Fuel rails removal on 3.1L (Vin "M").

[chuck0]

My objective is to replace the LIM gasket.
I'm at the point of removing the Rails & have (3) questions.

1. Can I leave the Rails in place if I'm just going to remove the LIM to replace a leaking gasket?

2. If I must remove the Rails; can I disconnect the fuel lines at the back Rail and the bottom of the Fuel Pressure Regulator Assy of the front Rail, rather than the usual connection at the rubber fuel lines? I'm trying to avoid this connection since it requires a special tool that I don't have.

3. I already removed the Rail mounting bolts (2) between the front & back Rails, but the Rails don't seem to want to pop-up from the top of the Injectors. Are there any other Rail mounting bolts that I may have missed?

Thanks for any help/tips provided.

[Tech II]

Yes, you can disengage the fuel lines with the special tool(costs 7-18 bucks), or you can disconnect at the fuel rail, but you will need new fuel o-rings.......

Can go either way with the fuel rail....leave it in the lower intake, but you have to be careful of the injector tips during cleaning of the lower intake....

Or, remove the rail, but you don't pop it off the top of the injectors, you pop the lower end of the injectors out of the lower intake.....pair of rt angle needle nose pliers works great.....fits under the injector and gives you leverage to pop it out gently.....start at one end and work your way down, and then do the other side(sometimes they can stick, can spray a penetrant to aid in removal).....the rails and 6 injectors come out as one unit......sometimes an o-ring from the injector tip stays in the lower intake......remove it....if there are no nicks in the o-rings, they can be reused, but I prefer new ones....clean openings in the lower intake and generously apply petroleum jelly to the o-rings....this will allow the whole rail unit to go easily back into the lower intake while pushing slightly on top of the rails....