Re: transmission r & r

[Scott Fisher <sfisher71@domain.elided>]

--- bradley artigue <brad_artigue@domain.elided> wrote:
> The book states that the 
> easiest method is to remove the engine and tranny as
> a unit in order to 
> repair the transmission because of the difficult of
> lying on your back to 
> jam it back in place. 

Oh, *that*. :-)  When I wrestled the gearbox of my
Junior out several years ago (with the engine left
in), I had such a hard time visualizing how to put the
'box back in that I wimped out and had it towed to a
nearby shop to install the gearbox.  The hard part was
getting the shifter "stub" on the transmission to
clear the hole in the tunnel -- that took about half
the time of getting the thing out of the car, and wore
out my shoulders.

I found out later from the ARA tech hotline that
there's a tip (allegedly learned by having to swap
gearboxes in the paddock between races): unbolt the
exhaust system from the chassis (but leave it
connected to itself, if that makes sense), then use
the long lever of the exhaust system to tilt the
engine.  This points the rear of the engine downwards
enough that you can slip the gearbox out, and
allegedly back in (assuming you've been doing your
bench presses, of course).

Haven't tried it myself, but I *can* attest to the
difficulty of getting the gearbox or the engine
individually.  

As for Russ' comment about "no way to remove the
engine without the gearbox," I believe he's right, or
close enough (for 105 series cars, anyway) -- if there
IS a trick, it wasn't apparent to me when Jeff and I
replaced the engine in his Junior last September.  We
tried removing the engine with the transmission left
in place, with a good cherry-picker and lots of room,
and eventually had to loosen the transmission to get
the thing to tilt sufficiently to get clearance.  The
problem: with the deep aluminium sump, there isn't
enough clearance at the front (between sump and
crossmember) to get the engine off the input shaft to
the transmission.

Eventually we decided to unbolt the gearbox at least
enough to tilt the engine and clear the crossmember. 
Note: doing THAT required dropping the steering rod
from one side to get clearance.

About then I pointed out to Jeff that if I'd wanted to
spend that much time working on the car, I wouldn't
have traded it to him for the 356. :-)  

The next time I saw that engine, it was standing on
Jeff's roll-around bench with no transmission attached
to it, but I spent much of the intervening time in an
Advil-induced haze, so I don't know how it got there.

> As I've done this lying on my
> back installing car 
> parts thing several times, I know what I'm in for
> (!).

Tech tip: red wine and Advil together are a better
muscle-relaxant than either one alone.

> I believe my approach will be to remove the unit
> (it's close to failure as it is), 

Now: when you say "the unit" here, you mean "the
transmission," yes, and not the "engine and
transmission as a unit"?  To recap: I *have* removed a
transmission without removing the engine.  I have
*not* successfully removed an engine without removing
(or at least significantly loosening) the
transmission.  People with greater or lesser skill
levels than I have may have had different experiences.

> drain it, ship it to spruell and get a
> rebuilt unit (or have them 
> rebuild mine), then reinstall with a new clutch
> assy.

Ah -- well, that tears it: take out the engine and
transmission as a unit (there's that pesky "unit" word
again).  It will be MUCH easier to install the clutch
on your workbench -- or even with the engine just
sitting on the floor of the garage -- than it will be
to install the clutch while lying on your back under
the car.

Russ's comments are exactly the way I remember the
transmission removal on my Junior:

>         Put the front wheels of the Alfa on ramps
> and jack stands under the rear axle.  Drop the 
> transmission on your stomach to get it out by your 
> self.
>   When I was younger I would put the transmission
> back the same way, by arching my back and humping 
> the thing in where it goes.  Today, I find a
> floor jack and a friend a real help for putting it
> back in.

I've been working out a lot lately, and I *still*
wouldn't do this without assistance.  I seriously
recommend signing up with a partner, if only because I
have a real phobia about working all the way under a
car without somebody there to make sure it hasn't
fallen on me.

>         One big hint is to put a block of wood on
> top of a jack and put it
> under the front of the oil pan.  This tilts the
> transmission down so that it
> will slide out easier.  This is required to stab the
> transmission back in.

That's what eventually got the thing out for me --
using a jack to tilt the engine.  The thought of
trying to wrestle it back into place, as fatigued as I
was at the time, was the nail in the coffin for me. 
Were I to undertake this again -- and I certainly will
one day, as I want to put in a lightened gearbox
eventually -- I'd arrange for floor space in Jeff's
barn for a week or two, as he's got all the good tools
(as well as lots of space), and not try to do the
whole thing in one afternoon.

Best,

--Scott Fisher
  Tualatin, Oregon

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