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EFV-8 Club Forum / General Ford Discussion / Engine, clutch & trans removal

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Posted By Discussion Topic: Engine, clutch & trans removal -- page: 1 2     Arts40 02-10-2012 @ 7:04 PM reply profile send p.m. Member Posts: 21 Joined: Feb 2012 Seeking best practice how-to’s for this. It's an intact original ’40 convertible, frame and sheet metal very sound, w 28K miles, last driven in the 70’s, garaged (mostly untended) since, engine doesn't turn. Radiator, distributor, generator, carburetor, and fuel pump came off nicely, and we intend sending them and engine, clutch and tranny out to pros for whatever restoration proves necessary. Hence no wish to unbolt heads or oil pan myself. Am hoping engine et al can be lifted clear after removing only the hood. But as they say, "hope is not a method". So, in particular, what are the risks to sheet metal—fenders, linings, nose, firewall—if we leave them be while we sling and lift engine out and back in? Doug carcrazy 02-10-2012 @ 8:43 PM reply profile send p.m. Senior Posts: 1659 Joined: Oct 2009 It is not too hard to remove the engine/transmission assembly from a 1940 Ford with all of the front sheet metal panels in place. You will have to mark the hood mounting brackets' locations on the hood before removing the hood and setting it in a safe place. Use an engine hoist that rolls and has enough lift to allow the engine/trans to be lifted high enough to clear the grille and surrounding sheet metal. Tilt the engine up in the front so that the attached transmission has room to clear the firewall. If you are planning to use a full flow oil filtration system on the engine, be aware that putting the engine back into the car may present some clearance issues with the throttle linkage which mounts to the firewall. Some slight modification of the linkage may be required to gain acceptable clearance to the oil line fittings. When my wife and I did this to our '40 Tudor, the engine went into the car three times before we successfully worked out the clearance issues. Good luck on your endeavors. supereal 02-10-2012 @ 9:51 PM reply profile send p.m. Senior Posts: 6819 Joined: Oct 2009 Pulling the engine and transmission as a unit can be tricky. We use a lift that allows us to tilt the assembly to avoid damage to the sheet metal. As you plan to send out the engine and transmission to be rebuilt, they will have to be separated, anyway, so you will make the job easier by taking them apart and removing them separately. Arts40 02-11-2012 @ 7:37 AM reply profile send p.m. Member Posts: 21 Joined: Feb 2012 OK so far, but now I see in the clutch, transmission & u-joint removal pages of our reprint "1939 and 1940 Engine & Chassis Repair Manual" that we must disconnect rear axle et al?? Was hoping (there's that word again) to limit undercarriage molestations, if any at all, to steering parts, at least for now. And efv8 posts re travails of aligning front end sheet metal are compelling, hence wanting to "first do no harm" there, too. Plus I'm in one place and the 40's in another, so can't hop on a creeper and scope all this out firsthand. So meanwhile...to get us on down the learning curve, is there a well-illustrated reference that goes into better detail on engine removal, per se,than the one above? And thanks, Carcrazy and Super! Doug TomO 02-11-2012 @ 8:10 AM reply profile send p.m. Senior Posts: 7253 Joined: Oct 2009 I do not know of a good pictorial view of the process. If you leave the hood hinges on the body, you should not have alignment problems. I have removed the engine and trans as an assembly, but prefer to remove them separately. It can be a handful getting the engine out in an average garage, adding the transmission will require more room. I also like to remove the front seat to give me a better angle to work when removing and installing the engine or transmission. You may have to use lots of penetrating oil and give it plenty of time to penetrate in order to remove the seat. In addition to the parts that you have removed, disconnect the exhaust system, remove the chatter bars, connect the hoist to exhaust bolts or head bolts in 4 places. If you are separating the transmission, remove the bolts holding it to the engine, place a jack under the transmission to support it as the engine is removed. I like to remove the starter also, but this is optional. To remove the transmission, disconnect the shift levers, disconnect the clutch equalizer and remove it, remove the bolts from the rear transmission motor mounts, jack up the rear of the transmission to give you access to the universal joint bolts. If I left out something, someone else will fill in the gaps. Tom Arts40 02-11-2012 @ 9:35 AM reply profile send p.m. Member Posts: 21 Joined: Feb 2012 Thanks, Tom, this helps. Guess I'll add photo shoots to the do list! Seat removal: Makes sense, especially since we'll be running new brake lines, along with new vacuum hoses to the rag top actuators. And floor pan is amazingly sound, so maybe we'll even get lucky on the seat bolts. Stay tuned. Doug P.S. By chatter bars do you mean front radius rod? Is there any merit to the idea of dropping the front axle assembly, too? I should add that it looks like grease points were well-serviced, so I was only going to check out the steering elements and let suspension squeak for itself (sorry). And tho it was driven between NYC and Vt back in the day, we don't see much rust on running gear or frame. supereal 02-11-2012 @ 10:24 AM reply profile send p.m. Senior Posts: 6819 Joined: Oct 2009 If you have the engine out first, you can pull the transmission without moving the rear axle after you have unbolted the rear motor mounts and the u-joint two piece cover. With the front seat unbolted and moved back an the transmission floor board out, you can straddle the opening, move the transmission forward to get the u-joint off the drive shaft, and lift the unit up and out. Be sure to support the engine with a board and a jack under the oil pan to prevent it from sagging. We use a hook into the inspection plate hole to assist in handling the transmission. For a vehicle stored for forty years, plan on replacing all rubber parts, such as the brake hoses and all cylinders, etc, as they will be very rotted by time and ozone. Restoring is an expensive proposition, but given the popularity of the '40 convertible, it should be well worth it. TomO 02-12-2012 @ 9:39 AM reply profile send p.m. Senior Posts: 7253 Joined: Oct 2009 The chatter bars go from the engine back to the frame. They are also called engine steady rods. The front radius rod does not have to be dropped. I like to check the tie rod and drag link ends by jacking up one wheel and try moving it left to right. If there is any movement at all, there is excessive wear and you need to determine what is worn. The King pins can be checked by grabbing the top and bottom of the wheel and checking for motion. Tom Arts40 02-12-2012 @ 11:48 AM reply profile send p.m. Member Posts: 21 Joined: Feb 2012 Thanks, all. This is a joint project between me (retired guy) and my (40-something) oldest son, & tho it's not our first car project it's the one with the most riding on doing it right the first time thru. So we appreciate all your good advice in this and the other strings we've been posting. So now we're dosing seat bolts w. PBB, looking for what the transmission "VIN" number might tell us about originality, arranging to get pulled-off parts tended to, and will soon be lining up tools and helpers for an engine-pulling practicum. Can't wait to see what's inside it, but...one step at a time. Again, efv8-ers, thanks. 'Tis a good thing yer doin'. Doug supereal 02-12-2012 @ 8:43 PM reply profile send p.m. Senior Posts: 6819 Joined: Oct 2009 Doug: as this is a new venture, be sure to take lots of photos as you take the car apart. The are very valuable when the inevitable time comes when you say "I wonder where this goes?". As to the VIN, there is only a production serial number. It can sometimes be found stamped on top of the driver's side frame rail between the front cross member and the firewall. It is unlikely that the number, if any, on the transmission will match it, as transmissions were often swapped over the years. Buy a copy of the "green book", the master parts catalog available from most vendors. The drawings alone are an excellent help in tackling the job. This message was edited by supereal on 2-12-12 @ 8:45 PM

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