Dave88LX

I've decided that even though I pulled the engine out the TOP, I want to put it back in through the bottom.

I'm checking out this page here:
http://ken.lowrance.com/Projects/Hea...CamDefault.htm

Unfortunately, I don't have a strut tower brace. What can I hook the engine hoist to to raise the front of my car?

I figure it will be a bit more time consuming, but it will be even MORE time consuming and a PITA to install the headers, accessories, WIRING HARNESS, A/C and P/S pump CRAP, and tranny...it can all go up as 1 unit...

I've also got to take the hood off...I can take the bolts out from the hinge to the hood, hinge to hinge, or hinge to body...what's hte best so I don't have to line anything abck up...hinge to hinge?

My AC doesn't work anyways so it will need to be recharged. Can I just disconnect the lines or what?

Do I need any special tools to drop all this stuff? Will I need air tools? I did everything to get the engine out with hand tools...

I'm going to do a search here in a few to get some more ideas, but these were the concerns that I wanted to address mainly.

My other problem is my garage is flat, but my driveway slopes down slightly...can I pull hte whole assembly out the SIDE of the car, or does it have to come out the FRONT?

treyZ28

do a search in michigan tech for my name...

it was a topic where i was having some guys come over to help with a motor swap. This guy dreamer1Q responded on the 2nd page i thikn

turbo_Z

saw a friend do this a couple weeks ago.

the front of the car was raised up with a cherry picker

the engine was lowered with a massive tranny jack used on mac trucks... probably wont have one of those.

AC was released into the atmosphere

um dont have to take the hood off

if you are stong i suppose you could bust all the k-member bolts loose with a large breaker bar but why make so much work for yourself.. an impact really isnt that expensive when you think of how much work it saves you.

Dave88LX

Thanks Trey I'll give that a looky.


I've got that much, but WHERE was it attached to?

One reason I want to take off my hood is because it's blocking light from the fluorescent light.

Nope

Well I'd have to buy an air compressor too...and right now I'm about as broke as a poor little ghetto hood rat's bicycle...

Z95m6

I am the one turbo_z is referring to and all i did was put a chain from shock tower to shock tower. The body has lost most of the weight in the front and there is no real strain on the body to lift it like that. I imagine if you are real paranoid you could go get a piece of angle iron and drill a hole in it on each side and bolt the towers together before you lift it. I also was working in my garage to do my swap and i didn't have enough room to pull the motor out the front so i just went out the side with it right through the wheel wells. It you go out the side with it you may have to take the shifter handle off if you have a 6 speed because it probably won't come out the tranny hump going from the side. If you take the hinge straight off the hood you will see where the hood use to be because i guess GM must paint the car after the hood is on so where the hinge use to be is primer. You can use hand tools to bust the k-memeber loose they really weren't all that tight. By the way brad it is spelled MACK

Dave88LX

For some reason I thought that was funny!

so you just got some chain between 2 of the studs coming up and put the nut back on and hope it holds? Yikes...although I don't have much options...

I'll BBIAB, friend is here to take me to wal-mart

Dave88LX

ttt

Z97LT1

Here's an idea I have used and seen work several times in the past few years.

Bolt the tranny to the motor, then tilt the whole shebang and it slides right in from the top, with the radiator and such removed.

I had heard quite a few people say this would not work, but I have seen it done and helped do it.
Its easier IMO to yank just a motor than to drop the entire front end of the car.

Z95m6

Well i had a short chain that was used for motors and i put Grade 8 bolts through the holes that the shocks bolt too. The car body is very light on the front half think about it. You just took the motor, tranny, and frame, and suspension out of the front of the car. when i got the car up in the air My old man lifted the front up high enough to get the slack in the chain. He is tough but what i am saying is the front end becomes very light and once you get the body past the balance point the weight starts to go towards the rear and even less stress on the chain. I think this was very safe it is nothing like what marcin did with his header install

shoebox

A couple of ideas just popped into my head.

Ever see those metal tabs they put on engines so they can be pulled out? Bolt a couple of those on the shock mount studs and put your chain on that. You already have a cherry picker, so you could pull it up with that and then block it off from underneath. If you want to help the balance in favor of the rear, put some weight in the trunk well at the back of the car.

Dave88LX

Nope, not sure what you're talking about...

From what I can tell from Ken Lowrances site, the shock assembly comes out as one whole unit, and I'm just left with holes there...

http://ken.lowrance.com/Projects/Hea...neOnCradle.jpg

So they got some hardware grade 8 bolts and came up through the bottom and bolted their STB back in?

I guess what I'm sayin is once those nuts come off, the studs go away...

thewinner

i built some hella tall jackstands and just jacked the body up on those and the motor cleared.

Steve 97Z

I used the chain too

I had the front of the car up on two jack stands and just dropped the motor/tranny/k-member/suspension straight down with two jacks. Then I used 4 grade8 bolts and a thick chain and bolted it to the strut towers. Hooked the cherry picker up to the chain and lifted the front of the body straight up and rolled the motor out.

I was nervous doing it, but it was really a pretty safe way of doing it.

Z95m6

I believe shoebox is talking about something like this.
http://www.428cobrajet.com/id-hooks.html

probably not those in particular because they are very expensive but a lot of motors come with them the cadillac LT1 i bought for my build up had some on it. Sorry that is the only link i could think of.

2MCHPSI

I do not even use an engine hoist.. I set the cradle on 2 4X4 blocks (front tires off) and unbolted the 6 cradle bolts. I then took 2 floor jacks, and jacked each side of the body up..evenly) until it reached as far as it will go. I set the jackstands underneath, and then slid one floor jack under the cradle, removed the 4X4 blocks, lowered the jack as far as it would go and slid it out.

I did use a hoist one time and like mentioned earlier, I used one chain across to each strut tower, and then hooked the hoist to that. You have to take the hood off for this way, and just take the hood to hinge bolts off.