Engine/ transmission removal

Jeremy S. · Post by **Jeremy S.** » Sat Aug 09, 2003 9:12 pm

I am attempting to remove the engine and transmission from my '66 1600, but I'm having trouble removing the control arm from the transmission. Does anyone have a trick for this? Help!

TR · Post by TR » Sat Aug 09, 2003 9:22 pm

It has been awhile, but I think there is a nut hiding under the collar...

Also, I think there is a pin that can be removed that allows the whole collar mechanism to be removed with the shifter still attached.

Hope that helps!

jsatterfield · Post by **jsatterfield** » Sun Aug 10, 2003 10:50 am

I've got the actual shifter lever off. It looks like there is a pin or bolt holding the control arm on. I thought the pin was threaded because it has a slot on one side, but I can't unscrew it.

TR · Post by TR » Sun Aug 10, 2003 11:17 am

I think there is a retaining key that holds that pin in (opposite to the side with the slot), once the key is out, that pin pushes right out. I think the slot is just to aid movement. This is all from memory, though-I do not have a tranny to look at to jog my memory...TR

jsatterfield · Post by **jsatterfield** » Tue Aug 12, 2003 6:27 pm

I found the retaining pin! It was covered in 37 years of grease and grime...no wonder I didn't see it. However, it is being extremely stubborn about coming out.

Post by **spl310** » Wed Aug 13, 2003 10:36 pm

You should not need to pull that off. All that you have to do is to remove the lever, put it in 2nd or 4th (makes it a little easier...) and remove the crossmember. Actually, you can just unbolt the crossmember from the frame and leave it connected to the transmission if you want. The tranny will drop down and you should be able to pull things forward. Too bad the 1500 is not that easy.... Sigh...

kt · Post by kt » Tue Sep 09, 2003 11:04 pm

From Engine Removal:

Step 16 - Attach adjustable lifting device to brackets on front and rear of engine.

Not sure exactly what I'm looking for. Can someone give
a more detailed description. I don't want to hook this up
to some weak point and have it break off.

My clutch(i think) is making a big *clank* of metal on metal
when I engage into gear. Need to investigate. Anyone
familiar w/ this symtom?

This will be my first engine pull.
Any tips/advice is much appreciated.

Post by **spl310** » Wed Sep 10, 2003 7:56 am

If the engine is still in its original configuration, there should be a metal hook (slinger in the Nissan parts terminology) under the intake side rear bolt and another one on the front that is bolted on under the tower. If those are gone, the engine has been gone into, and you will have to get creative in connecting the hoist to the engine. If you can get one, get a leveller (sometimes called an equalizer). This tool is invaluable as it lets you tilt the engine to allow it to come out at a better angle...

esmeby · Post by **esmeby** » Wed Sep 10, 2003 11:19 pm

I just completed a clutch job on my car. I did not have the hooks for the hoist on the motor. Instead I attached a chain to the large stud on the front tensioner access cover, and the rearmost manifold stud, which would be the location the hooks would go. The chain I had wad just about the right size as it fit snug around the studs. I tightened the nuts down on the chain with large washers. There was no way it would come off.
(this was for a U-20, I have no idea how it should work on a 1600, so sorry if it doesn't help)

I can forward a photo if you would like, or post one to my site.
A leveler would have made pulling and installing the motor easier, but it really wasn't all that bad,
The factory manual shows the U-20 being lifted with a rope, (or cable) that way you could tilt the motor and the rope would slide through the hoist hook.

kt · Post by kt » Thu Sep 11, 2003 10:43 pm

About the bolt on the rear manifold, this is the upper or lower bolt?
this bolt is on the head, Isn't pulling the engine by the head 'bad'??
I don't know. I figure you would want to pull by the
engine block. Is this really ok practice?

and Yes, Pics would help!

Also, when removing the engine mounts,
Is it preferred to remove the mount from the engine?
or remove the mount from the car frame?
they both look pretty hard to get to. whats the trick?

esmeby · Post by **esmeby** » Thu Sep 11, 2003 11:34 pm

The factory manual appears to show the lifting hook on the 1600 attached to the rear manifold stud. Perhaps a 1600 owner could confirm. Bad? I don't think so, I would imagine the head takes much more force from ignition in the cylinders than from lifting.

When removing the motor, remove the mount from the frame. The mount rests on the frame and after the bolts are out, it can only go up. If you remove the mount from the motor, the motor will fall.
My box end was too thick to go around the bolt becasue the rubber was squished a bit. So it was 1/8 turn, at a time. The front bolt threads into the frame, the rear one has a nut on the bottom. It is fairly easy to get to when you turn the wheel to the opposition direction from the side you are working on.

For the reinstal, I set the motor on the frame and aligned the bolt holes with a long tapered punch. It was pretty easy.

For an image of how I attached the chain, go to my home page, then click the link in bold under the shot of my car. For some resason Yahoo is not letting me link directly to a photo on my site from this forum.

http://www.geocities.com/smedly_whiplash//index.html

In the above link, you can see a trick my father in law taught me about reattaching the tranny. Get some extra long bolts that match the ones holding the tranny on. Cut off the heads and screw them in. Set the tranny on them and slide it together. I tried for about an hour before I got some bolts at the store. Took less than 2 minutes to get it together after I used them.

This was my first engine pull ever, so if any of the above is wrong, let me (and those who may take my advice) know.

DatsunBucky · Post by **DatsunBucky** » Thu Sep 11, 2003 11:57 pm

Advice is usually worth what you paid for it...

When I was autocrossing my original Roadster, I only had access to my dad's garage and a come-along to pull the engine. We doubled up the 2x4 in the rafters and he put a couple pieces of bed-frame along the top, tied a double loop of heavier-type rope through a piece of rod bent into a paperclip-like bend. I would hook the cable end of the come-along to the paperclip and the other end of the "hoist" to a chain running through the mounts on the block.

Working by myself (and a cold engine) I could have the engine/trans sitting on the garage floor in about 45 minutes. I used a double baggie rubber-banded around the end of the trans to keep the fluid in and a folded rag taped over the baggie for impact resistance. I don't remember much fluid leaking out when the car was sitting level when I took the drivewshaft out but before I could get the baggie on.

I left the motor mounts attached to the frame because when I was putting the engine back in it was easier to use a phillips screwdriver to pull the studs into the holes on the engine than to try to line up the motor mount holes to the frame. It's easier to get to the bolts on the frame, but harder to get it all back together. The nuts on the motor mount studs are harder to get to, but easier to put back together. I believe I used a box wrench to loosen/tighten the nuts. No way a socket is ever fitting in there.

You do it enough times, and it gets easier. And by the way, when you use the head bolt to lift the engine/trans, the load is transferred to the threads of the bolt, and they're in the block. BTW, big ole V8s are quite often lifted by an adapter that bolts to the (often aluminum) intake manifold in place of the carb, and those bolts are quite a bit thinner than the head bolts on our babies. Should be no problem.

Don't ask me how I know, but before you lose your temper, walk away for a while and come back later when you've cooled off. It's a lot better than replacing things that "just break" for no apparent reason...

Post by **spl310** » Fri Sep 12, 2003 11:17 am

Working on a rusty parts car, I once removed an engine/tranny combo inside of 30 minuted while the car was parked in dirt (very loose in some areas - unfortunately right where the lift was parked.) with one assistant that was new to this (he helped guide it out - I did the wrenching and yanking...)

We took a different approach. We just used the hoist to break the mounts. If you are going to replace them, that is the easiest way to yank the motor - get some tension and cut the mount just a bit with a knife. Then let the hoist do the work for you. ****CAUTION*** when that beast comes loose, it can be easy, or it can jerk wildly - do this at your own risk!! I did it a few times, but reccommend it to no one.

For a car that I cared about, I removed either the bolts on the side of the block or on the frame. The frame bolts can be a bear do get out since the underside is a natural haven for rust. The ones in the block are easy, but it will take some shifting to get the motor back in (or once it is out, you can jump in the engine bay and pull the mounts to simplify installation.) With a hoist and a leveller, it is rather easy to do this quickly and efficiently. I never could find a box end wrench that was the correct thickness and such to get inside the engine mount to get the nuts off the studs, so I never tried that...

Best of luck!

Minh · Post by **Minh** » Fri Sep 12, 2003 2:28 pm

I can only go with my one time experience...

If you plan on rebuilding the engine might as well tear done the motor a little while it is still in the car.

Take of the most of everything in the front and above the main block off. This way it is easier and lighter to yank out the block attached to the tranny.

However for myself, I gonna attempt to put it back in as a fully assembled motor and tranny (minus the manifolds and fan).

Datsun Roadster Forum-311s.org

Engine/ transmission removal

Engine/ transmission removal

Pulling engine