Great thread and congrats on the successful engine drop. I know that feeling of dropping an engine and not getting a start after the reinstall - I did an engine swap a few years ago, thought I had all the little details covered, and when I got the replacement engine in and tried to start, no dice. My initial reaction was that I got screwed on the deal with the replacement engine, but it had been a couple of years since the purchase, time I spent cleaning up the externals, taking care of items that didn't require pulling heads, etc, so it was all mine to deal with. I spent a few days going going through a troubleshooting scheme I put together, and while preparing to do a compression check I looked at the hose clamps connecting the intake plenums to the throttle body, and on a whim reached over and touched it. Rotated with very little resistance, and I realized that when I reinstalled the plenums after cleaning and painting the Porsche script red, I didn't tighten the hose clamps. Needless to say, she don't like that major vacuum leak downstream of the airflow sensor...

Tightened the hose clamp screws, went through with the compression check since I was already there, and after the plugs were back in just reached through the window and started her back up. Fired right away like nothing was ever wrong. That was a VERY satisfying moment, one I still look back on when doubt starts creeping in. It gives me the confidence to tackle very complex projects, while at the same time reminding me not to let the guard drop on what seems like minor details.

Continued success, and enjoy the open air fun!

Nothing like finding a simple solution to a nagging problem! It is kind of like a puzzle. Lots of satisfaction when you get to the last piece.

I pressed on to the finish this weekend. With the engine running and going, I turned to the stopping. I pulled the wheels, and tightened the CV bolts to the proper torque. While I was down there -- with the car now level -- I removed the fill plug on the transmission and let some of the gear oil drain to get to the proper level.

Then took on the front brake lines. This went surprisingly smooth. The old ones came off easy:

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-C...308_101816.jpg

And the new ones screwed in without drama, unlike the rear ones:

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-o...308_102427.jpg

I used a Motive pressure bleeder to bleed the brakes -- make sure you clamp off the overflow hose before you pressurize the plastic tank. I used two halves of a clothes pin to keep the teeth of the vise grips from damaging the hose when I clamped it. I started at the back right tire, and let the old blue fluid bleed until the fresh yellow came through, and then left it go a little longer. Then the left rear, right front, and then left front. Once done, the brakes were solid as a rock.

The weather was nice, so I took her for a spin to get the oil up to operating temperature. Stopped at the Starbucks to check for oil & file leaks. She looks pretty nice for a car that hasn't been washed since the fall:

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-W...308_161339.jpg

No fuel leaks, so I drove it back to the house and checked the oil -- once warm, the 10 quarts I added barely registered on the dipstick, so I added two more quarts to get to this level:

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-3...308_164809.jpg

Unfortunately, it was still seeping from the passenger side cam line:

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-g...308_161442.jpg

This thing drove me crazy all day Saturday. I could tighten it a bit with a 14mm crescent, but not enough to stop the leak, and I couldn't get it 60 degrees to get another turn on it. Accessing the fitting would require taking off the entire compressor mount -- and I'm not sure I could do that with the bumper on. I tried an adjustable, but it wouldn't bite, and it was stripping the fitting. I needed a 12 pt flare nut wrench -- good luck finding one of those at your FLAPS. Finally, I picked up a set of stubby wrenches at Home Depot, and I was able to get that on the nut, and cinch it down. I will continue to watch it, but after driving it around Sunday it appears to have solved the problem.

So, at this point, my list is pretty well knocked out -- and I got it all done except the leak down test. But the butt dynamometer says the engine is sound. I couldn't be happier with how it turned out. She is running and shifting like a champ, and I broke nothing that couldn't be easily replaced -- I am still somewhat surprised I was able to to it pretty much single-handed with a furniture dolly and a floor jack.

So here is the last look at the list. I need to total all my receipts to

- Drop and separate engine and transmission
- Clean transmission & external motor
- Verify cleanliness & airflow of #4 & #6 cylinder cooling fins
- Clean, pain, and Remount rear engine tin & motor mount brace (get better tension on fan belt)
- Install new passenger and driver side cam oil lines (must remount rear tin first)
- Install new breather gasket and thermostat O-ring
- Pull & inspect plugs
- Remove valve covers & inspect headstuds & rocker seals
- Adjust valves
- Install new valve covers
- Install new plugs
- Install new RPM sensors (x2)
- Clean, test & reinstall Oil Cooler with new seals.
- Replace rear brake lines
- Replace engine bay sound pad
- Install new fuel lines (from Len Cummings)
- Replace Oil & vacuum hoses
- Reinstall side & rear engine tin
- Recrimp speedometer spade connector (damaged on removal)
- Replace broken 14-pin connector bracket (damaged on removal)
- Replace crankshaft seal
- Re-install flywheel with new bolts
- Re-install clutch disk & pressure plate
- Clean, relube, and re-install cross-shaft with new needle bearings
- Re-Mount transmission with high temp grease on the splines
- Jack up car
- Reinstall Engine & transmission, re-installing the slave cylinder before mounting the eng/trans
- Re-install CVs, replacing stripped bolts
- Hook up everything, and check it twice
- Install new Fuel Filter
- Install new Air Filter
- Refill transmission with Mobil 1 DELVAC gear oil
- Refill engine with Valvoline VR1 5W20 Racing Oil
- Replace front soft brake lines with braided lines
- Flush old brake fluid with new and bleed brakes
- Reinstall battery with new clamp
- Start her up & search for leaks -- especially at fuel hoses & filter. Fix what I missed.
- Take a test drive
- Search for leaks; tighten what is leaking
- Drink a glass of Johnny Walker Blue

Only one thing left to do on my list, and I am doing it as I type this post. Cheers!

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-f...309_211515.jpg

Awesome! Nice work!!

Great Thread
 

Selective editing of your post puts you in the running for the Dorki chapter Imperial Potentate ;)

Great thread (cracked me up a good number of times...) and awesome work.

Sorry I haven't been checking the Tech Forum, I would have enjoyed stopping up to give you a hand.

Gordo

A great read
 

I'm building a 71 3.0L coupe up from a roller and the amount of time it takes to stop, take a picture and then go back and write it up for the masses is huge. This thread will go on for a long time helping a lot of Pelicans. Well done!