Not too fiddly granted. Make sure to get them back in the same place from which they came.

I had a couple broken head bolts and was able to remove them by using acetylene torch then tapping them with hammer (if there is enough to tap) and removing with vice grips. Didnt have to heat very much. Heat works wonders.

Brian

Got the last broken bolt out just now. The two that were sticking out a ways were fairly easy to get out with a pipe wrench. I had to work with the one that was broken off in the threads. I drilled it and tried an easy out on it. At first it didn't come out, but then I used a torch to heat it up and let it cool off, then it came out. There was a lot of carbon build up, but no rust on the bolts. Thanks for your help and advice!

Edited November 27, 201014 yr by Denny

I have a couple of heads lined up: An E88 and an E31. Both are in good condition. The guy says an E31 would provide higher compression, and thus, would yield more power. What do you guys think?

Probably true. There are 4 (I think) castings for the E88. One is exactly like the E31, the rest have larger chambers so lower compression. Problems with the E31 are that the coolant passages tend to corrode and they tend to crack between the valves. If those two things check out OK, I'd go with the E31.