I just recently got my 312 back together after a re-ring and followed the shop manual's instruction to 2-stage the cold head bolt torque at 55 then 65 ft-lbs. This is my first time installing heads on a Y and have never had an engine call for hot final-torquing before. I used the Fel-Pro gasket set that came with the Fel-Pro complete engine kit. I had already warmed and cooled the engine a couple of times before attempting to do the hot 75 ft-lb final torque. Of course I found the outer 4 bolts on each head completely inaccessible; of the 6 inner bolts, only a few rotated at all before my wrench clicked at 75. I didn't like the idea of removing the rocker shafts or the exhaust manifolds while hot to try to get the outer 4 bolts, so I just left them untouched.



I feel pretty uncomfortable about the whole affair, but though it's still quite fresh (I have only driven a few miles and idled), there is no evidence of leakage and the engine runs beautifully. I am considering leaving the bolts alone in their present positions. What would you recommend at this point?

1954 Crestline Victoria 312 4-bbl, 3-speed overdrive