Thank you all for all the info!
I appreciate all the offers for help, and while I still may need some, (especially between my ears!
), I am not at that stage yet. I just finished cleaning off the replacement engine so I can swap the intake manifold set up from my 95 to the 96 block. (Vac vs IMRC secondaries) without dropping all that wonderful built up crud into the heads. Luckily the 96 engine has the wiring harness attached and it appears to be the redesigned wiring as there is not an insulation crack to be seen! I will also have to swap a couple of connectors as there appear to be a couple of differences. Also, while I may be a fool,(and/or a masochist!), I think (hope?) I will be able to do this on my own. I've done many a RWD yank, but this will be my first FWD engine swap. At least if
I mess something up I have no one to blame but myself! But, as I mentioned, I may still cry out for help!
(To Nossvtcontour, I am on the south shore of LI, on the Nassau-Suffolk border about 37 miles from Mt. Vernon. I can PM you with an exact location.)
A couple questions though:
Its been repeatedly mentioned that pulling the suspension first is better, I presume because this gives you better access to the engine to tranny bolts? I am going to be replacing the lower control arms, sway bar links and struts while I have everything apart, so should I just remove them now? I figured once the engine was out I'd have better access to the four control arm mounting bolts. Also concerns have been mentioned about the subframe bolts breaking, (Iâ??ve sprayed the daylights out of them with penetrating oil, not WD40, through the little access holes), but its also mentioned that I will have to loosen them anyway to move the tranny and give clearance for the engine to come up. If thatâ??s the case, wouldnâ??t I be better of just dropping the whole mess at that point? I have the car body firmly supported so that is not an issue.
As you may have guessed, Iâ??m still debating which way to go, up or down!?
Steve
