Head bolt question

[ace305]

Has anyone completed the sequence? I have a question on 3rd step. It states to loosen a whole turn. When I did this the bolt loosened completely from the head. Meaning there was tension on the bolt. Is this correct?


1. 28-31 ft-lbs., 2. tighten additional 90 degrees, 3. loosen one turn, 4. 28-31 ft.-lbs., 5. tighten additional 90 degrees, 6. tighten additional 90 degrees
Pattern is as follows

 

[wmburns]

It might help if you included the model, engine size, and model year to be sure we can look up the correct information.

>>From Ford service manual. 2001 model year 4.6
Tighten the bolts in six stages in the sequence shown.

• Stage 1: Tighten to 40 Nm (30 lb-ft).
• Stage 2: Tighten an additional 90 degrees.
• Stage 3: Loosen the bolts a minimum of one full turn.
• Stage 4: Tighten to 40 Nm (30 lb-ft).
• Stage 5: Tighten an additional 90 degrees.
• Stage 6: Tighten an additional 90 degrees.

If asking for an educated guess, the first pass is to compress the head gasket and ensure everything is fully seated. The torque to yield part of the tightening sequence doesn't happen until stage 5 and 6.