without an engine lift
without an engine lift How do I do an engine pull without buying an engine lift? I've heard block and tackle systems, dropping it out the bottom, or just a few guys man handling it. Does anyone have experience with this and what do you recommend?
i doubt your going to "manhandle it".. but i have seen everything get left on the k member and disconnected and the car get jacked up, put on stands while the front tires shocks and motor stayed on the ground..
TECH Apprentice
Joined: Jul 2004
Posts: 374
Likes: 1
Why are you refusing to use an engine crane? You can rig all sorts of things, but they're not going to be safe, just rent, buy or borrow one and get it over with. You can get it out the top or bottom with an engine crane, but out the bottom is much easier with a lift. In either case you'll also need some combination of things (ramps, jackstands, shopjack...) to support things from the bottom.
A couple of good sized guys can pick one up easily, but that doesn't mean that you can get it out of the engine bay like that.
A couple of good sized guys can pick one up easily, but that doesn't mean that you can get it out of the engine bay like that.
I did this, but I used an engine lift to raise the car, pushed the K member with everything on it out to the side of the car and lowered the body on to stands. You could probably do it with a couple jacks.
i've used a huge steel warehouse shelving unit to hang the body from with ratchet straps. still had to jack the car high enough up to hook the straps around the radiator support, then just started cranking them up (4 total) to get the extra few inches we needed. the sketchiest part was deadlifting the car with one other guy so we could have someone undo the ratchet straps and set the car on jackstands...
used an engine hoist to put the whole setup back in and it went much faster and easier, although we already knew what we were doing so going back in should have been easier. if you can get a hoist, it's very easy. just had to slide the whole k member and motor onto the legs of the hoist so we had enough room to slide the hoist in and hook it up. not a big deal just a little time consuming.
used an engine hoist to put the whole setup back in and it went much faster and easier, although we already knew what we were doing so going back in should have been easier. if you can get a hoist, it's very easy. just had to slide the whole k member and motor onto the legs of the hoist so we had enough room to slide the hoist in and hook it up. not a big deal just a little time consuming.
Im NOT suggesting that you do it this way... But the front end of these cars are pretty light with nothing in them. When I took my donor 99 Z28 apart, a buddy and I were able to EASILY lift the front end up while someone adjusted the floor jacks that it was resting on. We used a piece of metal tubing under the front bumper supports (bumper cover off). If you put some sand bags or weights in the trunk well, behind the rear axle, it gets even easier.
But I wouldnt want to do it this way. I can see maybe lifting it onto stepped supports. So lift a little, set it on supports/jack stands. Lift a little more onto higher supports/jack stands. Making sure if something happened, and it dropped, it would only drop to the next level of support.
Again, I dont condone this. I highly recommend an engine hoist if you want to lift the car off the k-member. Also...without a hoist, its going to be hard to lower the car down to the dolly with the motor and all still installed. Using a jack is gonna be a pain due to how close the front end gets to the ground when doing this. Just an all around pain. With an engine hoist, life is easy.
Dropping everything through the bottom is the easiest way IMO to do any F-body car. Ill never go through the top again.
J.
But I wouldnt want to do it this way. I can see maybe lifting it onto stepped supports. So lift a little, set it on supports/jack stands. Lift a little more onto higher supports/jack stands. Making sure if something happened, and it dropped, it would only drop to the next level of support.
Again, I dont condone this. I highly recommend an engine hoist if you want to lift the car off the k-member. Also...without a hoist, its going to be hard to lower the car down to the dolly with the motor and all still installed. Using a jack is gonna be a pain due to how close the front end gets to the ground when doing this. Just an all around pain. With an engine hoist, life is easy.
Dropping everything through the bottom is the easiest way IMO to do any F-body car. Ill never go through the top again.
J.
Launching!
Joined: Mar 2010
Posts: 293
Likes: 0
From: Va Bch, VA
im not suggesting you build a pipe bomb, but if u were going to, this is how u would do it..... lol!
im not suggesting you slap your grandma, but if u were going to, this is how u would do it.....
im not suggesting you smoke rocks, but....
sounds like my dad telling me his old stories of when he was a kid, followed by: dont do that!
all kidding aside, i strongly reccomend renting, or borrowing a engine hoist. it is much cheaper to rent a hoist than to pay for whatever you break half-assing it (assuming no one gets hurt)
im not suggesting you slap your grandma, but if u were going to, this is how u would do it.....
im not suggesting you smoke rocks, but....
sounds like my dad telling me his old stories of when he was a kid, followed by: dont do that!
all kidding aside, i strongly reccomend renting, or borrowing a engine hoist. it is much cheaper to rent a hoist than to pay for whatever you break half-assing it (assuming no one gets hurt)
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Verdad Gallardo I guess what I'm asking is that rather than paying for an engine lift, my dad has a really heavy duty scaffolding. Its made to hold up to 4,000 lbs which I figured I could rig up. But an engine lift is sounding like the better option.
i've used a huge steel warehouse shelving unit to hang the body from with ratchet straps. still had to jack the car high enough up to hook the straps around the radiator support, then just started cranking them up (4 total) to get the extra few inches we needed. the sketchiest part was deadlifting the car with one other guy so we could have someone undo the ratchet straps and set the car on jackstands...
used an engine hoist to put the whole setup back in and it went much faster and easier, although we already knew what we were doing so going back in should have been easier. if you can get a hoist, it's very easy. just had to slide the whole k member and motor onto the legs of the hoist so we had enough room to slide the hoist in and hook it up. not a big deal just a little time consuming.
used an engine hoist to put the whole setup back in and it went much faster and easier, although we already knew what we were doing so going back in should have been easier. if you can get a hoist, it's very easy. just had to slide the whole k member and motor onto the legs of the hoist so we had enough room to slide the hoist in and hook it up. not a big deal just a little time consuming.
