Header Install
- Thread starter BluThnder99
- Start date
stangman
15 Year Member
http://forums.stangnet.com/showpost.php?p=5104038&postcount=14
i wrote this a short while agin, but it's all off memory (although accurate
), but i'll be writing up a full detailed one soon 
first get the car up in the air a good bit, the high the better. & if you have air tools you are gunna be alot happier.
take the calipers loose - two 12mm bolts per caliper. you will also need a 18mm open wrench to keep this from spinning also, just look close for the flat spot to put the wrench between the caliper & the bolt head. zip tie out of the way after off. there is also a electrical line you will need to disconnect that is in the fender well, behind the plastic
take loose the sway bar - can't remember size cause it hasn't been on my car in over a year (18mm maybe)
take loose the tie rods - 18mm
put a jack under the a-arm. take loose the strut nut on top - 18mm i believe. then after it's loose SLOWLY lower the a-arms & take the spring loose. at this point you can opt to take the a-arms off if you'd like to lighten the load on the k-member, but i never do. your call. should look like this:
take loose the steering shaft. there will be one 13mm bolt holding it to the rack. pull apart to separate
take the steering rack off. i use an 18mm deep socket for the front & 5/8 deep socket for the rear part of the bolt in the 'back' of the k-member. dont' worry about the rack falling after the bolt is out. it's attatched to the k-member, you have to pull it off. after it's pulled off, zip tie out of the way so the lines don't bend too much.
take cross member off. either 13mm or 15mm i believe.
the k-member has 10 bolts holding it in. two per side in the shock tower (19mm i think), two per side brace bolts - 15mm, towards the back of the k-member on the outside, & 1 per side that is the motor mounts - 21mm. but before you drop the k-member make sure you have the engine / tranny supported. i use a jack & a big block of wood that supports the tranny & engine like this & i usually raise the engine a hair so i know it's supported by the jack
i usually leave the shock tower bolts for the last before i drop the k-member to support it. be careful when you are about to drop the k-member cause it's a heavy bastage, have a friend help preferably. here's a pic of the k-member, you can see where all of the bolt holes are on it
after all of the motor mount & support bolts are out, then move to the shock tower & begin to take those bolts out & brace yourself if you are going to just let it drop. but what i do is i get a second jack & get the k-members weight on the jack. then i have a friend try to support the k-member, cause it will roll towards the front of the car due to the way it's shaped & the weight. then i slowly lower the jack so the k-member jsut doesn't come crashing down
i wrote this a short while agin, but it's all off memory (although accurate
), but i'll be writing up a full detailed one soon first get the car up in the air a good bit, the high the better. & if you have air tools you are gunna be alot happier.
take the calipers loose - two 12mm bolts per caliper. you will also need a 18mm open wrench to keep this from spinning also, just look close for the flat spot to put the wrench between the caliper & the bolt head. zip tie out of the way after off. there is also a electrical line you will need to disconnect that is in the fender well, behind the plastic
take loose the sway bar - can't remember size cause it hasn't been on my car in over a year (18mm maybe)
take loose the tie rods - 18mm
put a jack under the a-arm. take loose the strut nut on top - 18mm i believe. then after it's loose SLOWLY lower the a-arms & take the spring loose. at this point you can opt to take the a-arms off if you'd like to lighten the load on the k-member, but i never do. your call. should look like this:
take loose the steering shaft. there will be one 13mm bolt holding it to the rack. pull apart to separate
take the steering rack off. i use an 18mm deep socket for the front & 5/8 deep socket for the rear part of the bolt in the 'back' of the k-member. dont' worry about the rack falling after the bolt is out. it's attatched to the k-member, you have to pull it off. after it's pulled off, zip tie out of the way so the lines don't bend too much.
take cross member off. either 13mm or 15mm i believe.
the k-member has 10 bolts holding it in. two per side in the shock tower (19mm i think), two per side brace bolts - 15mm, towards the back of the k-member on the outside, & 1 per side that is the motor mounts - 21mm. but before you drop the k-member make sure you have the engine / tranny supported. i use a jack & a big block of wood that supports the tranny & engine like this & i usually raise the engine a hair so i know it's supported by the jack
i usually leave the shock tower bolts for the last before i drop the k-member to support it. be careful when you are about to drop the k-member cause it's a heavy bastage, have a friend help preferably. here's a pic of the k-member, you can see where all of the bolt holes are on it
after all of the motor mount & support bolts are out, then move to the shock tower & begin to take those bolts out & brace yourself if you are going to just let it drop. but what i do is i get a second jack & get the k-members weight on the jack. then i have a friend try to support the k-member, cause it will roll towards the front of the car due to the way it's shaped & the weight. then i slowly lower the jack so the k-member jsut doesn't come crashing down
I've heard it's possible to do without dropping the k-member, we tried it with just jackstands.. it wasn't gonna happen, maybe if we had a lift. Just drop the k-member.. ITS A TON EASIER! We didn't even pull it out from underneath the car.
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