2003 GTX Oil Cooler Replacement Procedure

[JMac69]

Based on what I found searching threads here I believe the procedure to replace the oil cooler is this:
1. Take the 7 bolts out of the intake manifold.
2. Disconnect a few plugs and air intake.
3. Tilt manifold forward out of your way.
4. Pinch off coolant lines and remove clamps.
5. Remove 4 bolts on the oil cooler.

I wanted to see if I could find answers to a few questions related to these steps.
Step 1. This is pretty straight forward.
Step 2. For the plugs do I remove: 3 ignition coils, CTS, OPS, CAPS, KS, CPS, Magneto, EGT, and plug on starboard side exhaust?
Step 3. Does tilt forward mean towards front of the engine or towards port side of the boat? Are there intake manifold gaskets I need to watch for?
Step 4. What is the best way to remove the original Oetiker clamps on the coolant lines in a tight space?
Step 5. This also is pretty straight forward.
Replacement: If I mess up a gasket, O-ring or other consumable part, where do you suggest I find replacements as my local shop won’t stock parts for this year boat anymore.

 

[JMac69]

Answering my own questions in case someone else new needs to perform this in the future:
Step 1: It helped having pivoting socket head and multiple sizes of extensions.
Step 2: Marking each side of the plug connectors with colored tape gave me an easy path to reconnecting things after the replacement.
Step 3: Tilt forward means toward the front.
Step 4: A Dremel rotary tool with a cut off wheel made this easy.
Step 5: Similar to step 1.
Replacement: Get two new O rings with the Oil Cooler, grease and seat them on the engine block first, then install the new oil cooler. There were no gaskets to deal with on the intake, just rubber seals that needed cleaned and lubed before I put the intake back on. There is a tightening order in the shop manual for the intake that I followed.
That’s about it, good luck to the next guy.