Alternative Ways To Remove An Engine?

[Joshy 0]

Yeah, another odd question from me...

 

I'm seriously considering keeping my GTI6 powered 205, but to keep it I must get it back on the road, and to get it back on the road I must replace/rebuild the head. A while ago I asked and it was pretty much agreed that the entire lump needs to come out to access the exhaust manifold nuts and do the cambelt/water pump/tensioner, which is was a massive issue for me not having a proper garage or driveway to store a hoist and removed engine.

 

Since then I've managed to get myself a local lock up, BUT I still do not have sufficient space for an engine hoist to get the engine out and safely stored, but a thought has just occurred to me - Why do I "need" a hoist?

 

Can I not completely disassemble the front end of the car, jack it right up into the sky and pull the engine/gearbox combo out on some sort of a trolley?

 

Thoughts please?

 

Thanks

 

Josh

[kate205gti 4]

yes you can pull it out the bottom no problem, just be careful when you drop it down that the gearbox doesnt get stuck on the subframe

[C_W 3 1 Cars]

Do you not need to take the manifold off? I couldn't see an easy way to drop my engine/gearbox out the subframe gets in the way so hoisted it out.

[steve@cornwall 100]

Do you not need to take the manifold off? I couldn't see an easy way to drop my engine/gearbox out the subframe gets in the way so hoisted it out.

 

 

The subframe makes a pretty good trolley to drop an engine out on!

[Joshy 0]

Do you not need to take the manifold off? I couldn't see an easy way to drop my engine/gearbox out the subframe gets in the way so hoisted it out.

 

I'm assuming I'd be able to unbolt the manifold from the downpipe?

[mickie 3]

you have a garage, which is all the space you need for an engine hoist.. but yeah you can take the engine out with a big jack..

 

car pushed on its side in a small garage

 

got this engine in and out, in a small garage

 

using a jack for the 8v

[Joshy 0]

you have a garage, which is all the space you need for an engine hoist..

 

I wish!

 

I'm stuck in one of those stupidly small council lock ups. It makes the garage in your pictures look spacious!

[Alan_M 66 1 Cars]

I don't understand why you need to remove the engine to do a head rebuild. Is it simply due to the GTi6 exhaust manifold?

[stefan 4]

You can just use a pice of plywood or smth like that, lower the car as close to the groung as possible, remove the water cooler so that it doesent get pierced,tilt the engine forward and then just drop it on the board/plywood, then raise the car again and pull the engine out. It gets easier if you have another board, so you can smothly slide the engine around changing the 2 boards(they have to be big and wide enough for the engine), or use a trolley if available.

[welshpug 1,629]

I don't understand why you need to remove the engine to do a head rebuild. Is it simply due to the GTi6 exhaust manifold?

 

 

precisely my thoughts on the first instance.

 

and on the second no you don't, I replaced the gasket on my car (git6 engined ZX 16v) a few months back by removing the manifold from the head with the engine in the engine bay, leaving the manifold attached to the downpipe.

 

you just need to remove the inlet manifold, remove the rad to make sure it doesn't get damaged (I didn't, but my engine bay is an inch deeper at the front)

 

remove the top exhaust heatshield, then the 10 13mm nuts, push the manifold off the studs that remain, support engine with a jack, remove top right hand engine mounting arm.

 

pin the engine up, making sure the bottom pulley's harmonic damper has not moved as this will cause misalignment of the pin hole, if it has then discard the pulley and source a replacement, Miles on here I believe does them, pin the cams up to ensure they do not move as the valves can hit each other and bend very easily due to their sizes and proximity.

 

undo the head bolts, lift off head.

[Simes 248 2 Cars]

My garage is normal sized - I had a huge engine hoist in there to get the engine out.

[Alan_M 66 1 Cars]

precisely my thoughts on the first instance.

 

and on the second no you don't, I replaced the gasket on my car (git6 engined ZX 16v) a few months back by removing the manifold from the head with the engine in the engine bay, leaving the manifold attached to the downpipe.

 

you just need to remove the inlet manifold, remove the rad to make sure it doesn't get damaged (I didn't, but my engine bay is an inch deeper at the front)

 

remove the top exhaust heatshield, then the 10 13mm nuts, push the manifold off the studs that remain, support engine with a jack, remove top right hand engine mounting arm.

 

pin the engine up, making sure the bottom pulley's harmonic damper has not moved as this will cause misalignment of the pin hole, if it has then discard the pulley and source a replacement, Miles on here I believe does them, pin the cams up to ensure they do not move as the valves can hit each other and bend very easily due to their sizes and proximity.

 

undo the head bolts, lift off head.

 

Additionally, not sure on the clearance of the GTi6 head to the master cylinder but I had to drop that side of the engine down to get a T55 bit and breaker bar for the back left head bolt. Easily done by undoing lower engine mount and slowly winding off the upper mount nuts.

 

I'll admit the nuts are a pig to get to, particularly if they've been overtightened and rounded off. You'll need a few tools, 13mm offset ring spanner, 13mm ratchet spanner and a mixture of 13mm sockets/extensions. Perservere and you'll get them.