There didn’t appear to be a lot in regards to directions on this job, and some question as to whether it can be done without removing the top half of the intake. So the answer is, it can be done without removing the intake, with the caveat being, I think you need medium to smallish hands. If you’ve got chunky meat hooks, I think this becomes tough if not undoable this way.
What you’ll need:
- patience. If not a charter member of the PITA club, it’s at minimum an honorary member. Super-tight quarters work with the hand.
-12mm gear wrench
-12mm and 14mm sockets
-16 to 18” of extensions.
-think it helps if your socket wrench has a flexible head on it.
Things you need to get out of the way to clear room so you can get your hand in there:
-tranny dip stick. Not the tube, just the dip stick
-engine stabilizer bar. Remove top bolt completely. Loosen the bottom bolt enough to let the top end of the bar translate away about 4 inches or so, so you can then rotate the bar out of the way.
-remove hose between charcoal canister and VCV for EVAP.
-unclip VCV for EVAP and rotate it down 1/2 to 3/4”
How to get the VSV out:
-remove the forward bolt on the VSV bracket with 12mm gear wrench. This is hard to see. It’s just aft of the VCV for EVAP. You have to kind of feel for it. Get the wrench on it and work it loose enough to then get your right hand in there and take it the rest of the way out without dropping it down in the engine bay.
-get under the truck to remove the 12mm bolt on the aft side of the VSV bracket. Under the truck, go behind the rear tie rod arm, straight up behind the starter and you’ll see the bolt all the way up on the underside of the intake. You’ll need about 18” of extension to get to it and flex head socket wrench. Otherwise you’ll need more extension. Remove bolt.
-at this point the bracket is loose. There are two fairly hidden vacuum hoses you need to detach. One into the aft side of the bracket and one on the Passenger side of the VSV . This is the hard part. They are going to be heat glued to the nipples. You have to break them loose by rotating and pulling with your thumb and index finger. My fingers are still on fire typing this post. Work it, take a break, work it. Little at a time they should come off.
-there is a small run of vacuum tubing that runs from the bracket to the VSV. It’s the one you can see from the drivers side of the intake while the bracket is still installed. You don’t really need to remove it until you get the whole thing out.
-once those hidden vacuum lines are detached, you should be able to pull the bracket out far enough to unhook the wiring harness. Take a screwdriver to lift up the locking tab and pull the harness connector off.
Install:
-the bracket has one screw holding it to the VSV. Unscrew and switch out the VSV.
-putting it back in is basically reverse order with the exception connect the forward VSV bracket bolt first. With it holding the bracket in, the aft bolt will be much easier to install. Also I waited until the VSV bracket was bolted back in before connecting the harness back up.
Hold this helps. This is the second time I’ve replaced this. First time was probably 15 years ago and I couldn’t remember how I did it then, but knew I didn’t remove the upper intake. I don’t remember it being this big of a PITA. I may have also removed the throttle body the first time. Can’t remember.
Hope this is of use to somebody.
Rookie2
What you’ll need:
- patience. If not a charter member of the PITA club, it’s at minimum an honorary member. Super-tight quarters work with the hand.
-12mm gear wrench
-12mm and 14mm sockets
-16 to 18” of extensions.
-think it helps if your socket wrench has a flexible head on it.
Things you need to get out of the way to clear room so you can get your hand in there:
-tranny dip stick. Not the tube, just the dip stick
-engine stabilizer bar. Remove top bolt completely. Loosen the bottom bolt enough to let the top end of the bar translate away about 4 inches or so, so you can then rotate the bar out of the way.
-remove hose between charcoal canister and VCV for EVAP.
-unclip VCV for EVAP and rotate it down 1/2 to 3/4”
How to get the VSV out:
-remove the forward bolt on the VSV bracket with 12mm gear wrench. This is hard to see. It’s just aft of the VCV for EVAP. You have to kind of feel for it. Get the wrench on it and work it loose enough to then get your right hand in there and take it the rest of the way out without dropping it down in the engine bay.
-get under the truck to remove the 12mm bolt on the aft side of the VSV bracket. Under the truck, go behind the rear tie rod arm, straight up behind the starter and you’ll see the bolt all the way up on the underside of the intake. You’ll need about 18” of extension to get to it and flex head socket wrench. Otherwise you’ll need more extension. Remove bolt.
-at this point the bracket is loose. There are two fairly hidden vacuum hoses you need to detach. One into the aft side of the bracket and one on the Passenger side of the VSV . This is the hard part. They are going to be heat glued to the nipples. You have to break them loose by rotating and pulling with your thumb and index finger. My fingers are still on fire typing this post. Work it, take a break, work it. Little at a time they should come off.
-there is a small run of vacuum tubing that runs from the bracket to the VSV. It’s the one you can see from the drivers side of the intake while the bracket is still installed. You don’t really need to remove it until you get the whole thing out.
-once those hidden vacuum lines are detached, you should be able to pull the bracket out far enough to unhook the wiring harness. Take a screwdriver to lift up the locking tab and pull the harness connector off.
Install:
-the bracket has one screw holding it to the VSV. Unscrew and switch out the VSV.
-putting it back in is basically reverse order with the exception connect the forward VSV bracket bolt first. With it holding the bracket in, the aft bolt will be much easier to install. Also I waited until the VSV bracket was bolted back in before connecting the harness back up.
Hold this helps. This is the second time I’ve replaced this. First time was probably 15 years ago and I couldn’t remember how I did it then, but knew I didn’t remove the upper intake. I don’t remember it being this big of a PITA. I may have also removed the throttle body the first time. Can’t remember.
Hope this is of use to somebody.
Rookie2
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