manifold removal

[bandittwo2]

hey guys anyone got a writeup for intake manifold removal?

[firstRWD]

Honestly, I haven't taken an intake manifold off on an engine, but the intake looks pretty straight forward. Just start unscrewing all the nuts that look like they need to come off and make sure you remember really well where they go for reassembly or label them as you go. I'll bet once you get in there you'll figure it out just fine.

[strad]

12 nuts, plus four securing the throttle body if you didn't want to detach all the cables and remove it with the manifold. Unplug the fuel injection harness and remove and label the feed and return lines. Really straightforward.

When you go to put it back in, secure the spring on the oil return tube with a zip tie, then cut it after you get the manifold bolted in. Don't drop anything into the sump through the hole.

[Atreus99]

does the thermostat housing need to go with it?

and have fun with that oil breather/return tube. fucking hated that thing.

[strad]

no, the therm housing can stay behind. At least on an M20b25 it can.

[dmain]

You guys are making this sound easy. I can't see the rear nuts on the intake manifold let alone get at them. I have a '86 325e. Brake fluid reservoir, heater hoses and wiring harness all complicating access. Am I missing a short cut?

[thejlevie]

The rearmost nuts are hard to see, you do them mostly by feel.

[aaronhoy]

Yes, it will definitely involve reaching your arm under there and feeling around. The first time I did it it was a major pain because I didn't know what to do about the oil tube. Once you get all the nuts off, the manifold might still be stuck onto the head by the gasket, and you need to give it a whack to break it loose. Then it's still sort of a pain to pull off of the studs because of all the random hoses and wires that will need to bend a little to get out of the way.

Oh and don't lose any of the nuts, they are M7 by some weird thread pitch that is hard to find at a normal hardware store.