What is this new elbow you guys speak of? I just want to be totally clear. The injector o-rings i can do, as i can the lower intake gaskets. Will autozone have the intake? That'* really all that'* around here besides Napa and i don't trust them. Otherwise i'll get it from my in-house parts guy that my shop uses. Also, i know on the intake on the right (drivers side) it says "hidden bolt inside". What the hell does that mean?

ok...on the LIM, there are 2 bolts that are hidden by the UIM (meaning you have to remove the UIM before you can even see the LIM) They are on far opposite corners, back left near the alt and the opposite one.

The coolant elbow is the one that goes into the LIM, right next to the alt support bracket.

I have only heard of people getting the coolant elbows at GM dealers or suppliers.

Having done this last week with Highlander..it'* all very very fresh.

The gasket for the upper is a plastic frame type and has clips that hold it to the upper intake itself. Here we have AJ holding the intake w/gaskets clipped on. (No..he doesn't model on the side..this is only a weekend gig for him )

The "hidden" bolts, there are two of them, they are not part of the upper intake manifold. They are at opposing corners of the lower intake manifold. Front driverside and rear passenger side. This picture shows the rear passenger side. Under a little water/coolant

Here is the ratchet, extension and deep socket (3-4") on the front driverside hidden bolt.

Lower intake full of water/coolant

Upper intake wet from the failure


Some tips. When you get the upper intake off, get most of the water out of the lower intake before removing.
Double check amount of injector o rings per package. They are typically packed with 4 rings per box. Hence your need for 3 boxes.
Have 3 cans of brake cleaner and 1-2 of air intake/TB cleaner on hand. Brake clean removes all oil and residue from gasket areas.
Spraying a light amount of silicone lubricant at the injector o rings before you try to remove the fuel rail helps them loosen up and come out.
Take your time and clean all gasket surfaces well.

Hey a pictures worth a thousand words guys. That looks like it'll help me out a ton. I suppose i'm looking at a full-day or two project here? I'm guessing it'* good to do it ASAP, I don't want that coolant sitting in the cylinders.

Yes, you're right! Get that coolant out as soon as possible. And you will want a couple days and an assistant (someone to do all the hard stuff, lol) if possible.

Well i'm going to try and get it in her garage this weekend and get it apart, time is just a constraint here, as well as temperature. Plus i'll need the guy with the UIM to send it out to me if he can. I still have to talk to the owner about it though. I do want to know though, on the lower gaskets every parts store has a 1st design and a second design. Which do i want?

you want the 2nd design. It was revised to make improvements that you want.

It should only take a few hours to do.

edit: and when retorquing the UIM...89 INCH pounds, it is easy to miss the click on the Tq wrench, so be careful.