Take some pictures of the carbon and how bad it is. That is always a good thing to see.
Smart move on the JHM intake spacers. As many have said they really help. Just make sure to remove the front motor pull brackets or the intake arms will hit them.
I will definitely post pictures once I have the intake off. I will be starting this afternoon. I am hoping to be able to have the intake off by the evening so I can add some carbon cleaning solution and let those chambers soak overnight; let the solution do most of the work.
Thanks for the reminder on the brackets.
For the oil pan gasket, I had a much easier time using renzosil and sealing on the machined surface of the block (vs sealing on the pan and using the OEM Henley/loctite sealant)
https://www.ecstuning.com/b-victor-reinz-parts/oil-pan-gasket-silicone-sealant-70ml/d176404a2~vr/
Thanks for the tip. I will try that. I also have some of the Renzosil on order; looks to be pretty good stuff.
Got the intake off this evening. Not as bad as I thought; took my time so I would not drop any bolts or anything. Took about 2 1/2 hours from start to full intake removed. I decided not to remove the radiator; it was a little tight in front but not too bad. In another post someone told me that I did not have to undo the knock sensor connectors; just the two bolts holding their bracket. That saved a ton of work and frustration.
Plenty of carbon build up on the valves; looked just like all the pictures I have seen here of cars with 60k-70K. It looks like 4 of the intake runners on each side have the valves closed. I stuffed each opening with a blue paper towel and soaked the towels with carbon cleaner; letting it soak overnight, should help to start loosening thing up. I will soak the closed chambers in the morning with more liquid and then us the JHM carbon cleaning kit to get all the gunk out. Will also clean the valley area as it had a bit of oil residue, grim, and dust bunnies. So far so good. Pictures below (not the best pictures but you can see the carbon buildup):