Having a hard time getting the last 2 bolts on the bottom side of the intake manifold off, its on a 2000 xj, precats are all in the way, any suggestions/tips

 

Do you have the power steering pump removed? Standing on a stool leaning over the engine reach your arm in the pocket where the PSP was. I'm semi guessing here.

 

Keep in mind that if you have a hard time getting the bolts off you likely will have a harder time getting things reinstalled and bolts torqued to spec. Especially those in the area of cylinders 3 & 4 are a pain. The suggestion to remove the power steering pump if not already done is a good one. Search the "how to" on the pump as there are a couple of bolts that might not be immediately obvious.

 

When I removed my intake/exhaust manifold to replace the freeze plugs I found it helped by pulling the cat pipes down and out of the way. I used a come-along strap to pull them out of the way, and hold them there.

 

First time I had to remove that manifold, those bottom inner ones were a pain. I ended up using a regular wrench from underneath. Still was not easy. For getting them back on, I finally figured out a useful trick. Start the bottom bolts and put them in just enough to hold. Then you can sit the manifold on top of those and then use a socket with a wobble head to get them on all the way after both manifolds are sitting in place. When you put the intake manifold one, triple check to make sure it is on the little dowels. It can feel like the dowels are in the hole, but can actually be on top of them. If that happens, you will have a massive air leak and your engine will rev up real fast.

 

You might want to put a couple bolts back in, on the top, to make it easier to unthread the bottom ones once you get them part way free. Then go under and reach up (if you can) ...or from underside of front of manifold (regular wrench, or stubby).

 

If you can get a torch up in there without damaging anything (use plumbers pads/welding blankets to isolate the spot) then heating them up should make it easier.

As far as access, you may need to get creative with socket extensions or see what kind of wrenches (maybe a curved box-end) you can get on the bolts. Just be very careful not to snap the head off the bolt.. however, thinking about it, it may not be the worst thing if the head snaps off the bolts if you have enough of the old bolt left over to get a grip on.

Anyway, the point is -- if you can use heat, do it!

Edit -- Also, x2 on Jeepwalker's suggestion to put the top bolts back in. Put them back in all the way so there's no "extra" tension on the bottom bolts.

 

A tip on this that was told to me when I replaced mine was to take the intake, before you are putting anything back on, and sit the intake on the dowels as if you were installing it (but without the exhaust manifold to obscure your view). In other words, practice putting the intake on a few times so you can get a feel for how and where it sits when it's on the dowels.
I did this and I don't know if it helped, I could actually visually confirm it was on the dowels, but I got it on the dowels on the first try when actually reinstalling it.

The "start the bolts" trick as dzywicki mentioned, will definitely save you a lot of frustration.

 

Finaly, had to use a ratcheting wrench on one and pivoting socket and ratchet on the other

 

Got the head off, had it surfaced and ported. Had the intake ported at the same time. Throttle body bored to 62mm, new mls head gasket, arp head studs, cold air intake, new flowmaster muffler, new mopar radiator, high flow water pump and high flow thermostat housing. Should be done by the first of the week

 

Just remember that beyouch has the 0331 head on it.

 

thats the biggest thing i hate about it. Hopefully with it being machined and new valves with the new and improved cooling systen it will last. I dont plan on pushing the motor hard

 

Since you have it all apart I would just replace the head. I didnt push mine hard, and she cracked. Save yourself the pain and do it now, then you can just install the manifold on the head and lower it back into place. Just my .02

 

Considering that the O.P. has already had the work done on the head (and that it hasn't already cracked), I don't think replacement is on the table.

For what it's worth, I've heard that the 0331 defect typically shows itself in the first 100k-150k miles. Presumably the machine shop would not have done the machining on it if it were cracked and it didn't crack during the machining. Therefore, at this point I think the likelihood of a head crack is not significantly more than on any other head. The O.P. is familiar with the 0331 defect and presumably will be keeping an eye on things.

Additionally, I had an 0331 on my old Jeep and put 302k miles on it without any issues (despite several overheating episodes) and that engine runs great to this day.

 

Man I wish I wouldve had that kind of luck, mine 0331 head went around 72k!