Changin Da Glow Plugs and other shtufffff

[Robyn]

Glow plug swaps, easy engine priming, getting at the starter wires, the starter support brkt and a few other things on the Six and a half trucks has always caused great amounts of consternation, trepidation, use of vile language and loss of hide, plus generous blood letting.

This said, there has to be a better way than the above methods.

Getting ready to finish up Dahooooley, the real issue of getting to the back glow plug was going to be tough with my one screwed up paw.

A left hand will not reach up beyond the down pipe and grab the Glow plug, wire or.


Soooooooo, I went to thinking.

This is a sweeeeeeet easy solution.

Cut a Rat hole in the inner fender as follows.

I did some measuring and serious looking since the turbo is not on yet.

Using the next to the bottom rubber flap retainer button hole as a reference point.

Go from the center of the button hole up 1 inch and drill a 1/4 inch hole
Then go straight back 4 inches (use the torsion bar in the down position as a reference point to parallel)
On the front edge follow the curve around leaving about 3/8" of metal behind the little dip where the rubber flap fits, as this keeps the inner fender sturdy.

The lower edge of the cut is 3-3/4" below the top cut (Measuring down the front)
The back edge is 3" to the rear, then connect the top and bottom, following the natural curve of the inner fenders form in that area.

The top cut goes fairly close to the main wiring harness
So be careful, lest you screw up your wiring

The piccy shows my harness well as it has a red wrap on it.
The pix have explanations on them.
Also is a great shot of the Starter front hanger bracket area with the red colored bolt in the block.
To get at the #8 glow plug may require removing the clamp at the turbo outlet and letting the down pipe drop some.

The entire area is easily accessed with the RF tire/wheel removed.

This access point is also the method of choice when changing the starter.

Removing the rubber inner fender flap is easy, and new push in barb buttons are cheap at the parts house if yours break.

A suitable cover plate to go over the access "Rat Hole" is easily made from a piece of aluminum and fastened in place by a sheet metal screw.

The heater hose clamps are also easier to get to as well.
Again *********** !!! ! ! ! ! !
Be careful when cutting the hole.
A spotter would be a good idea.
Every rig is going to be slightly different due to many factors, but close, so look, measure, mark, check again and then cut.

Just don't cut your wiring.
The rear Glow plug is a snap, and the rear injector return hose and rear cap plug can be accessed too.


Missy

[Robyn]

Here is the official Rat hole cover plate.

This is a no brainer and can be whipped up from a little chunk of aluminum.
Cut a couple saw cuts on the top side and bend the little center piece inward, then insert a piece of sheet metal the thickness of the inner fender into the groove between the front and back ears, then form the tab so the cover can slide up the inner fender to retain it.

Add one screw at the bottom and job done.

This location, with the Tire & wheel off can be the sweet spot for swapping Glow plugs, starter and tail hook, starter wires, manifold bolts and with the Rat hole, even the heater hose clamps.

Far less blood letting and frustration.

The back plug is easy, and removing the down pipe clamp will allow a 1/4 drive ratchet, extension and deep socket right in to do the job.

ALWAYS USE NEVER SEAZE ON THE GLOW PLUG THREADS.

SALT SPRAY IS TOUGH ON THIS STUFF (We don't have that crap)

Notice the limited rust on things in this truck. 1995 with 188K on the clock and no particular care taken.

Hope this helps someone

[Dvldog8793]

Geniuses think alike....
I did this same mod awhile back but used my friends junk yard to get the hole in the right spot
By the time I was done with it, I was so gratefull that I would not be making any more offering to the blood god that I forgot to post anything.
GREAT job!!!!
Thanks!!!

[Robyn]

Having had to deal with the "blood letting" and other miseries of the design on the GMT400 just got to me this time through, so I decided to fix a few of them.

I do believe that once a design is firmed up and a test vehicle is built, that the engineers should be forced to don the coveralls, grab the tools and work on the beast.

After they scrape off a pound or two of flesh and donate a pint of blood to the metal gods, maybe they would fix some of these terrible designs.

Some stuff is always going to be a bit sketchy, but the stuff that is a sure bet that your gonna need to work on needs to be accessible.

One that really irked me was the !@#$%^& fuel line bracket on the back side of the bell housing on the 6.5
GAWD, what an abortion that was.

Mine is GONE NOW

It's laying in a blackberry bush some yards from the shop!!!

[EdHale]

I have said for years that a design engineer should not be allowed to release "anything" for production until he/she has worked as a maintenance person for like items for a minimum of 5 years.

Enuf said!

[Robyn]

Yup
Also, the corporate bean counter should have to deal with all the unhappy customers that are having to fight all the crap that they made the engineers go cheep on, and that fail.


Granted, some things are just tough to schedule into a production line, but most of the things that are stumbling blocks are no brainers.