06 civic si thermostat

Alright, I’ve been searching high and low and cannot find any information on how to remove the 8th gen si thermostat. Lots of info on the regular civics with the 1.8 (because its very easy) but nothing on the 2.0. basically my problem is that I cannot get at the top bolt properly and I fear I’ll round it off if I keep trying. It’s located right under the intake manifold and right beside the alternator. My choices it appears is to either remove the manifold to get at it from the top or remove the bar running across the front to get at it head on. I’m kind of leaning towards the bar but was wondering if it will have an impact on the structure of the vehicle. It appears to be held on by a couple bolts on each side. Any help and advice is appreciated, thanks!