Hi all

Firstly cheque sent today for membership.

I have been looking over my GTM and as I intend to fit a 1380 complete with DCOE weber,Oil Cooler etc etc Im keen to take the existing engine out of the Coupe.
Now I have done a search and have found out as per mini it can come out either up or under.
Question which is the better method bearing in mind I will be doing most of the work on my own?
I do have access to a gantry and a hoist so the lifting side is not a problem.
Looking at the engine bay it does seem very tight so I assume most of the ancillaries will have to come off if I opt to lift the engine rather then dropping the subframe, is this correct?

Thanks in advance.

Getting the engine out of the top is very tight, but possible. It does pay you back, as you won't need to bleed the brakes or reset the tracking of the back of the car.

The best solution if possible is to do a mod on the rear frame, so that the cross brace which is over the clutch housing is removable. I've gone a slightly different route, but I'm sure someone on here has got photos of the mod.

Ah right, I was wondering how the engine was going to come out with the crossmember in the way.
I have just come in from the garage and I noticed once all the ancillaries are off it may just move enough to allow it past the crossmember.
How easy it will be taking the bits off is another thing.
If I drop the complete subframe just to remove the engine how come it will upset the geometery?

I found on my old Coupe, if you removed the subframe, then the tracking needed setting, as the subframe doesn't align perfectly.

The engine can come out of the top, but when I did mine, it had to be lifted at 45 degrees and only just cleared the frame.

And if i remember correctly when i removed mine with the brace in i removed the clutch/flywheel cover to make things easier

As the others have stated it can come out the top and leaving the tube in place and even the clutch on, and if you go this route i reckomend a tilter, mine is a bar with chains to the engine a a moving hoo on a threaded bar that allows you to tilt the engine.

I use to from memory remove, the oil filter housing dizzy alternator and the clutch arm and slave cylinder exhaust manifold and inlet and it would pop out the top. with some serious angle on. the other advice is make sure you can lift the engine high enough to clear the body work and remeber the suspesnion will rais when you remove the weight of the engine if you leave the suspesnion on the car to keep a rollling shell.

If i leave mine as a rolling shell i lower the hilos, if its out then back in again soon, the car gets lowered onto a special calibrated piece of railway sleeper

Oh and by the way even my honda comes out the top,,,Just but i do have a removable cross brace.

West

I just took the flywheel housing cover (the wok ) off to reduce the amount of tilt required, not the clutch Methinks my previous post was badly worded

Cheers for the replies

Im still unsure of the best method of engine removal.
I think I might try the subframe removal,it might make things easier for me to remove it on my own.
but the more I think of it the less convinced I am.
Decisions decisions.........

Right I bit the bullet and took the engine out the top.
I have fitted a big RSJ across the garage with a rolling hoist,lifted the engine,then swung it across the garage to the bench.
Oh how easy.
Right anyone got a drawing or similar showing where the cross brace should be cut and bolted for easier engine fitting?

I made the bracing bar removable when I re-made the support frame.



I never had to remove the engine but it made working on the clutch much easier.

Ah right now I see how it can work,my battery lives in that space as well so I will have to try and rig something up.

If you can move the battery to the front, helps with the weight distribution and if your cunning you could put it on the passenger side to offset your weight a little to help corner weights.

Ill see if i can find a pic of my removable bar.

West

Would need to be a BIG battery is some of our cases.