Engine Removal & Other Stuff.

jeff denton · 01-19-2003

It is starting to dawn on my just why you guys are so into your GT's. In the disassembly of Speedway GT I'm discovering a very ingeniously built little car!
I'm glad I lucked into the car I'm using. It was quite bruised and stripped of lots of the parts I won't need anyway, but I hear all this talk of severe rust lately, mine is absolutely rust free!!
I'd never before seen a four speed trans I could pick up with one hand...
I'm guessing there's a trick to pulling the engine without getting it stuck between the firewall and the little bar between the radiator supports (which is gone now

) Not a problem anymore.
I'm now tempted to add a Neat Street GT to my fleet. I'm hooked.

Gary · 01-19-2003

Originally posted by jeff denton
I'm guessing there's a trick to pulling the engine without getting it stuck between the firewall and the little bar between the radiator supports (which is gone now ) Not a problem anymore.
I'm now tempted to add a Neat Street GT to my fleet. I'm hooked.

The easiest way to remove the GT's engine is to drop it. Raise the body up ~30 inches and lower away.

kwilford · 01-19-2003

Jeff,

Yea, you are SO whipped! Too many folks have tried casual forays into Opeldom, thinking that they could just leave whenever they wanted, Some even have, at least for a time. But pretty soon, they are thinking of some neat feature of their Opel GT: the rotating headlights driven by a cable, the transverse front leaf, the two (count 'em, TWO) relays and three microswitches that run the headlights, the beautiful electro-mechanical mechanism that they use for the clock, even if it IS a bit problematic, and that neatest feature of all, the engine that drops out the bottom. Yes, Jeff, the BOTTOM. Like the picture below (although most folks jack the tail end up foot and a half or so, and the front about 28 inches, like in my picture at the side):

opelgt73 · 01-19-2003

my favorite form of engine removal is to drop the motor to the ground with a motor hoist, then with a front loader tractor I attach a chain from the bucket to the front frame of the car then I lift the car off of the motor and to the side. Then I can pick the car up again and pace it back on the motor when it is ready to go back in.

Nathan Acree · 01-19-2003

You CAN remove the engine from the top, without cutting the radiator support or anything else for that matter. You can also put it back in from the top.

Basic procedure is remove intake/exhaust manifolds, and the alternator. Next remove the fan and the radiator, and remove the hood. Using an engine hoist with a tilting block, support the engine from the top and unbolt the bellhousing from the ENGINE, not the transmission. Place a support under the transmission to hold it up after the engine is removed. With the bellhousing unbolted from the motor, raise and tilt the motor slighty while pulling it towards the front of the car and the engine will slide off the input shaft of the trans. When it is free, you simply raise/tilt the engine as needed and it comes right out the top.

I find the procedure easier than taking the engine out from the bottom, and you don't have to remove the trans either. I have a slanted driveway, so getting the car up high enough to remove the engine from the bottom is very scary. I have removed and installed several engines in GT's this way and I can do it in about an hour or less. I find it so easy to do it this way that I will never go back to taking the motor out from the bottom.

Anyway, see my pics in the gallery.

Nathan Acree
Albuquerque New Mexico

baronbors · 01-19-2003

YES- Opel GT's are TOO COOL!!!!! Unless it's August in Houston in an un-air conditioned 71 Gt. Then Opel GT's are way HOT!

Gary · 01-19-2003

Here's the stand that I use.

opelgt73 · 01-19-2003

Another way that I removed the gt motor was to simply use a large sears hydraulic jack and jack up the front suspension, I then used a come along attached to the rafters down to the engine and droped the engine like that onto a roller palet. Note I did use jack stands while I was unbolting the motor so that the car wouldent fall on me.

jeff denton · 01-19-2003

Out the bottom... Funny I didn't think of that while I had Speedway GT hanging nose up from the boom truck. My friend thought it looked so funny he got a picture of us standing under it...
Anyway I'll remember your tips when we start on Neat Street GT someday...
Thanks guys!

kwilford · 01-19-2003

The issue of which way to pull/drop the GT engine has been beaten to death on the classicopels forum. In spite of logic (and you can guess my viewpoint on this issue!), there are a few folks who insist that disassembling their engine and separating it from the bellhousing is easier than lifting a tiny little (2100 lbs for crying out loud) 28 inches at the front and 20 inches at the rear, and then conveniently dropping the ENTIRE assembly in one piece. Not to mention the advantage of assembling the engine, clutch and transmission so that there will be NO LEAKS (and no-one should underestimate this advantage), and lifting it into place in one piece.

JM2CW

And I can do this in 59 minutes! Or less!!

Nathan Acree · 01-20-2003

Hmmm,

~300 lbs in the air, or 2000! I'll leave it to personal choice to decide which is safer.

BTW, my method is no more prone to causing leaks than removing the engine from the bottom. And at any rate, putting in a new paper gasket between the trans and bellhousing (which is not needed with my method, as only the bellhousing is removed) is not exactly high on the difficulty scale.

Just my 2 cents.

Nathan Acree
Albuquerque New Mexico

Nathan Acree · 01-20-2003

Taking apart the gt motor and trans in the gt is more of a pain then its worth it is really hard to to get to the top bolts on the trans it takes half an hour just to get to them with all the extensions and universals.

You don't have to remove the trans though. With my method you unbolt the engine from the bellhousing and leave it and the trans in the car, only the engine is removed. It really is pretty easy. And when the engine comes out it is already attached to a movable hoist, no fighting with trying to pull the engine out from under the car.

Nathan Acree
Albuquerque

oldopelguy · 01-20-2003

On my last Gt, on ramps, I unbolted the radiator, fan, exhaust, shifter, throttle linkage, shifter and assorted other smaller stuff. Then I unblted the transmission cross member and dropped it to the ground. With a jack under the front of the engine, I removed the motor cross member and lowered the motor and trans onto a creeper.

Then with the help of 2 other smallish Navy guys, we just lifted the front of the GT and rolled it back off the motor on it's rear wheels, leaving a motor and trans on a creeper to move around at will. No jack stands, no suspended car, no engine hoist. Total time investment, including rounding-up and serving beer to 2 friends, was 45 minutes from driving the Gt onto the ramps to loading the motor into the back of my truck. Digging my engine hoist out of the garage takes almost that long.

FWIW, on a Kadett the suspension comes out too, and that makes an interesting dolly for moving the engine and trans around. Something about grabbing the tailshaft housing and rolling the motor around on the front wheels of the car just makes me smile.

N61WP · 03-16-2003

Can I get a quick reply about shifter removal? The book just says "remove shifter", and I have everything else unhooked and ready to drop!

Greasy James

N61WP · 03-16-2003

Thanks for the quick reply. I didn't even have to wash my hands first! I was actually able to remove the pin from the bottom, without pulling the console. I think I now have everything unhooked. I'll probably wait and drop it later on this week when I have some help, just incase I drop something on myself, I'l have someone there to call 911!

I plan to lower the unit it down with an engine hoist onto a furniture dolly, then roll it out and the new one in. Any suggestions on where to hook or bolt the chain from the engine hoist (balance wise) on the engine to get the best angle with the engine and tranny as a unit?
Thanks,
James

skidmark · 03-17-2003

I run the car up on two 4x12 planks I have laying around that I rest on two large firewood rings. I remove the intake alternator and distributor, attach a heavy rope to the #4 exaust runner on the header, feed it under driver side engine mount and back over to the #1 runner, attach comalong to the two loops you created. The header is plenty strong. this arrangment allows for slipping the rope as you tighten comalong to get perfect angle. sinch it up tight, remove 8 easily accessable bolts and lower away.
I think it would be easier to rebuild the lower end in the car than hoist it out the top.

JGard18 · 04-08-2003

oh man, I'm all excited. I'll be taking a 69 GT 4-sp and dropping the engine/tranny out of there to go into my 73 GT 3-AT. A friend and I are alloting ourselves a week to do this (and various other things)

From the sounds of it, we could have the hard part done in a day!

webster · 04-08-2003

So do you want to sell the auto trans and linkage out of the '73. I could put it to good use

Webster

JGard18 · 04-08-2003

if you want it, sure!

I just don't know how I'd get it to you...it probably wouldn't be worth my trying to ship it. Want to drive out to Rhode Island in two weeks? I'll give it to you for nothin

webster · 04-08-2003

Sounds like a plan let me get back to you with the details.(

) of when I can make the trip. I'm down in Long Island it's not a bad trip to make. Are you going to carlisle in May?

Thanks Much,
Webster

JGard18 · 04-09-2003

what's carlisle? I always thought that was some import ricer show or something...

but no, I won't be there.

I'll be working on this car from April 27th through May 2nd, so that's about all I can offer you as a window of time. I'll be working on it at my father's house, so once I'm done, I have to get rid of the (second) car.

webster · 04-09-2003

This is a pic from the carlisle meet( hard to see but if you go to the opel photo gallery, look for events you'll see lots of great Opels). Its a hugh swap meet at the fair grounds in PA lots of Opels and other "Orphan" autos. let me know when your ready for me to come, I think Medford is only 2hrs from New London CT. (don't know how long the ferry trip is, I think 1hr) And tell me what I can bring ( maby a helping hand)

Thanks,
Webster

01-19-2003	#1 (permalink)
jeff denton former opel racer Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: near some glaciers Posts: 2,863 Real Name: Jeff "Oh-Oh" Denton Provided Answers: 4	Unanswered: GT's are cool. It is starting to dawn on my just why you guys are so into your GT's. In the disassembly of Speedway GT I'm discovering a very ingeniously built little car! I'm glad I lucked into the car I'm using. It was quite bruised and stripped of lots of the parts I won't need anyway, but I hear all this talk of severe rust lately, mine is absolutely rust free!! I'd never before seen a four speed trans I could pick up with one hand... I'm guessing there's a trick to pulling the engine without getting it stuck between the firewall and the little bar between the radiator supports (which is gone now ) Not a problem anymore. I'm now tempted to add a Neat Street GT to my fleet. I'm hooked. __________________ No Opels were harmed in the filming of this movie. However two Mustangs, a Pinto, and a Capri were hospitalized. One Mustang was euthanized the next morning.

01-19-2003	#4 (permalink)
opelgt73 crazy opeler Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: Indianapolis, IN Posts: 568	my favorite form of engine removal is to drop the motor to the ground with a motor hoist, then with a front loader tractor I attach a chain from the bucket to the front frame of the car then I lift the car off of the motor and to the side. Then I can pick the car up again and pace it back on the motor when it is ready to go back in. __________________ Chris Indianapolis, Indiana

01-19-2003	#5 (permalink)
Nathan Acree Member Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Albuquerque New Mexico Posts: 338	Engine Removal You CAN remove the engine from the top, without cutting the radiator support or anything else for that matter. You can also put it back in from the top. Basic procedure is remove intake/exhaust manifolds, and the alternator. Next remove the fan and the radiator, and remove the hood. Using an engine hoist with a tilting block, support the engine from the top and unbolt the bellhousing from the ENGINE, not the transmission. Place a support under the transmission to hold it up after the engine is removed. With the bellhousing unbolted from the motor, raise and tilt the motor slighty while pulling it towards the front of the car and the engine will slide off the input shaft of the trans. When it is free, you simply raise/tilt the engine as needed and it comes right out the top. I find the procedure easier than taking the engine out from the bottom, and you don't have to remove the trans either. I have a slanted driveway, so getting the car up high enough to remove the engine from the bottom is very scary. I have removed and installed several engines in GT's this way and I can do it in about an hour or less. I find it so easy to do it this way that I will never go back to taking the motor out from the bottom. Anyway, see my pics in the gallery. Nathan Acree Albuquerque New Mexico

01-19-2003	#6 (permalink)
baronbors 1000 Post Club Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: League City Texas Posts: 1,117	YES- Opel GT's are TOO COOL!!!!! Unless it's August in Houston in an un-air conditioned 71 Gt. Then Opel GT's are way HOT! __________________ Texas Opel Preservation Society

01-19-2003	#8 (permalink)
opelgt73 crazy opeler Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: Indianapolis, IN Posts: 568	Another way that I removed the gt motor was to simply use a large sears hydraulic jack and jack up the front suspension, I then used a come along attached to the rafters down to the engine and droped the engine like that onto a roller palet. Note I did use jack stands while I was unbolting the motor so that the car wouldent fall on me. __________________ Chris Indianapolis, Indiana

01-19-2003	#9 (permalink)
jeff denton former opel racer Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: near some glaciers Posts: 2,863 Real Name: Jeff "Oh-Oh" Denton Provided Answers: 4	Out the bottom... Funny I didn't think of that while I had Speedway GT hanging nose up from the boom truck. My friend thought it looked so funny he got a picture of us standing under it... Anyway I'll remember your tips when we start on Neat Street GT someday... Thanks guys! __________________ No Opels were harmed in the filming of this movie. However two Mustangs, a Pinto, and a Capri were hospitalized. One Mustang was euthanized the next morning.

01-19-2003	#10 (permalink)
kwilford Über OpelGT.com Moderator Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Calgary, Alberta, Canada Posts: 4,087 Real Name: Keith Wilford Provided Answers: 4	Bottom or Top? Fifty Ways to Leave Your GT's Engine on the Ground! The issue of which way to pull/drop the GT engine has been beaten to death on the classicopels forum. In spite of logic (and you can guess my viewpoint on this issue!), there are a few folks who insist that disassembling their engine and separating it from the bellhousing is easier than lifting a tiny little (2100 lbs for crying out loud) 28 inches at the front and 20 inches at the rear, and then conveniently dropping the ENTIRE assembly in one piece. Not to mention the advantage of assembling the engine, clutch and transmission so that there will be NO LEAKS (and no-one should underestimate this advantage), and lifting it into place in one piece. JM2CW And I can do this in 59 minutes! Or less!! __________________ Keith Wilford working on my '71 GT and '75 SportWagon

01-20-2003	#11 (permalink)
Nathan Acree Member Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Albuquerque New Mexico Posts: 338	Engine Removal Hmmm, ~300 lbs in the air, or 2000! I'll leave it to personal choice to decide which is safer. BTW, my method is no more prone to causing leaks than removing the engine from the bottom. And at any rate, putting in a new paper gasket between the trans and bellhousing (which is not needed with my method, as only the bellhousing is removed) is not exactly high on the difficulty scale. Just my 2 cents. Nathan Acree Albuquerque New Mexico

01-20-2003	#13 (permalink)
oldopelguy Have Opel, Will Travel Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Saint Michael, MN Posts: 1,727 Logbook Entries: 3 Provided Answers: 2	Wow, is this getting heated! On my last Gt, on ramps, I unbolted the radiator, fan, exhaust, shifter, throttle linkage, shifter and assorted other smaller stuff. Then I unblted the transmission cross member and dropped it to the ground. With a jack under the front of the engine, I removed the motor cross member and lowered the motor and trans onto a creeper. Then with the help of 2 other smallish Navy guys, we just lifted the front of the GT and rolled it back off the motor on it's rear wheels, leaving a motor and trans on a creeper to move around at will. No jack stands, no suspended car, no engine hoist. Total time investment, including rounding-up and serving beer to 2 friends, was 45 minutes from driving the Gt onto the ramps to loading the motor into the back of my truck. Digging my engine hoist out of the garage takes almost that long. FWIW, on a Kadett the suspension comes out too, and that makes an interesting dolly for moving the engine and trans around. Something about grabbing the tailshaft housing and rolling the motor around on the front wheels of the car just makes me smile.

03-16-2003	#14 (permalink)
N61WP Member Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: New Orleans, La Posts: 564 Real Name: James	Can I get a quick reply about shifter removal? The book just says "remove shifter", and I have everything else unhooked and ready to drop! Greasy James

03-16-2003	#15 (permalink)
N61WP Member Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: New Orleans, La Posts: 564 Real Name: James	Thanks for the quick reply. I didn't even have to wash my hands first! I was actually able to remove the pin from the bottom, without pulling the console. I think I now have everything unhooked. I'll probably wait and drop it later on this week when I have some help, just incase I drop something on myself, I'l have someone there to call 911! I plan to lower the unit it down with an engine hoist onto a furniture dolly, then roll it out and the new one in. Any suggestions on where to hook or bolt the chain from the engine hoist (balance wise) on the engine to get the best angle with the engine and tranny as a unit? Thanks, James

03-17-2003	#16 (permalink)
skidmark Reborn Opeler Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: Damascus, Oregon Posts: 31	I run the car up on two 4x12 planks I have laying around that I rest on two large firewood rings. I remove the intake alternator and distributor, attach a heavy rope to the #4 exaust runner on the header, feed it under driver side engine mount and back over to the #1 runner, attach comalong to the two loops you created. The header is plenty strong. this arrangment allows for slipping the rope as you tighten comalong to get perfect angle. sinch it up tight, remove 8 easily accessable bolts and lower away. I think it would be easier to rebuild the lower end in the car than hoist it out the top.

04-08-2003	#17 (permalink)
JGard18 Opeler Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Medford MA Posts: 85	oh man, I'm all excited. I'll be taking a 69 GT 4-sp and dropping the engine/tranny out of there to go into my 73 GT 3-AT. A friend and I are alloting ourselves a week to do this (and various other things) From the sounds of it, we could have the hard part done in a day!

04-08-2003	#18 (permalink)
webster Member Join Date: May 2002 Location: L.I.,NY, 11789 Posts: 108	So do you want to sell the auto trans and linkage out of the '73. I could put it to good use Webster

04-08-2003	#19 (permalink)
JGard18 Opeler Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Medford MA Posts: 85	if you want it, sure! I just don't know how I'd get it to you...it probably wouldn't be worth my trying to ship it. Want to drive out to Rhode Island in two weeks? I'll give it to you for nothin

04-08-2003	#20 (permalink)
webster Member Join Date: May 2002 Location: L.I.,NY, 11789 Posts: 108	Sounds like a plan let me get back to you with the details.() of when I can make the trip. I'm down in Long Island it's not a bad trip to make. Are you going to carlisle in May? Thanks Much, Webster

04-09-2003	#21 (permalink)
JGard18 Opeler Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Medford MA Posts: 85	what's carlisle? I always thought that was some import ricer show or something... but no, I won't be there. I'll be working on this car from April 27th through May 2nd, so that's about all I can offer you as a window of time. I'll be working on it at my father's house, so once I'm done, I have to get rid of the (second) car.

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