Hey All-

Newish to me 2006 4.4v8 w/124k, clicks a bit when cold but tends to mellow out when it warms up. I've been somewhat intentionally ignoring it in case it was a valve or rod knock, and I wanted to bury my head in the sand. But I think it's an exhaust leak, because I'm now recognizing there's a bit of an exhaust smell in the cabin. I was letting it warm up the other day while I brushed the snow off and it hit me when I opened the door.

I'm not terribly worried about it for the time being as it's not THAT strong. And it's barely clearing 32 most days with no space in the garage. But when I am able to crawl into and under it, what are the likeliest suspects? Any tricks for getting to the manifold bolts (US passenger side)? And how likely am I to break anything if I try to torque them down a smooch?

 

Just a little bumpity bump. If I can re-state my post, I'm trying to figure out how I go about checking the exhaust manifold for loose bolts. I've read that it can be difficult. Go in from underneath? What do I need to remove?

 

There are posts on how to do this. Its pretty easy. Just go in from the wheel well after removing heat shields.

 

I'm not finding posts on HOW to go about it, only that folks have. No big deal, if the instructions are "go in from underneath and figure it out" that's a good start. Sounds like a PITA.