Poor life choices - C4 content

Ah. Ok. Haven't really played with any c4 between crossfire and 87. So im not that well versed in early l98.

Day-25(6-hours):

The engine is detached & ready to come out...but the trans isn't letting go.

I tried lifting the engine 1.5", lowering the engine & lifting the trans, and rocking the engine back & forth. No luck.

The motor mount bolts are removed, as is the starter, and the 6 bellhousing bolts are out. Any good tips for getting these two to part?

Is there a 7th bolt at the peak of the bellhousing?

You did unbolt the torque converter right ? After that, slip a little prybar in there and pry the torque converter away from the flexplate to disengage the snout of the converter from the recess in the end of the crank.

If it's still stuck, the two dowel pins between the block and trans are likely rusty. You'll need to judiciously pry the engine and trans apart. Emphasis on judicious prying.

In reply to Crackers:

There's no 7th bolt at the peak. The trans bellhousing is flat across the top(700r4), and the hole on the block is empty

In reply to Cousin_Eddie:

I wasn't able to unbolt the torque converter since the engine is seized. I have access to the bottom 2 bolts, but I left them attached since I can't reach the top ones.

This sucker is fighting you every step of the way, eh?

Maybe try getting the top of the bellhouse to separate by lifting from below (rear oil pan or front of trans). If it separates, throw a wedge in there and lift the engine. Hopefully that will make a gap at the bottom edges. If so, more wedges and such and so forth.

Is it possible to pull them out together?

You are going to have to pull the torque converter snout out of the transmission oil pump drive by prying the engine forward off the transmission bellhousing. From the pictures it looks like you should have enough room to pull the block forwards and up at a slight angle. If you can get a helper to pry between the block and the bellhousing at the top and bottom it should slide off, then you can hoist it up.

Clem brings up a good point. How is the trams supported? Sometimes a minor tweak up/down on the trans will get the bell housing to pop.

In reply to petegossett:

the trans end of the converter is hanging in the trans. I'd pull engine and trans together, if possible, then separate them on the ground. Or, can you use a ratchet strap to pull the engine forward (while the weight is supported by the cherry picker) so you can get under the car and pry the converter forward from trans.

I don't really have a way to pull them out together - The hood is still on & it would probably take 2 other people to get it pulled off safely, but even then I don't think the hoist has enough reach to get all the way back to the engine. It looks like I'd have to drop the exhaust to separate the trans from the torque tube too.

In reply to ClemSparks:

I tried lifting from the front of the trans, but they didn't budge.

In reply to AngryCorvair:

I'll try your ratchet strap idea. The front cross member would be a good place to anchor it to.

mblommel wrote:

Stampie wrote: I'm sad.

Why be sad? Now he's got the opportunity to refresh the engine. It's a SBC, so it'll be dirt cheap. Also, since it's a SBC it'll be dirt cheap to add a load of power.

To me an engine has a soul. If this engine is rebuilt then it loses its soul and must gain a new soul. I'm sad for the lost engine soul.

In reply to Stampie:

If that's the case this one needed to be put out of its misery.

In reply to BrokenYugo:

Well, life-support at the very least.

In reply to petegossett:try to get the trans up to the same angle as the engine so they arn't binding as much

I had the same problem when I replaced the engine in my van. Corrosion locked the engine to the trans. Just keep working the engine back and forth until a gap shows up then pry.

In reply to zordak:

Thanks for the encouragement. That's what I think is most of the holdup here, probably with some added resistance from the converter.

I've never met an engine and trans couple that wanted to be divorced... Copius amounts of swearing, shoving back and forth, prying, and beating is usually present.

Much like a human divorce too, now that I think of it!

Not sure how different your L98 is from a later LT1, but I can confirm before you pull the hood and try, an LT1 will not come out while married to the trans. Whenever I've pulled a C4 engine or trans I've dropped the exhaust, then pulled the driveshaft, unbolted the trans from the the C-beam and lowered the back of the trans slightly. Maybe I took the long way around, haha.

Day-26(45-minutes):

I got a late start so I didn't have much time tonight, but I took everyone's advice and started by attaching a ratchet-strap to the block & around the front cross brace and swaybar, which pulled the engine both foreword and downward. Then I started driving paint scrapers around the bellhousing...BTW I have no idea how I ended up with a half-dozen paint scrapers, as that's about the last project I'll ever volunteer for, but I'm glad I had that many tonight.

I followed that up with a couple cheap screwdrivers, working my way up to prybars.

Then I released the ratchet-strap, providing the desired "pop", which led to this...

...and this(I think I'll be a couple weeks with a hazmat suit to clean that mess)

Thanks again for everyone's help and tips!!!

That looks like a Michelin Rally Tire that V8 lump is sitting on!

In reply to NGTD:

Good eye! It's on a Mitsubishi wheel that was on either the '76 or '77 Colt/Lancer rally cars I had back around '04. I sold one that was a shell(ex Doug Shepherd car) to a local "tuner-shop" who was going to swap a 4g63t into it, and he borrowed the other-3 wheels to transport it...which I never got back.

Why did I get a mental image of a baby being born at that description? Glad she's out. So going to rebuild her or straight LS? I know you can hit your target 400hp/tq without hitting the LS button. I'm thinking a cam with a lumpy idle so that heads turn as you pull up to the start line.

Congratulations, dad. It's a bouncing baby bow tie!

In reply to Stampie:

I'm looking for the combination of cheap/quick/easy, which sadly isn't an LS swap in a C4. I'll know for sure once I inspect the bottom end & hone the cylinders, but odds are pretty good I'll be rebuilding this one.

I'm still trying to determine if there are any dual plane intakes that will clear the stock hood once I bolt a carb and air cleaner on top, but I've yet to find anything conclusive.