Need some help with intake gasket issue

[38ffems]

I am pretty sure I have a bad intake manifold gasket. Its a rough idle and I have the whistling noise that was described. I am pretty sure I can handle this, but wanted to know from people who have done this if this is a shady tree mechanic fix or should i have a proffessional do this. I believe Felpro is the company that makes these, any brand I should keep an eye out for or stay away from?

[surferfletch]

If you can turn a wrench you can do it! Let us know how it goes. I used the Felpro gaskets from Advance. For reference, take a few pics of the engine bay before you dig in.

[38ffems]

Ok I will, I am probably going to tackle this tomorrow but will post up when its done. I really hope this fixes my problems because just like i have read in other posts, i think the hole has gotten big and now it idles LIKE CRAP! when driving normal it runs pretty decent though just when I slow down and park.

[surferfletch]

How many miles on your rig? Might be worth checking your plugs.

[38ffems]

I just replaced all the plugs and they are gapped to i think .42 i dont really remember what i gapped them at. I am almost positive that its the gasket because everything that is happening is exactly as described by other people. How long does it normally take to replace the gasket and is there anything I need to look out for or be careful of?

[surferfletch]

You should be able to do it in a couple of hours. The first time I got the engine torn down that far, I was really slow, making sure I marked where everything went. There is a lot of stuff bolted to the upper intake. The second time I tore it down, it went very fast. Just don't drop anything down into the engine when it's apart! Maybe someone with the DOHC engine can chime in. I have the '97 SOHC engine.

[38ffems]

Ok got it fixed, was both upper and lower intake gaskets, holy crap what difference. It cost me $250 but I don't have a torque wrench and I am very sketched out about pulling the engine apart at this point. Still learning though.

[surferfletch]

Hard to break anything with this job. You do have to be careful when tightening bolts into aluminum. I did mine without a torque wrench, though. Glad you got it done!