TFS-30610001 | 1997-2007 Pontiac Firebird & Chevrolet Camaro Corvette GenX LS1 Head, 220cc Intake, Chromoly Retainers, Max Lift .600

Fit In Five Steps

How to replace a Pontiac Firebird & Chevrolet Camaro Corvette Cylinder Head?

1.Secure Vehicle

To begin, raise the front end of the car onto jack stands to help create a workspace. Remove the left front wheel of the car, and take off all the belts for the accessories in the engine. Loosen the V belt and the timing belt tensioner. Now, use sockets to take off the exhaust pipe at the manifold by unbolting it.

2.Remove Old Cylinder Head

Remove the air cleaner and all of its hoses. Remove the sensors that are attached to the cylinder head. You should be able to do all of this by hand.

After relieving the fuel pressure, unbolt both the fuel lines, the throttle cable and the kick down cable for the transmission. Drain the radiator and remove the upper radiator hose. Finally, remove the spark plug wires. You will now have complete access to the engine head. To remove it, loosen the outside bolts on opposite sides and work inward. Once you’ve removed all the bolts, you will need a pry bar to remove the engine head.

3.Preparation of Cylinder Head Removal

Before you replace the cylinder head, you have to clean off all the surfaces thoroughly to remove the accumulated grease and grime. A scrubbing pad is good for this and should be followed by using a rag soaked in brake cleaner.

Take time to align the timing mark on the cam gear according to the service manual. This ensures the valves will be in the right position. You’ll need a lockring tool to hold them in place. Follow this by aligning the marks on the block to the marks on the crankshaft.

4.Placement of Gasket

Before putting on the new engine head, you’ll need to fit a new cylinder head gasket. Make sure the correct side is facing up and locate it over the pins on the block, ensuring everything is correctly lined up.

5. Install New Cylinder Head

To replace the engine head, fit the new head on the block using the pins to ensure it’s placed properly on the block. Before fixing the bolts in place, you should lube each one and then tighten slightly with your hand.

To tighten down the engine head, you’ll need a torque wrench.  Be aware that you need to tighten down the bolts in the proper order and to the correct torque. The information for this will be in your service manual. When fully tightened, begin to reattach all the other engine elements. You should do this in the reverse order to the way you disconnected them. With the belts, make sure they’re properly taught. Before lowering the car from the jack stands, check all connections once more for tightness.