Engine drop - should I do it?
 

I am seriously considering dropping the engine next month.

Why? Well, because it's been leaking oil in about three different areas forever and the engine's an oily, ugly mess now. It also needs to have the timing chain tensioners replaced and the clutch looked at and maybe replaced.

So I figured I'd drop it and address these issues. While I'm at it I thought I'd clean the engine up and paint or powdercoat the fan and other hardware.

What do you guys think? Should I, or shouldn't I?:p

Do it. My engine is just dropped today, and is sitting in the garage waiting for a serious cleaning this week.

Absolutely! Buy waynes book though if you have any problems post it! The info on this board is fantastic chain tensioners are easy to do just secure the chains and follow the directions. clutch is pretty straight forward too you will need a few tools. replace the flywheel seal while your in there. Good luck

Drop it!

If you think you know your car now, just wait. You'll become even closer. Drop it!

I've actually been checking out ATV jacks because I'm thinking about dropping mine for some maintenance...not really sure just what, yet....just getting itchy to drop it again! :D

Randy

My first drop took 6 hours; the last two with a helper. A surprisingly straightforward project using Wayne's book.

Go for it Scott! You can count on me for help with the drop. I've got the atv jack, specially cut plywood, and any tool you might need. I've got Wayne's book I can drop by in case you want to study up ahead of time. And I don't drink too much beer;)

My first drop took 4 hours = and I did it twice - really pretty easy scott. I ended up putting it back in by myself - that was pretty easy too.

My only advise is to use a scissor jack from a SUV - it gets the rear end way up in the sky and makes it easy to shimmy the engine out from underneath. Also, don;t be afraid to drop an inch or two prior to removing the top starter bolt - makes it mucho easier.

My first drop took about five hours. Next one was half that.
Just one step at a time. Follow directions, and there it sits on your garage floor.

Do it! If you get in a bind let me know! Happy to help!

Best, Scott

If I am available, I will come on over and help you out.
I can at least hold the light and hand you a beer!!

Awesome, guys! Mike, I may take you up on that help. Luis, you too.

My wife's telling me she wants me to paint the fan yellow - like a bumble bee (My car's black).

Alright. You helped me make up my mind. I'll do it. The Hangover run is next Sunday and I don't want to miss it for anything, so I'll begin the drop a day or two later.

I'm excited about this!

Not real hard, pulled mine today. Besides Waynes book There is an electrical plug connector behind the top of the engine that you want to pull as you lower it. Remove the trannie ground strap, its on the front right of the trannie, speedo wire is on the right of the trannie, almost missed it, two fuel lines on the left side of the engine on top one is 13 mm threaded, the other is a hose clamp fitting. Get a NEW 6mm allen head socket in the CV joints square, clean out the holes with a q-tip first. They can strip easily. I broke my rear engine mount strap on both sides trying to unloosen them. No preventative action that I could see, they were frozen $110 from pelican!! Once you disconnect the ball and socket connector from the accelerator rod at the bell housing, you don't need to disconnect the rod that goes up into the netherlands of the engine. Unbolting the sway bar brackets to the body helped worth the 2 minutes that it took. Pull the muffler and rear valance for extra clearance another 5 or 10 minutes.

I can try to stop by in the evenings, at least to hold the flashlight when Luis isn't or I'll bring the digital camera to help document for all the fine Pelicans.

Yes, do the drop. Fixing those oil leaks is critical, especially those on top of the motor. Also, take a look at the top of the cooling fins to see if there is junk there.

Scott , not to steal your thread but what jack does everyone recomend?

The PP jack sold here as well as the PP jack stands. The PP jack is very nice since it has a low profile, but a very high lift. This is great when one needs to raise the rear of the car high to roll the motor out of the engine bay

Dude, did you really expect a bunch of " no take it to the dealer" responses on this bulletin board ??? What you really need to do is find a few buddies that live close, offer to buy some beer and you'll have a dozen guys with wrenches in hand in your garage..

Since you had fun with your exhaust nuts - I would highly recommend you start hitting your two engine mounts and your two transmission mounts with PB Blaster everyday for the next week or so. Also go out an buy a large (19" or langer) cheater bar. Leverage is your friend for some of these connections that haven't been distrubed in 20 years.

The Scissor jack from my Nissan Armada worked much better - and cheaper than any jack I had on hand...

No Problemo, I'm glad you're going to do it. Two things that WILL make your life simpler:

1. Get an ATV jack. They're cheap, and they make a great platform for supporting the motor.

2. This is a method suggested to me by a sage. Raise the ENTIRE car level on jackstands. Ultimately, the rear valance will need to clear the motor, but you don't need all of that height while disconnecting. Do all the disconnecting, and then drop the motor a few inches. THEN you slowly lower the front end. This raises the rear end by pivoting on the jacks under the t-bars. Lower the ATV jack to the ground and back the motor out. This will ultimately give you the clearance to pull the motor back, and you've been working with a level motor and chassis, and the motor wasn't ever 3 feet in the air!

The install is the reverse, and again, you don't need to lift the motor way up into the car, bring the car to the motor. Also, you're mating the motor up to a level chassis.

Try it, you'll like it.

Ed, this seems like an interesting approach. One question, when lowering the front, do you use a single jack point or do each side at a time? Seems like it would have to be a single jack point, but where?

v/r
Wayne C.
83 SC

Thanks guys. I appreciate all of the advice. This will not be the first engine I've pulled but it will be the first Porsche engine. It looks to be a straightforward job. Luckily for me, I had my CV's replaced just a few months back so they shouldn't be too tough to disconnect (I hope). I'll start spraying the engine and transmission mounts immediately as you suggested Jeremy.

Ed, I like your suggestion about the raising up all four corners of the car and then lowering the front end to get the back end up when the engine's ready to be pulled.

Anyone who wants to come by and offer a hand will be treated to whatever beer and snacks they want. Come one. Come all.

What do you all (y'all for those down south;)) suggest for an engine stand?

Once it's out I'll have all kinds of questions on how best to go about cleaning the mess in the engine bay and on the engine itself.

Well, Scott, it's a bit of a trek, but you're welcome to use mine. I don't think I'll be using it next week.

Best,

Scott

Scott, I did an engine drop summer before last with help of several local Pelicans, and the method we used had the whole thing out in under two hours. We used a furniture dolly on top of an ATV jack to lower the motor. The one mistake we made using this method was not removing the muffler. It wound up hitting the back of the ATV jack, so we had to raise it back up and remove the muffler. Also, it would have really helped to remove the rear valence, which would give about 6 inches of clearance to roll the motor out from under the car. There was a thread on my drop. Search ZOANAS + engine drop rookie.

Here's the thread.

Man....I'd love to go to one those fancy "engine drop parties".

Single jack point, it brings the entire front end down. I sneak behind the driver's front wheel, and pick up my normal jack point (near the end of the steering rack cover. With the rear end up in the air, you can easily pull the jack out. BELIEVE ME, IT WORKS. I've only done it this way, but again, I can't imagine lifting the a$$ end waaaay up, and working at that kind of angle.....

I know others will say the angle method is "no problem", but why would you want to do it that way?

engine adapter ring:

http://www.pelicanparts.com/catalog/shopcart/911M/POR_911M_ENGmis_pg6.htm#item20

Don't forget the obligatory photograph taken of you, standing in the eviscerated engine bay, typically with an ear-to-ear grin and holding a beer. It's one of those right of passage moments that you'll not soon forget, especially if you have that photo.

If you post the date you plan on the drop, I'll try to stop by. I've done this a number of times. Make sure you have jackstands that you trust and that have sufficient extension and base width because the arse of the car will be quite high in order to remove it with that big 3.2 airbox, etc. in place.

Scott, when I cleaned mine, I did it on the stand. I used Gunk or similar cleaner in spray cans. I used a drop cloth I got at Home Depot. It was plastic on one side, and absorbant material on the other, like a diaper, from what I hear:p (no kids) These came in several sizes, and I cut pieces of it out big enough to cover the ground under the motor.

The crud dripped down onto the drop cloth. I used a spray bottle of water to rinse. When the drop cloth got saturated, I rolled it up, and tossed it. Pretty nice way to contain the mess, and the motor sparkled
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1135730016.jpg

Wow, Ed! That engine looks great. Thanks for the advice. I've been wondering how I would go about cleaning the engine. I plan on disassembling the engine a bit in order to have some parts powdercoated and to get good access to the cylinder fins for cleaning.

As for the drop, I was thinking that if I pulled the airbox and AFM, that would free up some room. Heck, if I could pull off the intake runners that would leave me even more room. Is it possible to get to the intake bolts with the engine in the car?

it is - but why? You'll have plenty of room. Remove the rear valence. It will start making sense when you get there

Not sure about the intake...I left mine on. The airbox will definitely get you some room. I think about 2", which is huge when you're talking clearance below the valance. I pretty much stripped mine down except the intake and the sheetmetal from the fan forward (after removal).

I had to re-seal my engine oil cooler, and that is where most of my mess was.

Hi!

Cool!

I'm up in the great white north right now, but will be back in SoCal for the week-end of the 7th, so if you're planning to drop it then, let me know and I'll come help. PM your address...

Brad "will work for beer" McCallum

;) http://www.pelicanparts.com/support/smileys/wat6.gif
Brad, thanks for the offer. That goes for the rest of you too who've offered to come on by.

Unfortunately for me, I'm working all of the weekends in January so I'll have to do this during the weekdays. You guys are always welcome to come by any evening (or day if you have a weekday off).

my engine (since ed posted his)

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1135779367.jpg

The best part for me was being able to clean everything!

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1135779427.jpg