speedrace

I have a replacement engine coming today, and will be pulling the bad one this weekend. Is it easier to pull the engine and trans as a unit on a 1992 SC300, or could I save some time by just pulling the engine?

5spdSC300

iTrader: (1)

I like pulling the engine with the trans. Its also easier to bolt the tranny up to the new motor while its out of the car.

Lextreme

You might not have to take out the hood either. My mechanic pulled my with tranny (V8) in less then two hours.

Gunnar

Pulled mine out, with tranny, with the hood still on, in hardly any time at all.

motorheaddown

I pull the motor with the tranny attached:



Here are some tips:

1. Drain the tranny fluid! The 5-speed is not a sealed unit, but you won't realize that until the tranny is tilted with the DS out. That happened to me the first time, and tranny fluid came pouring out at the worst time.
2. Leave the tranny cross member support attached. It will come out through the tranny tunnel just fine. You can also leave it on when installing the motor/tranny.
3. When removing the motor mount bolts, also loosen the bolts on top of the motor mount. It adds "give" to the mount and makes it easier to install/remove the whole assembly
4. When using an engine tilt, the chain on the front should be shorter than the chain on the back. This makes the tilt less angled and easier to turn when the engine is first going in at an extreme angle (see pic above).
5. When installing the motor, support the tranny with an OEM jack. It allows you to slide the tail of the tranny side-to-side; this can help by walking in one mount and then the other. The jack also helps level the motor/tranny during final installation. Once leveled, the tilt can be used to angle the motor side-to-side because the lift points are diagonally opposed on the block. This can also be used to engage the motor mounts one at a time.

When using an engine tilt, you pretty much have to remove the hood. Although, I guess you could unbolt the support pistons and get more room.

Good luck!
-scott

Gunnar

I unbolted the pistons and stood the hood straight up. I didn't know I could leave the tranny crossmember on.

Definitely +1 on the transmission fluid, though if you've had to have your transmission off a few times you probably already know that.

Great tips Scott. I took off my front bumper, I'd be afraid of something swinging unintentionally and hitting it.

speedrace

I'm hoping to pull the engine and 5-spd trans as a unit -- with the hood still on the car. But first-- I have to inspect this Japanese import motor I received yesterday. Borescope down the spark plug holes to look at the piston crowns and chambers.

I'm assuming I am going to have to put a new pilot bushing in the back of the crankshaft -- as this motor has a flex plate on it. Or maybe the pilot bushing is in the flywheel itself.

Guess I'll know in a few hours.

How about the rear main seal? --- one mechanic told me these never leak on this engine, but I'm thinking it may be cheap insurance to replace it-- as long as I have the easy access to it now.

CCC-TT

iTrader: (1)

be careful taking the tranny out with the motor, basically what motorheaddown said, keep it tilted at a decent angle. When me and my friend were removing mine, we didnt have enough angle and ended up dragging the shifter on the tranny tunnel and bent it a little bit, we were able to fix it but it was still a hassle.

5spdSC300

iTrader: (1)

Removing the shifter before pulling the engine would fix that issue

Nova

iTrader: (21)

Did you guys remove the trans cooler lines and engine harness?

StiCk3

iTrader: (5)

didnt remove the harness, but i disconected it from the body harness and the ECU to get it out

as for the tranny lines yes those have to come out.

joe diego

iTrader: (3)

This is great! I hope others can add more information.

Klaus

iTrader: (1)

that's a lie, a lot of guys have FMS and RMS leaks- however replacing it is a pain in the *** as it's easy to do more harm than good. Judgement call here...