Where to get cam bearing studs on 16V

[Albie 0]

Hi again. Rebuild of the 16V engine is taking an age what with travel through work etc. The latest crisis is the damned camshaft bearing cap studs. I knew they were torqued to only 11lbs ft but even so a lot of them have a sloppy feel before the wrench clicks. (brand new and down to 10lbs ft), and one of them has stretched and snapped. I left the others alone after that until I can get replacements on hand.

 

Getting it out is not a problem, fortunately it came away just beneath the nut. So I decided that putting in a new complete set of them would be a good idea. That was until I found the stealer price on them, over £2 each, putting a set at over £50+VAT. I would have thought a full set would have had a cheaper price, but no!

 

So, does anyone know of a supplier of these cheaper than that? Or failing that, are there standard ones which can be substituted and used with extreme care? I am imagining that the softness of the original item is only a precaution against Mighty Joe Armstrong attempting to pull them up to the same torque as the sprocket bolt and shafting the bearings in the process. If so they have gone too far IMO, as they are simply too soft to torque up properly once they have been in use and then stripped down. And after all 11lbs is 11lbs whether the stud is soft or hard.

 

I would prefer to replace them all with a complete set if that is cost effective so I'm expecting to have to pay more than a tenner, but I would have thought a full set should have been cheaper than best part of £60. Just for studs for God's sake!!!

[Albie 0]

Well, at first I imagined that these studs were made from some special material or construction making them weak by choice but, after looking more closely at them, they don't seem to be special at all. They're 2inches long with a M7 thread at each end to take a 11mm nut. The length between the threads has a short length near the head end of an accurate machined 7.5mm diameter to locate the cap accurately, then it narrows a little for a bit, and eventually turns into the thread at the nut end. The cap has a 7.5mm hole which matches the stud at the head, but then opens up to 8mm for over half its length up to the nut. And they are just a standard steel stud material, they must just weaken with use.

 

With the feel of the others giving as I torque them up I have no faith that these will stay together when they are put under stress as the cam lobe passes over the valve underneath them. If I can't find a source I really will have to get them from the dealer at that ridiculous cost for a set.

 

Does anyone perhaps recognise these from any other model or application which may be a bit cheaper?

[VEEDUBBED 0]

How many do you need mate?,i've got a spare head with most studs fitted.

By the way,inorder to avoid the studs from pulling out,which they do even if 1 uses a torque wrench,is to put a tiny dot of Loctite stud fit on the threads when re-fitting the sods.

[Albie 0]

Hi Veedubbed. Thanks for the offer. I was trying to replace the whole set with new as so many of them have a soft feel to them now and I have no idea if this would be the same for all used ones. In my case I wondered if it was the result of a past session with a wrench from someone who didn't know what torque setting to use and had overdone things. I'm sure it isn't every one which is damaged but I would rather not take chances. Or maybe they are just so old, (it's a K reg), and have never been replaced so they have softened over time.

 

I would be interested in as many as you can get off in good nick providing that doesn't leave you short for the future. Let me know what you want for them and we can sort out how and where. I really appreciate the offer.

[Albie 0]

Just a note to anyone who has followed this thread. I have just bought a few of these studs from the local VW dealer as I wanted a couple of brand new ones despite maybe getting some used replacements. They are listing them as only showing 46 available in the country at the moment, and they say they are becoming more difficult to get. There may be not too many of these left now so if you need them, get them while you can.

[jslootweg 0]

I recently rang mr local dealership (Northampton) to get some of these and they said they dont do them seperate. If they do it might be worth putting the part number on here for future reference.

[davidwort 0]

I recently rang mr local dealership (Northampton) to get some of these and they said they dont do them seperate. If they do it might be worth putting the part number on here for future reference.

 

They do, it must just be the usual VW parts numpty problem you were experiencing :lol:

 

N 044 411 5 stud M8x30mm (16v specific, unfortunately)

 

you might even get away with a golf IV 16v/polo 16v one they're a M8x28mm

 

the VR6 and G60/8v golf studs are M8x35mm you might even get away with one of those?

 

ignore me, I'm looking at exhaust manifold studs!!!

 

right, cam bearing studs:

16v 030 103 397A M7x45

 

these are used on loads of cars V5, 2.8 and 3.2 V6, 1.4, 1.6 golf 3 8v, 1.6 caddy, new beetle etc...

[Albie 0]

You gave me a bit of a turn there davidwort, the ones I am replacing have M7 threads on each end. I checked this by winding into a M7 tap. You're quite right, the M8 ones will be for the exhaust manifold. They're relatively cheap! The part number quoted on the bags I have just picked up is the same as yours, 030 103 397A. And they are 44mm long with a short 7.5mm wide section just above the level of the head face.

 

These are ridiculously soft for a stud as the torque setting is so low. I found a useful link for anyone contemplating head work on a 2.0L 16V. http://www.autotech.com/instructions/i109418.pdf This is from Autotech and gives a complete description of what to do when building the head back up. It has been very helpful to me.

 

I just have to get the work done now, and without a garage. Why is it that the English weather always turns bad when you need it to be good.