Can someone tell me how to properly remove a 351 and 4speed from my 69 fastback, I dont want to screw anything up.

 

Pull the tranny. Unplug the wiring harness at the firewall. Take the battery cables off. Take out the radiator and leave the hoses off. If it has air, take the hoses loose. Unscrew the brake lines at the MC. Take the starter off. Get a cherry picker and hook up to the intake manifold bolts. Pull forward, then up and forward again. If I missed anything, I am sure someone will come along and correct me.

 

Why do the brake lines at the master cylinder need to be unscrewed?

 

I am confused about that as well 428 coupe.

And take your hood off.

 

I guess I should have finished explaining the brake line thing. I remove the brake lines from the master cylinder and at the wheel and set them aside so I don't hit them with the engine while taking it out. It goes to say that the hood needs to be removed. See, I knew someone would get on here and make corrections. You also want to remove the shock tower to cowl brace and the Monte Carlo bar if you have one. It is really just basic common sense. If it is hooked up to the body, it has to be unhooked before removing the engine. It's just that simple.

 

Thank You Soaring!

 

Personally, I like to pull engine and trans at teh same time. Heres how I do it, disconnect battery, raise car (duh), remove driveshaft, drain coolant, remove radiator, fan and shroud. unbolt exhaust, remove starter, disconnect shifter, remove trans crossmember, remove motor mount nuts, attach cherry picker. Lift motor just barely off the engine cradle, move forward, raise enough to clear core support (you might need to remove the crank pulley also), at this point the engine and trans combo will be tilted at almost a 45* angle. pull forward somemore, when the tail housing of the trans is about to clear the firewall, be careful so the output shaft doesnt scrath the **** out of the firewall. And there you go the motors/trans is out.
-P.

 

I most often leave the trans in the car if its working good. Since its a clutch, all you need to do is unbolt the bellhousing and let the input shaft slide out of the clutch. Lifting and engine and trans often makes a mess from fluid draining from the output shaft. Also you need two people since someone has to lift the tailhousing over the front support.

Right now I am in the middle of swapping 5.0's in my F150. Got the good one out of the rusted 4x4 and left the trans and transfer case in there. Very simple to do that. Workin on the bad engine and leaving the trans in there, its less to unhook and put back when the good engine goes in. I use a floor jack to hold the trans to reconnect them.

To each his own on the trans thing, but you need a good hoist to do it safely. Using a beam in a garage or a tree limb is asking for additional problems. Go slowly and dont force anything, be prepared to put it back down a few times before it comes out. Also make sure you have everything disconnected from the engine before you pull it. Ground straps, exhaust, fuel lines, wiring harness, vacuum lines.. you dont want to break or stretch things that you need to use again.

Also I dont like ramps to raise the car, it can roll off and they dont lift it very high. A good floor jack and quality jackstands make life better.. I like to have the car about 18"-24" off the ground when pulling an engine. Im a thick chested guy..

 

If you're going to have the motor out, it's best to pull them together ( motor and trans ). I mean, you're *that* far in it, might as well get it all out so you can inspect everything at once.

Too many times i've had issues not doing it and ended up pulling something else once I installed the motor again. Just take the extra time now, it will prevent alot of time and headaches later.