Hi all. I am part way through adjusting valve clearances and have installed stake down kit on exhaust side on my S3 XJ6. I have repainted the covers which look great and I am thinking of getting the cover dome nuts chromed. This then leads me to getting the the head dome nuts chromed as well, as they will then look average.
My question is, is there any problem with changing the head nuts one at a time. By this I mean remove one nut then replace it with the newly chromd nut and torque it up one at a time. This way I can get a spare set chromed ready to go. I think this is an ok thing to do but am interested to hear your comments. Cheers Peter
It is ok but there are two risks involved. The stud can unscrew from the block and the stud can break due to corrosion.
David
Thanks Davidxj6. Thats something I hadn’t thought about. Maybe better to leave well alone. Might just clean up the cover nuts and then the head nuts as best I can. At least they will look similar. I really appreciate the knowledge one gets from these forums. Cheers Peter
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Don’t use a wire brush though. You will remove what’s left from the tin and in very little time they will be worse than before.
You could also paint them black, but after you install them.
Thanks Aristides good advice. Cheers Peter
I’ve been thinking of doing the same but on my 2.8. Are the 2.8L studs dry like the 2.4/3.4/3.8/short stud 4.2, or wet?
The 2.8 studs are short! Nothing to worry about there. It’s an enlarged 2.4 block I think, not sure if they’re dry per se but I don’t think you can hydrolock these studs either way. Unlike the long stud engines.
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I dabbed some aluminized paint on mine with a sponge, and a silver sharpie for some spots… impossible to tell really
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Thanks David. Sounds good. Peter
The pro assembler of the engine in my 420G smothered the head nut thread in copper anti-seize.
Unless this has been done, you have little chance of getting all the nuts of without some of the studs unwinding
This is one reason I think a light thread locker should be used on the stud into block, seals out moisture as well