pipe to extend your leverage, or hook the closed end of one wrench onto the open end of another to extend it.

[ArcherV20]

Pulled the manifold and the turbo out this evening, everything went smoothly with a little help and company from a friend. I'm waiting on a new exhaust manifold gasket (Mr Copper) which will arrive on Monday before I start reinstalling stuff.

MAN am I glad I got this done, I feel like if I needed to do it next time it would be no problem . Thanks for your help guys! I hope installing isn't a biotch.

Here's a picture of the old gasket, and the new gasket sitting on the manifold

[IanS]

Well done sir, Im glad we could be of help.

Good luck with the install.

[jr_ss]

Hey Archer, you may want to take your manifold to the machinist and have him plane the manifold gasket area that mates to the head. When I pulled mine off, I could visually see where it was leaking around cylinder number 4 and starting around number 3. Just a thought, that may save you some trouble down the road. It'll only take 30mins, at the most...

[xpicer]

ok look , when you took the nuts off the manifold did they come out with the stuts? if they did then i would recomend first taking the nuts off the studs and screwing an tigthening the studs to the head , i had a really bad experience with a stripped stud , and trust me its not fun at all , good luck .

[ArcherV20]

Actually all the studs stayed where they should be, stuck securly in the head, no snapping, no breaking (knocks on wood).

[ArcherV20]

ANOTHER Setback. GOD DAM!!!!

We got everything bolted back together. After hours of using the stock turbo lines, we finally got all the banjo's reconnected and everything lined up perfectly.

Starting it up, everything was great, the sound of bad gaskets was gone. Perfect...then it started. Leaking coolant, quite a bit, smoke coming from the engine bay. Upon initial inspection it looks like the banjo bolt (coolant line) directly below the manifold is leaking, not sure why this is happening or if it's too common with these swaps. We reused the old banjo gaskets, they looked to be in good shape (plus I don't think they would be the big factor in holding coolant in?) and we tightened that thing quite nicely.

Can someone give me some insight here guys?..I feel like we're really at a low point here. I feel so hopeless ..

[jr_ss]

How freely did that bolt screw in? Did it bind up after a few turns and then you just wrenched it in afterwards? You might have cross-threaded the bolt into the block. This is one reason I mentioned going to SS lines instead of the factory pieces... Only way to see what's going on is to drain the coolant and pull it to see what's going on (the bolt and line, not the turbo).

[ArcherV20]

I would have loved to have gone with SS lines. I assure you, unfortunatly it's my DD and I need to get it on the road so I opted for the hard way.

This was definatly the hard way. I'm reading a lot about people having issues with the washers being the leaking problem. I am going to pick up some new copper washers tonight and try them on however the OEM Nissan washers are 1 - 2 months away on back order from Nissan.

The S14 uses a weird copper washer, it's like 2 washers on each side of the coolant line, but it's connected by a copper band that goes around the entire setup. Would I be alright just using 2 generic copper washers of the same diameter?

The thread on the block look fine, I'm quite sure we did not crossthread. If that IS the case though, what's the next (unplesant) step?

Sorry for the all the questions guys. I swear I won't ask anymore after I get it back on the road.

[jr_ss]

Any copper washers with the same internal dia. should work fine. Nissan just has that band in the middle because they are stamped out as one unit, it's cheaper to produce...

My car is my DD as well... I used SS lines because of the ease on pulling/installing the turbo... You wouldn't have sacraficed any driveability by doing the SS line upgrade.

Good luck on getting it back up and running... It sucks being without a car.

[ArcherV20]

ALAS!

Finally, the hardest job I've attempted with a friend has been complete. Found out some things:

The banjo bolt was a jerk, but with some new copper washers, it held coolant like a champ!

The smoke that was billowing out of the engine was from the actual exhaust manifold! Apparently we hadn't torqued them down enough, after some serious hulk power, we got the gaps figured out, no smoke, no leaks, all boost, no rattles.

Thank you to everyone who helped, gave opinions, tips, and well wishes. NICO is the king of Nissan forums.

Edit: Oh, and I had replaced with a nice new Mr. Gasket copper exhaust manifold gasket. So shiny .

[0wn3r]

The S14 uses a weird copper washer, it's like 2 washers on each side of the coolant line, but it's connected by a copper band that goes around the entire setup. Would I be alright just using 2 generic copper washers of the same diameter?

From what I've seen/heard, the S13 motors don't have that type of washer, they are separate (probably like you bought) which makes them harder to hold both in place while putting back on.

When my exhaust mani came off, it had some build up that needed to be scraped off. Maybe yours had kind of the same issue and tightening it just took care of it.

[IanS]

Im glad everything went back together for you.

I forgot to mention the copper crush washers, they can be a pain, and should be replaced every time they are removed.

The smoke may also have been coming from grease on the manifold from you handling it, once it burned off, it went away.

I bed you good luck on your next project, and dont be afraid to ask for more help.