I'm flipping through rockauto's head gasket sets and it states that head bolt replacement is recommended. I thought I've seen some recommendations on the forum here saying to get shorter head bolts because stock are slightly too long? Otherwise I'm just figuring they're trying to push some extra parts- even though they arent listed.

Thanks!

 

The factory head bolts are one time usage design; you can solve that by handily going to ARP bolts and/or studs (for the 3.9/5.2 motors you can buy both LA sets for the original motors, and Magnum sets for 92 and up; I don't know on the 4 bangers. Have to dig into the ARP catalog to find them, but the Usual Suspects (Jegs, Summit, Amazon, Ebay, and quite often the local parts houses) can order them.

RwP

 

Are these bolts seriously over a hundred bucks?

EDIT: Evidently "head bolt kit" and "head bolt set" bring up two very different sets of results. Partsgeek.com is putting me in the right direction.

The 94-03 bolts should work just as well right? Considering the engine didnt change any. eBay is confusing sometimes....

 

Yes, they are. And they're usable multiple times.

And now I have to ask what you were looking for exactly - the bolts or studs to mount the heads to the block; the intake bolts; valve cover bolts/studs; all of the above?

RwP

 

Unless you are planning on changing your heads every other week, the ARP bolts are a waste of money. They were designed for racers who do remove the heads on their vehicles repeatedly. If all you are doing is replacing a blown head gasket, or head gaskets, and not taking it apart multiple times, the regular sets from Rockauto work fine. I built 2 3.9L V-6's 6 years ago, using all Rockauto parts (i tend to stick with strictly Victor Reinz/Mahle parts, which Rockauto has the cheapest prices on, as well as the best warranty and return policies), and and havent had any issues or leaks, and so far, have put 74,000 miles on the engine in my 94.