my a14 has what i believe is a head gasket problem, water in oil, etc. i have got to the stage of taking off the head and now one head bolt has began to shear! what can i do before it comes clean off. also, can u fit an a12 head on and a14 block, why bother u say, because they easier to come across than an a14 head, and probably cheaper!

I'f one of the head bolts snap off you can get these little things that once you drill a small hole in the middle of the snapped bolt, you smash these little babies in and they have little teeth on the sides that grip the bolt then you just simply fit a socket to the top and it all comes out.

Yes i have heard of such tools too - here in NZ there is a product called 'ezi-out' where a hole is drilled smaller than the bolt stuck in the head and you put like a tap wrench in there connected to a extractor type tool that 'winds' it out.

Remember though - this all sounds well in good in theory but the bolt snaps because "it's in there". If these 'extraction' methods prove worthless you may have to drill and re-tap the block.

If you want to go the backyard-cowboy method and have 'nothing to loose' beacuse it looks like you are going to have to retap it anyway - try smacking a slightly smaller socket over the top of the problem head bolt - get a real tight fit over it and try turning it, it may just cause enough grip to turn it..

I find that when i put my head bolts back in - dab/smear some oil around the thread - i think this stops them from binding/ceasing into the black thread...

Just a thought...

Hammer on a 1/4 whitworth socket and you should be able to get it undone.
I've done this twice.

I would get a product that Wurth sells it is designed for rust, sorry dont knowthe name .
And possibly tapping the bolt as you try to remove it may help.
An old trick is for every half turn out turn it a full turn in,by doing this you are cleaning the theads.
hope this helps
Ade

ade would it be called " Rostof " ?
its good stuff.
Cheers Steve

Quote: Working the bolt back & foward is called "humoring" it, & if you can get some lube down there while you are doing it, this should help a lot. As tricks go, this is an oldie, but a goodie & has saved the day for me on many occasions.