[Huntersims13]

so i am finishing putting the motor together and getting ready to put back in truck… then i get to the intake plenums and realize i cant put one bolt on the corner of the passenger side because the front cover is the way. So i just slapped a good amount of motorcraft grey rtv and torqued them all except that one, is there a way to get it in there without pulling everything off and then pulling the front cover?? Or could i just leave the bolt out and hope the 9 others will do it lol

 

[1970something]

i would not. they are thin metal and i would not trust RTV to hold the boost without that bolt.

 

[JGK]

Can you carefully shorten the bolt to allow it to be installed while still retaining enough thread penetration? A rule-of-thumb is that a bolt needs penetration into tha threads equal to its diameter in order to achieve full strength.
Some aftermarket billet plenums are slotted at that hole, so they can be removed without fully removing the bolt. Maybe a combo of shortening the bolt to its longest while allowing reinstalling it, then carefully slotting your OEM plenum is possible?

I also believe that some claim that the aftermarket billet plenums are rigid enough to reliably seal without that bolt… but $$$. I think I have read that some aftermarket plenums don’t even have a hole for that bolt, and are plenty rigid in its absence.

 

[Jax]

I shortened the bolt and I have no leaks.

EDIT - I have the stock plenums with the RiffRaff reinforcements.