Removing engine

[phoenix]

I think I know the answer but can the engine be removed without taking reaction plate off. (I cannot get to the car for a few days to look)

[flatfloor 3.8]

NO.

[JerryL770]

YES

With the right equipment to lift engine/gearbox safely at a steep angle. Take care at bulkhead and picture frame. Remove water pump pulley and crank pulley first. Car on stands so you can get a trolley jack under the gearbox and bonnet off, of course.

[phoenix]

Yes thought so . Thanks

[christopher storey]

You are being misled. It is impossible to remove the engine without first removing the reaction plate. One glance from under the car will tell you why this is so : the plate lies in the gap between the rear of the sump and the front of the bellhousing. If you attempt either to raise or to lower the engine for purposes of removal without first removing the reaction plate you will get yourself into the most appalling, not to say dangerous, mess . Please, please don't attempt it

[mgcjag]

Jerry....you have said this before but when questioned you said that you do have to lever and bend the flange on the bulkhead......so the answer is no.....unless your prepared to bend you car a bit.....Steve

[ALAN COCHRANE]

+1 on what Christopher has said. It only takes 1/2 an hour or so to remove the reaction plate if you make the pins described in the Workshop manual. The reaction plate sits in a deep recess formed by the rear of the bellhousing and the front of the gearbox.
I can’t fathom why anyone thinks that having to damage the bodywork of a valuable car to remove the engine is in anyway a safe and sensible option
In addition you would still have to raise the engine and gearbox to a ridiculously dangerous angle in order to remove it.
I stripped off the ancillaries and dropped the engine and gearbox onto a wheeled bogey placed underneath and raised the car out of the way using a four post lift. This method allows the radiator and bonnet to remain in situ. Admittedly not everyone has this luxury but a friend of mine removed the engine and gearbox by raising the front of the car with an engine hoist and rolling the engine out. I think he had to remove the bonnet and radiator first to do this.

Please consider these options before attempting something destructive and downright dangerous.

[JerryL770]

I certainly consider Christopher to be very knowledgeable on E-Types, and would not normally disagree with his advice but as I have seen this done on several cars including my own without causing damage of any significance, I stand by my assertion that this is entirely feasible. It is not necessary to butcher the vehicle body, and there is nothing dangerous about it.

Just my 2p's worth.

Of course there are more ways to remove the engine/gearbox but I only answered the OP's question.

[mgcjag]

Hi Jerry....the problem here by you saying that the engine can be removed without removeing the reaction plate and not giveing details re bending the bulkhead is that someone on their own may try this and then get stuck....not wanting to then lever and damage their body/paintwork even slightly.....as you mentioned in previous posts and Pat (P600) confirmed needs doing.............you havent even mentioned this time that 3/4 helpers are required as per your previous posts.........personaly i like to keep members safe......so would not reccomend they try your method....Steve

[angelw]

Steve Wrote:

Hi Jerry....the problem here by you saying that the engine can be removed without removeing the reaction plate and not giveing details re bending the bulkhead is that someone on their own may try this and then get stuck....not wanting to then lever and damage their body/paintwork even slightly.....as you mentioned in previous posts and Pat (P600) confirmed needs doing.............you havent even mentioned this time that 3/4 helpers are required as per your previous posts.........personaly i like to keep members safe......so would not reccomend they try your method....Steve

Exactly.

While I'm skeptical that its even possible, as the Reaction Plate resides in a relatively small gap that will inhibit the degree to which the engine and gearbox can be tilted, my predominate thought is, why would you even bother trying this method, when its a relatively easy task to remove the Reaction Plate, with or without disturbing the front suspension.

Regards,

Bill

[JerryL770]

Guys, it is not yours or my responsibility to keep others safe, as you suggest Steve. It's for them to keep themselves safe. There is nothing unsafe with this method. If one is not happy to do this method, don't do it.

I do not dispute that there are other ways but with the right equipment, as the OP asked, it is possible to remove and replace engine/gearbox with the reaction plate in place and without causing unnecessary body damage.

[christopher storey]

Jerome : you have been asked, repeatedly, to provide evidence, preferably photographic, of the method you advocate , and a full description of the procedure. As far as I am aware, no such description, nor evidence, has been forthcoming . I will say it again : it is a physical impossibility to remove the engine and gearbox from an E type without removing the reaction plate, because there is no way that the gearbox can be manoeuvred over the reaction plate. What particularly concerns me about your advocacy for this unparticularised procedure is that someone may try it and in doing so have hands/ fingers trapped between the plate and 700lbs of engine/box . It requires little imagination to envisage what the outcome would be, and although in post 11 you appear to be trying to disclaim any liability should your method result in injury, I am afraid the law does not work that way, and having taken it on yourself to advise that your method is safe, you might well find yourself liable for negligent advice given

PS I have not looked but I have some recollection that your method may have been concerned with your persistent assertion that the gearbox could be removed, even on SWB cars, without removing the engine . That assertion is equally subject to challenge

[christopher storey]

Just to illustrate the point of the angle needed to remove the engine and box upwards, I attach a photo




It is self -evident that to use the other method of dropping it all downwards, the reaction plate has to come off because it lies about half way up that gap between bellhousing and sump

[JerryL770]

Jerome : you have been asked, repeatedly, to provide evidence, preferably photographic, of the method you advocate , and a full description of the procedure. As far as I am aware, no such description, nor evidence, has been forthcoming . I will say it again : it is a physical impossibility to remove the engine and gearbox from an E type without removing the reaction plate, because there is no way that the gearbox can be manoeuvred over the reaction plate. What particularly concerns me about your advocacy for this unparticularised procedure is that someone may try it and in doing so have hands/ fingers trapped between the plate and 700lbs of engine/box . It requires little imagination to envisage what the outcome would be, and although in post 11 you appear to be trying to disclaim any liability should your method result in injury, I am afraid the law does not work that way, and having taken it on yourself to advise that your method is safe, you might well find yourself liable for negligent advice given

PS I have not looked but I have some recollection that your method may have been concerned with your persistent assertion that the gearbox could be removed, even on SWB cars, without removing the engine . That assertion is equally subject to challenge

I provided a fairly detailed description some time ago and prefer not to try to remember it some 3 years later. I do not think I have pictures to provide the proof you are looking for but your subsequent picture is pretty accurate to what is needed and there is no need to have fingers anywhere at all risky, let alone near the reaction plate.

As for your final point re: gearbox removal, I have never posted anything alluding to removing it alone, I'm not that stupid. I'm only a customer, I don't do this for a living but I was fairly closely involved in the rebuild of my car and I'm happy for anyone can have look see if it is damaged in any way.

[christopher storey]

Maybe it was someone else who commented on gearbox removal ; I have not been able to find any relevant post

[abowie]

Maybe it was someone else who commented on gearbox removal ; I have not been able to find any relevant post

This thread has reminded me how to find the "ignore" setting.

[angelw]

Jerome Wrote:

but your subsequent picture is pretty accurate to what is needed and there is no need to have fingers anywhere at all risky, let alone near the reaction plate.

Christopher's picture is typical of engine removal from the top, with the Reaction Plate removed. I suspect the injury prone part of removal of the engine with the Reaction Plate in place, that Christopher is referring to, is when trying to clear the engine and gearbox of the Reaction Plate. Where the engine is in the picture is well past that point.

[christopher storey]

I have now found the original thread where this subject was ventilated at length and generated a good deal of heat. A read of it saves me from carrying on with the topic

viewtopic.php?f=3&t=13341

[flatfloor 3.8]

I still say "NO". I have just read through the "original thread" regarding this topic and the photos in the thread merely show a car with no engine and the plate in place, that's not evidence it was removed with it in. I have just been in the garage and laid under my own car to check that i am not either missing something or going bonkers, and i still cant see how it can be done.

[christopher storey]

Couldn't agree with you more, Bill . It is a physical impossibility, and I have no idea why people argue otherwise