well over the weekend i finally did my plenum. i went with the hughes. i did new intake gaskets and new intake bolts. i also did a 180 tstat. overall the job was fairly easy. at first it was overwhelming with everything that comes apart. but once i started it wasnt too bad. i put it all back together in about 2 hours. overall it was about 6 to 7 hours. if i did it again i think it would onl be 4 to 5 hours. also i must add i would consider my self a really skilled mechanic where as i only do stuff when it goes wrong on my vehichle. i just like to do it. hopefully my oil consumption goes way down. however i did notice a power difference. when in cruise control it does not downshift on everyhill anymore. it also runs much smoother. i'll repost to let you all know how it keeps going. if you have any questions on any part of the project just ask em.

 

oh sorry i meant i'm not a really skilled mechanic duh

 

Good job bud

 

good job man you feel a diffrence??

 

Glad to hear it's not as tough as it looks or sounds!

I'm in the same boat as you, not really a skilled mechanic, but I know enough to be dangerous. I'm thinking of pulling mine apart as soon as it gets a bit nicer out.

I'm not 100% convinced it's bad. the PO did alot of work and maintenance on the truck. he might have already fixed it with a kit. tough to say for sure. I can see oil down the TB but doing a vac test on the PVC line I get no vacuum in the crank case. the oil might just be coming from the PVC. but no death flash either, so if no kit was installed I'm sure it has to be bad. meh, gets me in the garage for a day.

 

The PO may have just put a new gasket in and not the plate because there shouldn't be any oil when you look down the TB sounds like its got a leak somewhere.

 

I was thinking the same, too much oil for PVC blowback. now to decide if I want to get the kit or just get someone to weld it.

 

I would recommend the kit, its not very expensive and it won't fail on you. Being a welder I can tell you that welding cast aluminum is tough and you wouldn't want your mani/plate to get ****ed up. Also the fact that the mani is aluminum and the factory plate is steel, its not going to weld. I'd go with the bolt on kit, lots of people have used them and had no problems.

 

Did you get all the parts from Hughes? Is there a DIY thread somewhere for removing the intake?

 

Congrats, and yes you will notice a power difference. Loss of power is one of the symptoms of a blown gasket.