i have done a search, read through most threads, and printed off the pelican method and have thought up a blended approach. please review and let me know if i'm getting ready to hurt myself or the engine/trans.

1) drive the front of the car up on ramps.

2) using 2 floor jacks, raise the ass end of the car and high as possible and place on tall jack stands.

3) follow the pelican approach until it comes time to lower the car.

4) at this point, using one of those motorcycle/ATV jacks, raise the jack to the engine bar/trans, loosen the bolts, and lower the whole unit. wheel it away.

5) reverse to install.


this seems like it would be easier than moving the whole car down on to a furniture dolly. more room to work underneath. no removing the jackstands and the associated danger to yourself and the car. use gravity to bring the engine down. gint did something similar on a lift per his postings. i am going to do some engine bay work along with changing out of fuel lines so having the car elevated sure seems more convenient and safer as well.

any thoughts? got an engine pull coming up in a bit and i want to keep it easy and convenient but safe as well.

if this has been posted elsewhere, my apologies for not finding the thread.

cheers,

scott

I am not sure about raising the front of the car??? I assume you are wanting to keep the car level since you are using the motocycle jack to lower the motor.

Most likely, you will have to raise the rear ALOT higher than the front in order for the engine induction and such to clear the rear axels (Unless your ramps are taller than mine). If that is the case then I would be worried about the front wheels rolling off the ramps as you raise the rear.

I just did this using the Pelican procedure without a hitch and by myself.

good luck

I also used the Pelican 'method' and did the removal by myself. Worked great and was safe.

That method works great. You need the rear end up about 24" (remove the rear valence for a few easy inches) to slide the engine/trans/jack assembly out, the front could probably (mines up about 6") be on the ground. I have "installed" my Subaru engine and trans about 5 times so far, that ATV jack is one of the best tools I have bought lately - get the aluminum one from Sears.
I also removed the exhaust - everything, before I dropped the engine.

When? I may be able to help you and I have LOTS of experience in doing it by myself using less than desireable means. It would take 2 hours at most using your way.

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When?

once you and mr mcmark are all done!!! actually a little before the engine arrives so i can get some shite done in and around the engine bay.

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I may be able to help you

sweet! i will take all the help i can. and there will be a full pork shoulder for the efforts. BBQ is a good bribe as i recall.....

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I have LOTS of experience in doing it by myself using less than desireable means

you should really pay more attention in anatomy class....

I would say leave the front end on the ground. The biggest challenge is geting the whole engine assembly out from under the rear bumper. If -want- the car to be tipping forward. That puts the rear bumper even higher off the ground.

Really, chock the front wheels and jsut get the ass end as high as you reasonably can. That ATV jack shoudl be jsut fine and dandy for that.

-Josh2

Using the ATV jack is a bitch with the car having the front wheels on the ground. The ass needs to be way up in the air. At least with the jack that I had. I would recommend removing the FI while it is in the car. This is easy and saves you some room. Also, take off the side engine tin and such. It may be kinda risky to jack your car in the way you are thinking as the ramps may shift when you lift the back. Don't sweat it. I am off school on May 13.

Mmmm, pork.

I've taken mine out 4 times now, using the Pelican method (before it WAS the Pelican method). Made my own dolly out of scrap wood & rollers, with a center support to fit jack pad. Works like a charm & takes about 2 hours total. Only time I need an extra hand it to monkey the assembly off the dolly. Taking the exhaust system & rear pan off helps a lot.

Don't care for the idea of raising the front first - scary!

i guess the general consensus regarding my approach is concern regarding the raising of the front of the car.

we all put our cars on 4 jackstands and they are stable. were i to substitute jackstands in front for the ramps, would that ease any concerns regarding safety?

maybe i am missing something but i just don't see any significant issue associated with having the front of the car up in the air along with the back, so long as it is secure.

and allowing the engine/trans to lower out of the car on a platform like an ATV jack, again just makes sense to me. let gravity do the work of lowering the engine/trans rather than moving the entire car.

granted the pelican approach seems to tried and true but is my idea really all that misguided?

and i like the points on removing the exhaust, FI and rear valance to ease handling and clearance.

cheers and thanks for all the input!!!

scott

It will work....

have at it.. give me a call if you need a hand...

what you want to do is have the car level at the point of where the engine is cut away from the mounts..

atv jack, raise the front. dolly, leave front on ground..

You could always do the method where you jack up the rear, take off the tires, put furniture dolly under engine, lower car, remove engine/tranny bolts, raise car again, slide engine out.
.....many ways to skin....

one of the driving forces for my wanting to have both ends of the car up in the air is i want to get soem work done in the engine bay, swap some fuel lines, and some other sundry items that will most easily attended to with the car up. and if i can put it on stands once to accomplish everything, all the better.

some may call it lazy, i prefer to call it economy of motion!!!

(hey mike- gonna go score a few pork shoulders today. weekend is supposed to be nice so i see about 15# of smoked pork happening. i will bring some up to hershey in a few weeks.)

I raised the rear of the car up on jack stands, then removed the rear valence, used a jack on the tranny, just on the point that it meets the engine...once the nuts were removed on the engine and tranny, I jacked the front of the car up slightly to free the engine and tranny from the bolts...just another way of doing it, watch out for the fuel injectors on the engine shelf, loosen up the nuts that hold them, you could also slide a piece of sheet metel between them and the engine rail to help stop the FI's from getting hung up....and dont forget the grounding strap on the tranny, good luck.
Joe