[1LE Red Dragon]

Ive read this "How to" for damper installation.

https://www.camaro6.com/forums/showthread.php?t=517100

But there are a few missing details. Hoping some others can give some feedback. There are quite a few people interested in doing the lower pulley install themselves, but there isn't a complete how to with pictures. The best one we have is from the link below and its good, just need a little more clarity in step 2.

Ill copy and paste from his install instructions here:

Damper installation. .

1. Remove intake (Straighfoward)

2. Remove fan Assembly ( may not have to with my too) it's tight fit but it will come out with out losing coolant.. the quick disconnect on upper drivers side that's cools some type of oil does have to disconnect.)

Step 2 needs a little clarification IMO. A picture of the hose that is the quick disconnect. How many bolts on fan? 2 or 4. Any bending of the hard lines to get it out. Do you need to get under the car for the lower fan bolts? Or can everything be done from up top? For those that dont have a lift, that makes a difference.

I can only see two bolts from the top of the fan asssembly and some wire loom attached to the fan shroud. Are there two more on the bottom, that I need to access from my back on the floor.

From searching through "LOWER PULLEY" threads. People have said its easier to install the lower for the normal person than the uppe, as a press is not required. But there is some ambiguity around how you get access to install the puller.

Some have said the radiator needs to come out. Others say radiator can stay in, but AC lines have to come loose. Others say radiator stays in, and lines stay intact. The dealer says the whole front end comes off to do the install and its a 6 hour job. So it varies widely. So I would like to hear from the people that say its an easy job, what corners do you cut, or is it just easy, and other people make it sound more difficult than it should.

And this install thread says to set your impact gum to 250 ft/lbs. My impact gun has no numerical settings. Are most people taking the starter out and torquing with torque wrench or using locktite and impact gun?

[Camaro#7]

You will have to get underneath the car and remove the black plastic piece that covers the Tranny cooler. There are 3 bolts if I remember correctly on the bottom. I also removed the quick connect pieces on the drivers side lines going into the radiator to give me more room to get the fan out. It will take a bit of moving the fan back and forth to get it out but not too bad. You shouldn't need to remove anything else to access the pulley.

[1LE Red Dragon]

Originally Posted by Camaro#7

You will have to get underneath the car and remove the black plastic piece that covers the Tranny cooler. There are 3 bolts if I remember correctly on the bottom. I also removed the quick connect pieces on the drivers side lines going into the radiator to give me more room to get the fan out. It will take a bit of moving the fan back and forth to get it out but not too bad. You shouldn't need to remove anything else to access the pulley.

Thank you very much for the additional details. Did these quick connect pieces being removed cause a coolant loss? Where you need to bleed the air out of the coolant system. Or did you drain the coolant?

[TMS]

So I replaced my factory damper with the ATI SuperDamper and a 9.17" pulley. However, it was an absolute #%&*. I did not remove the radiator nor did I break loose the A/C/Refrigerant lines, oil cooler lines, etc. I did drain the radiator and remove the lower and upper radiator hoses at the radiator connection to more easily allow the fan assembly to be removed. But I don't think you need to absolutely do this. Like Camaro#7, I too remove the oil cooler lines quick connect lines on the driver side going into the radiator. These lines will not leak when you remove them. Then I began trying to remove the crank pulley bolt. This was the part that was a $&*% *#^%.



With the gear in 4th (manual trans), E-brake set, I used 3/4" drive breaker bar and 3/4" drive Craftsman socket (non-impact) with 4 ft cheater bar. I pulled (counter clockwise of course in case you are wondering) as hard as I could until I broke the socket... Fail





I then ran an Ingersoll Rand 1/2" drive impact gun rated at 600 ft. lbs. with 24mm impact socket and cranked up the line pressure from 90 psi to 140 psi... Fail

I ran a borrowed Home Depot Husky 1/2" drive impact gun rated at 800 ft. lbs and shortened the 3/8" air hose from my 50ft. to a 25ft. hose...Fail

Used penetrating oil on washer where it meets the damper and let sit for a couple of days and then tried the Husky impact gun again... Fail



Lastly, using the right tool for the job philosophy, I ordered a new 3/4" drive with impact socket Ingersoll Rand impact gun rated at 1,350 ft. lbs. of reversing torque. I setup a short lead from my air tank and had to upsize from 3/8" air line to 1/2" air line to run this new impact gun. This was the most compact gun I could find with the most torque that would actually fit between the crank bolt and the radiator. It barely fit with just enough room to loosen the bolt and still get the gun out of the engine bay.





And to ensure I was not defeated on this attempt, I brought the torch out and lightly heated the flange of the crank bolt being careful to not overheat it to I wouldn't damage the seal.





Success! It zipped right off. Once the bolt was removed I could see why it might have been so difficult to remove. The factory bolt has a sealing adhesive on the underside of the flange.





Thinking the tough part was over and it was all down hill, I ran into the next problem. Getting the damper pulled off the crank. I used my trusty 3-jaw puller and ultimately broke one of the jaws. Dead in the water again - Fail.

I then ordered the factory recommended puller specifically for this damper and it popped right off. The puller is an OTC part#6667





Knowing what I know now, I think if I would have just put heat to it and used the breaker bar technique and it likely would have come loose. Maybe next time.



Good luck. Let us know how it turns out.

[1LE Red Dragon]

Is this the quick disconnect thing you are talking about? I guess it has to be. It's the only thing keeping it from coming out.

If so how does this quickly disconnect thing disconnect. I'm good at breaking stuff is why I ask first.

[1LE Red Dragon]

Yes. It is. I'll answer my own question. There's a retainer clip that's an e clip looking piece of wire. Then it pulls right off. No leak either. BUT.... I can't figure out how to wiggle the fan off.. There are clips on the right and left side of the fan shroud that go into a slot in the radiator. These clips are situated below the radiator lower hose on the driver's side and below the upper radiator hose on passenger side. So pulling up they get caught on the hoses. I think you must pull at least one of the radiator hoses loose. If you can wiggle that thing out, then I don't know how.

[TMS]

Originally Posted by 1LE Red Dragon

Yes. It is. I'll answer my own question. There's a retainer clip that's an e clip looking piece of wire. Then it pulls right off. No leak either. BUT.... I can't figure out how to wiggle the fan off.. There are clips on the right and left side of the fan shroud that go into a slot in the radiator. These clips are situated below the radiator lower hose on the driver's side and below the upper radiator hose on passenger side. So pulling up they get caught on the hoses. I think you must pull at least one of the radiator hoses loose. If you can wiggle that thing out, then I don't know how.

That is why I removed both radiator hoses at the radiator. It just made it much easier, but you have to drain the coolant.

[1LE Red Dragon]

Originally Posted by TMS

That is why I removed both radiator hoses at the radiator. It just made it much easier, but you have to drain the coolant.

I think that's the only route I can go. I can't get either side to tilt up or down far enough to rotate this sucker out. I guess I'll have to drain the coolant too. Dang it. I hate getting the air all the way out.

I see you went with the 9.17 pulley, and E50. Without headers. My setup will be similar to yours. Rotofab, Borla 60606 to stock NPP, but I'm using the 8.6 pulley. Might do flex fuel also. What kind of power do you make on E50?

[BMWM.D.]

Originally Posted by 1LE Red Dragon

I think that's the only route I can go. I can't get either side to tilt up or down far enough to rotate this sucker out. I guess I'll have to drain the coolant too. Dang it. I hate getting the air all the way out.

I see you went with the 9.17 pulley, and E50. Without headers. My setup will be similar to yours. Rotofab, Borla 60606 to stock NPP, but I'm using the 8.6 pulley. Might do flex fuel also. What kind of power do you make on E50?

I was set on doing a lower pulley. I have both an 8.6” and a 9.17”, but I think I may ultimately do an upper. The 2.30” upper that is most popular will provide more boost than the 8.6” lower. The 9.17” is too aggressive for 91 octane in my opinion, which is why it was only going to be used with meth or ethanol blends.

So now I don’t know what to do. I feel like the upper will be an easier install, especially on my A10 car. I’ve zapped off LS3 crank bolts with my 1/2” impact though, so maybe it won’t be too much of a pain.

[1LE Red Dragon]

From the calculations the 8.6 lower is almost identical in blower speed. The ratio is slightly higher with the 2.3, but only marginally. I am expecting about 2 psi more boost with the 8.6. You might get 2.2psi. Within measurement error,I think and unperceivable with a mechanical gauge.

Draining the radiator fluid is not the end of the world. But now it makes me think about upgrading the thermostat while the coolant is drained. But if I do, do I go 160 or 180? And which one is equivalent in quality to stock piece.

[BMWM.D.]

Originally Posted by 1LE Red Dragon

From the calculations the 8.6 lower is almost identical in blower speed. The ratio is slightly higher with the 2.3, but only marginally. I am expecting about 2 psi more boost with the 8.6. You might get 2.2psi. Within measurement error,I think and unperceivable with a mechanical gauge.

Draining the radiator fluid is not the end of the world. But now it makes me think about upgrading the thermostat while the coolant is drained. But if I do, do I go 160 or 180? And which one is equivalent in quality to stock piece.

I have a 160 in mine. I would not recommend any of the stock replacement thermostats. They all have issues at this point. I had a Mishimoto which has an OEM type gasket design, and it failed, causing my engine to nearly overheat. Ended up running an LS3 style thermostat in a billet housing from BTR racing. Much better solution in my opinion.

I also bought a 174 t-stat that I may install. I haven’t decided yet. The car runs about 165 on the freeway, but I have my fan dialed in to target 180. The 174 would probably make things more consistent.


And you’re right about the blower speeds. It’s not a big difference. 7.5% vs 8.7%. But I figure if the upper is cheaper and easier, then it’s win-win. But I’d need to buy a pulley puller for the blower pulley. I probably have everything I need for the lower. Unless my 3 jaw puller breaks like yours did, lol.

[1LE Red Dragon]

Originally Posted by BMWM.D.

I have a 160 in mine. I would not recommend any of the stock replacement thermostats. They all have issues at this point. I had a Mishimoto which has an OEM type gasket design, and it failed, causing my engine to nearly overheat. Ended up running an LS3 style thermostat in a billet housing from BTR racing. Much better solution in my opinion.

And you’re right about the blower speeds. It’s not a big difference. 7.5% vs 8.7%. But I figure if the upper is cheaper and easier, then it’s win-win. But I’d need to buy a pulley puller for the blower pulley. I probably have everything I need for the lower. Unless my 3 jaw puller breaks like yours did, lol.

Mine didn't break.. YET... Lol

I bought new tools for this job. Here is the puller I bought.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B079J...op_mb_pd_title

Also bought an installer for the pulley. Consisting of a M16x 2.0 threaded rod and two big thick washers and a heavy duty M16 flanged nut.

I have a 650 ft lb 24V Kobalt 1/2" impact gun. But think it maybe too long to fit. If I can get it in between the bolt head and the radiator with the socket installed. I just need to bust it loose then can use my shorter 150 ft lb Kobalt 3/8" to pull the bolt out. Then hopefully my puller will work and not have to use heat, or I'll need to apply heat too. EDF above said he tapped on it with a hammer to get it to come loose. I like the lower because you can swap sizes relatively easily. I suppose if you have small arms and hands.

[Chris V]

With a manual you don't need to remove the radiator, or go under the car.

E-Brake on, car in gear. Put a torch on the head of the bolt for 15-20 seconds, then use a breaker bar with a big extension on it and pull until it breaks. I think my overall lenght for the breaker bar and the pole I had around it was about 5 feet.

[TMS]

Originally Posted by Chris V

With a manual you don't need to remove the radiator, or go under the car.

E-Brake on, car in gear. Put a torch on the head of the bolt for 15-20 seconds, then use a breaker bar with a big extension on it and pull until it breaks. I think my overall lenght for the breaker bar and the pole I had around it was about 5 feet.

X2. This is exactly what I concluded only after days of struggle and extra expense. I really think this is the best approach and looking back, I wish I just put the torch to it from the get go.