Transmission Mount Bolts

[K Sykes]

I have been slowly reviving my 1980 SC. I was under the car today taking out the AC and found two things that were not good.

1. One of the transmission mount bolts was loose, I could tighten it about 3 - 5 turns. The other was loose as well, but only about 1/2 turn. My question on this is, can I tighten those bolts all the way without lifting the engine? Meaning, if it's loose is the tranny hanging down and too heavy to lift up with the bolts?

2. I had a torn inner CV boot as well. For the inner boot, is it possible to just drop it from the transmission and replace (and relube) with it still attached to the car or do I need to pull the whole axle? These are relatively new axles, so I don't think I need to PM the rest of the joints.

Kinsley.

PS. it's unbeliveable how much stuff comes out of the car whe you pull AC. I would guess nearly 100 lbs all together and the big plus was all the lost tools I found in the smugglers box.

[RWebb]

yes to #1; no to #2

be sure to torque all the bolts when you do either procedure

use the search engine and read the CV axle procedures carefully - NO grease can be allowed on the threads, either male or female; get new Schnorr washers & inspect the bolts carefully before reusing.

[mpetry]

I'd recommend you lift the trans a little bit - use a bottle or scissor jack and some wood blocks - and then torque the engine mount bolts to spec (58 foot pounds if I recall). 3-5 turns is quite a bit! You do not want to strip or in any way compromise the threads in the torque tube.

Be really careful when you're doing this - you only want to take the load off the bolts so the torque is applied correctly. Don't overdue it and make sure the car is very secure on the jackstands, and you have your safety device (I use a big inflated tire from a Ford pickup under the pan).

Also make sure you torque all four bolts (2 more at the rear of the engine compartment) and that your car has the big washers installed on the trans mounts.

[aigel]

Often these threads are worn / bad. Check them out closely and repair if needed.

George