So day one was yesterday and now I am having a coffee break to write this up. The donor was parted out to such degree that no more parts were getting sold. Only some loose odd parts were left and they would take time to sell. In addition, I had someone ask for the cross member. It made sense to pull the motor out and proceed with the project. So this two days were allocated for that.
Previously I went to Canadian Tire and bought engine crane and stand while it was on sale. I had to jump throw some hoops to actually get it in my hand and in my garage but that's history now. One night, I assembled the things and had them ready for this 2 day spree. The plan was to pull the engine first and then get the tranny out next day. Well, it never does go by the plan. I got the instruction steps of how to get the motor out from my shop manual. It's only 12 pages of disconnect this and that. Actually it was not as difficult at it sounds beside the step to remove 9 bell housing bolts. The thing with the shop manual is that it clearly tells you what to do but not how to do it. Those bolts are located all around the bell housing. That means that the bottom and sides are more or less accessible but the ones on the top are between the engine and car's body. I still don't know how I could get them off. So after some unsuccessful attempts I gave up and decided to pull the the entire thing. Well, it had to be out one way or another.
The major accomplishment for me is the AC system well-being. There's a bit of a story to that. Once upon a time I had to pull the intake manifold off of my Subaru and managed to lean on the AC line and snap it off the fitting. That cost me $100 or so to refill the system and the new line from my trusty part source: Four Star Motorsports. I don't know why but the dealer never has parts for my Subaru but the rally shops have them all. Next day, I spoke to my buddy at work who is crazy enough to perform engine pulls every now and then and tell him my mishap. He laughed at me and saying that AC does not need to be disturbed even for the engine pull. So here you have it. I undid all the thing required to leave the AC compressor still in the body with all the lines and condenser intact.
What did I break? Actually I usually break more things than that day. Maybe I am getting better at this. I only managed to ruin my clutch cable. I must admit, I was young and and stupid. I remember I was putting it off till later and I guess that later never came. I hope Ford does not charge much for those. I also snapped the plastic box that seems like EGR controller. That thing is still fine it simply came off it's bracket. I need to take a look at this EGR system. I have a strong feeling it's something I would want out anyways.
The fun part was to figure out a way of separating engine and tranny. The crane was kind of holding the couple by the bolts that keep them together. Surprisingly a simple chair was of most help here. Transmission is not that heavy and could be supported by a chair. Once undone, the motor was back on the crane with all chains connected and later mounted to the engine stand.
The only regret I have is for not draining transmission fluid out first. Well, I did not need to according to the plan. Even though I have caught most of it in the bucket, a lot got spilled on the floor. To add to the already messy workplace, a bracket of the engine stand fell and knocked down my beer. It was a long but productive day that came to a satisfying end. When I later showed my "sandbox" to my wife the instantly noticed that the entire garage smelled like beer. Strangely, she did not say anything about the strong smell of transmission fluid and nasty stink from coolant. I don't know what was wrong with that coolant but it had some disgusting smell from the day I got the car in the driveway.
Well, It's time to get back in there. I hope the floors dried up. Here's a sneak preview of Day2:
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