E30 Zone

As me cars gone BANG!! can any 1 recomend an easy way 2 remove my old engine? through the top or bottom which is easyer? just drop the sub frame or disconect the box an out of the top?? Wot u recon guys??

ive done a few engines on the e30 & always ive pulled them out, i dont no how easy it would be fron the bottom sounds harder though

ive only ever taken them out from the top.

I had a dolly made that sits 20mm off the floor and dropped the subframe onto it then raised the car over the lump and wheeled it out with the gearbox.
You can take the engine and gearbox out the top in one piece on a hoist but you will need help to hold it at an angle and stop it swinging around when you try to wheel it away from the car or you'll ruin the paintwork.

I had an absolute nightmare taking the engine out of mine through the top as the metal between the headlights can't be removed so you have to hoist it sky high!

Doing it with the gearbox attached doesn't bear thinking about!

I'm planning to do exactly what Martinaston said and make up a wheely-jig to sit the whole lot on and raise the car over it when I put it all back in.

Gimme a chance to clean up the x-member too

ive done a couple now and thru the top even with gbox attached is easy.....

u need to push the bell housiing area down as u remove the lump... so help is required,.... not a one man job....

Karan

i've put in and pulled out the 3.5 lump on my own with a hoist twice just one hand on the lump to stop it moving and one on the hoist, it does get a bit scary with all that weight so high up though!


yours should come out the top with a manual gearbox on, but it's not a massive problem to disconnect the box first and remove it from below if it won't.

You can buy a device that goes between engine and hoist that allows you to adjust the angle of the engine and box as you lift them. Makes the job possible single handed.

i took engine out with gear box attached and was amazed how easy it was, even left the gear stick on as well. Just get a decent houst. Had mine on wheel ramps as well.

Took me 2 days altogether to get old one out and new one in, but that was with the dark nights and cold (kept on running inside for a warm )

All done now boys!! took it out from the sub frame it took me a couple of days 2 get my lump out plus the donor car!! plus stripped out a couple of other bits got her running yesturday!! But the only thing is i think, where i've taken the box off an put it back on think i might have desdurbed the crank seal as it had a little widdle on the floor Doh!!. fuckin engines!!!??? agggghhhhhh booked it in to Angus buchcanhan workshops 4 wednesday but i dunno if its just where the engine was on the piss??
Any ideas?

If you've had the engine resting on it's sump, you may have disturbed the sump gasket (which was probably on it's way out anyway). A leak along the back of the sump under the cover plate can look like a crank rear seal failure.