0
Showerthought: I keep seeing guys at our shop skip the final torque sequence on Duramax L5P injector hold-down bolts.
I watched a new tech just zip them down with an impact last week, and now that truck is back with a blown head gasket because the uneven clamping warped the rail.
3 comments
Log in to join the discussion
Log In3 Comments
kelly47022d ago
Man, that drives me nuts. I saw the same shortcut taken on a 6.7 Powerstroke last month. The guy just hammered the bracket bolts in with a half inch gun. It came back on a hook two days later with fuel in the coolant. The torque sequence is there for a reason, it spreads the load. How much time does it really save to skip the final pass with a torque wrench?
6
jake_sullivan22d ago
Okay but come on @kelly470, "fuel in the coolant" from a bracket bolt? That sounds like a bad gasket or a cracked part, not just the torque. I've seen guys zip stuff together with an impact for years and it's fine. The sequence is a guide, not a law. Sometimes you just need to get the job done and move on to the next truck.
1
skyler_patel22d ago
Look, the book time for that job is a joke. If you actually follow every single torque sequence to the letter, you lose money. Most of these trucks run just fine without the extra five minutes of fussing. That blown gasket was probably a bad part from the start, not the bolts. We're all under pressure to turn jobs around, and sometimes good enough has to be enough.
6