Last night I replaced the throttle position sensor on my Dyna. Easy job except for that back torx bolt that's impossible to get to with a socket wrench or a torx screw driver because there's only about 3/4" between the the bolt and the engine fins. I used a torx bit (about an inch long) that was thin enough to slide between the fins, and a wrench that fit around the bit to break the bolt loose, and then back it out. It was a slow process because the torx bit kept falling out.....took about 20 minutes for that one bolt. I also had a small screw driver that fit between the fins to apply a little pressure against the torx bit. Needless to say it was a PITA. After all that I realized that a L-shaped torx wrench (which I didn't have in the first place) would have been better to back it out, but not to break it loose...I don't think you would have enough leverage with the skinny L shaped wrench.

To get the rear bolt back in I went out and bought the L-shaped wrenches. I was able to get it in ok, and get it pretty tight but the service manual says it needs to be torqued down to 18 in-lbs.

So my question is, it there any way to torque that bolt down in that tiny space? Or is there any other type of tool that will allow me to go by feel to get it close to the 18 in-lbs that's required. There must be a tool that the dealers and indy's use for this. How important is it to torque that back bolt to specs?

If I had to do it over again I would have replaced the torx bolt with an allen bolt.

Here's what I used to get it out.

 

I hate those fasteners....

 

LOL I do too!! One rainy day I'm going to replace as many torx bolts I can with allen bolts.

 

I like the Torx fasteners. Use the correct bit. The Torx keys are handy, light and compact in an emergency roadside repair kit.

One trick is to torque an identical fastener that is easily accessible and then "feel" its tightness with the wrench/bit combo you intend to use, so you "calibrate" your sense of feel.

 

Press down on a scale with whatever finger(s) you press down on the wrench with, get a feel for what ~18 pounds feels like. Use same pressure on bolt until it doesn't move. Doesn't have to be that precise, and personally I'd error on the side of a little tighter than looser.

 

Yeah you are weird. LOL And that's exactly what I did with the back bolt. I torqued the front bolt and went by feel for the back one. After thinking about it a little I don't think the torque is that important for that part. As long as it's tight enough where you don't snap it, and it holds in place. And the bolts were pre treated with loctite, so it should hold nicely.

As far as he torx keys, allen keys are just as light and compact.

 

BTW. Installing a new Throttle Position Sensor seems to have solved my problem with the engine light coming on and idle surges (it was also throwing historical codes). It got to the point where it was so bad that the bike was almost unridable. I didn't have the chance to ride it yet but I let it idle in the garage for about 15 minutes. The first minute or so it didn't seem that I solved the problem, but after that it settled in, the engine light stayed off and the RPM's settled in....hovering between 1000-1100.

 

Use the wrench like an extension and off this program find out what torque you need maybe?

http://www.motorcraftservice.com/ren...la_main_en.asp

I did that on several of the fasteners on my WG

Al

 

18 inch pounds is so little torque you could probably with your fingers.

 

I like those torque adapters but the socket still wouldn't have fit into the small space. Could be good for future use though. Thanks.