M10/E12 conrod bolt troubles

[Cubieman]

I may just pick up that linked tool (thanks) to use with a breaker bar when I do my own car, I worked at shop for a while and used a new 1/2" techangle when I did work on customer cars.

I currently own the 3/8" which I won't use for this job, too much force at an akward angle for me.

[1000hp]

How many people are actually verifying their digital torque wrench is accurate (I bought a used SnapOn TechAngle for this exact reason) and it is off as much as 11* vs my analog....

Definitely worth getting it calibrated if you're investing in the tool.

Was yours reading high or low?

[BL92]

Does anyone know if any e46 cross memeber can be cut to remake these for RB jobs ( reddish idea )

[1000hp]

Not sure what people are dealing with on these jobs with the subframe. I had zero issues reaching anything around the subframe with it just hanging down out of the way.

And whether you remove it completely or not, you can get an engine hanger for less than $100.

https://www.harborfreight.com/1000-lb-capacity-engine-support-bar-96524.html

[George Hill]

Was yours reading high or low?

Both, torque was spot on but the angle wasn't reliable. IF you have a digital that also gives actual torque if everything is say 88-90Nm but the angle is 100-110* (actual) does the angle discrepancy matter? IDK how many bearings were down at my dealer during the recall but had to be at least a couple a week, maybe one every day which would easily be hundreds if not closer to 1000 and not one every came back blown up at least in a reasonable amount of time we could contribute it to a fault bearing replacement. And knowing some of the guys doing them I can guarantee the same care wasn't taken as most enthusiasts would spend.

Does anyone know if any e46 cross memeber can be cut to remake these for RB jobs ( reddish idea )

All E46 RWD crossmembers are the same in regards to doing this. I love this idea and have been meaning to do it myself but I think it probably works better on S65 and S85s.

I had zero issues reaching anything around the subframe with it just hanging down out of the way.

How tall are you, what is your wing span? We had a guy at the dealer who didn't like doing them and the joke was always he was too short and couldn't reach. It was a joke for us, but I think it was real for him, he was 5'5"?

[Niklas]

Simply buy a replacement connecting rod and do the first two passes for the bolts in a vise....

[1000hp]

Both, torque was spot on but the angle wasn't reliable. IF you have a digital that also gives actual torque if everything is say 88-90Nm but the angle is 100-110* (actual) does the angle discrepancy matter? IDK how many bearings were down at my dealer during the recall but had to be at least a couple a week, maybe one every day which would easily be hundreds if not closer to 1000 and not one every came back blown up at least in a reasonable amount of time we could contribute it to a fault bearing replacement. And knowing some of the guys doing them I can guarantee the same care wasn't taken as most enthusiasts would spend.

I don't know how the angle translates to torque. I'm sure it depends on the fastener and who knows what other factors.
Did the guys at your dealer use the analog gauge? I can't remember the last time I saw a dealer tech not use a TechAngle for any angle, but that recall was, what, 20 years ago now?

How tall are you, what is your wing span? We had a guy at the dealer who didn't like doing them and the joke was always he was too short and couldn't reach. It was a joke for us, but I think it was real for him, he was 5'5"?

I'm pretty average at 5'11. No idea what my wingspan is 😆. But the hanging subframe was never in the way at any point in that job. Not even a little bit. The only thing that restricted access at all was the oil pump, and that cost me maybe five additional minutes on the cylinder 1 bearings.

Maybe people just aren't getting their cars high enough off the ground on jack stands? It should definitely not be an issue for anyone on a lift.

[sapote]

Maybe people just aren't getting their cars high enough off the ground on jack stands? It should definitely not be an issue for anyone on a lift.

Do people worry about car falling down from jack stands while pulling on the breaker bar/extension?

It's safer to have the car wheels on ramps or blocks, and have the right side wheels higher to offset the engine tilted to the right so the socket/driver is more vertical.

[sapote]

Person #1: Holds the bit, gauge, extension assembly in the right place, cradling the angle between the extension and the breaker bar against their shoulder. They're responsible for maintaining the tool on axis as person #3 rotates the assembly.

Person #2: Their sole job is to locate the gauge and call out progress to Person #3.

These are the Cons of using the angle gauge.

I wonder why people didn't make the maker on the block for the final travel of the torque angle, and aim for the marker instead of having the angle gauge which can interfere with the socket/bolt-head true-ness. The marker is further away from the bolt so it give higher resolution of the angle data. I had used marker method when torqueing the head bolts but have not done on rod bolts.

[Slideways]

Do people worry about car falling down from jack stands while pulling on the breaker bar/extension?

It's safer to have the car wheels on ramps or blocks, and have the right side wheels higher to offset the engine tilted to the right so the socket/driver is more vertical.

No.

If you are worried about safety, you would do bearings like any other engine builder - on an engine stand.

[karter16]

Do people worry about car falling down from jack stands while pulling on the breaker bar/extension?

It's safer to have the car wheels on ramps or blocks, and have the right side wheels higher to offset the engine tilted to the right so the socket/driver is more vertical.

If I thought my jack stands setup presented a risk of being able to knock the car off by applying a torque by hand around the centre of the engine then I wouldn't have got under the car in the first place as it wouldn't be safe enough to do any other work under it either.

[BL92]

Do people worry about car falling down from jack stands while pulling on the breaker bar/extension?

It's safer to have the car wheels on ramps or blocks, and have the right side wheels higher to offset the engine tilted to the right so the socket/driver is more vertical.

I was more worried of the engine falling off the engine support bar, the engine was moving around when i was torquing down
Reddish idea with the cut crossmember is much safer i would hope

[1000hp]

I was more worried of the engine falling off the engine support bar, the engine was moving around when i was torquing down
Reddish idea with the cut crossmember is much safer i would hope

What are you supporting it with? You should be suspending it from above using a hanger, which will hook through the lifting bracket on the front of the head. There is really no way for the engine to fall off of a hanger.

[Keith_MN]

Following up on my own drama here.

Had a friend come over last week to give me a hand with this. What a difference an extra body makes, damn near enjoyable. I held the socket/extension square to the bolt, he swung the breaker bar. No sweat.
Again, this was on jack stands, front subframe dropped but not removed, PS lines in place, oil pump removed.

Changed up a few tools on my approach of this which also helped.
Stahlwille 1/2" angle gauge (thanks for the reco George Hill)
Sunex (amazon) 1/2" E12 socket. Very good seating to the bolt.

Less adapters & a much better angle gauge tightened up the tool interface and allowed more flexibility in shortening the tool length if needed.

I'll post my bearings over on my thread because we all definitely need more photos of those.

[digger]

just break the angle into 2 more manageable chunks rather than a single angle