[carsnrockmusic]

just wonderin what i would be gettin myself into if i was to do a cluch/flywheel install myself.....would i be better off leavin it to the mechanic?......i'd rather not pay that much money.....costs a lot to get someone to do it for you.....

help/advice would be very much appreciated

 

[Fett]

If you have access to a lift and air tools, then I would give it a try. If you do not, let someone who does do the work. You need to drop the subframe, then the tranny. It is a very tight squeeze in there, and doing it on the ground would take you days.

 

[Zalec]

i say let someone else do it, if you screw it up your gonna have to pay someone else to do it anyways. so why not save the time and effort and have someone else do it.

 

[mcon99]

Originally posted by: Zalec
i say let someone else do it, if you screw it up your gonna have to pay someone else to do it anyways. so why not save the time and effort and have someone else do it.

thats a poor attitude.

get the Ford tech CD and do it yourself.. it is very straight forward.

and you don't need a lift!!! I don't know why people think that. All you need are 4 jack stands. Get your car up on the stands, take out the front two struts but leave the rest of the front suspension together, and don't unbolt the subframe. You don't need to because you can pull the engine and transmission as a unit out the top using an engine hoist fairly easily (removing the hood helps, that takes all of 10 minutes to do). If you don't unbolt the subframe it saves you all the pain of doing a re-align when you put it back together...

 

[carsnrockmusic]

Originally posted by: Zalec
i say let someone else do it, if you screw it up your gonna have to pay someone else to do it anyways. so why not save the time and effort and have someone else do it.

cause i'm not a spoiled brat and/or rich

 

[carsnrockmusic]

Originally posted by: mcon99

Originally posted by: Zalec
i say let someone else do it, if you screw it up your gonna have to pay someone else to do it anyways. so why not save the time and effort and have someone else do it.

thats a poor attitude.

get the Ford tech CD and do it yourself.. it is very straight forward.

and you don't need a lift!!! I don't know why people think that. All you need are 4 jack stands. Get your car up on the stands, take out the front two struts but leave the rest of the front suspension together, and don't unbolt the subframe. You don't need to because you can pull the engine and transmission as a unit out the top using an engine hoist fairly easily (removing the hood helps, that takes all of 10 minutes to do). If you don't unbolt the subframe it saves you all the pain of doing a re-align when you put it back together...

what's the Ford tech CD?....is that the manual thing?.....if so where can i get it?....i talked to some local shops and they had no clue what i was talkin about or else they couldn't find anything like what i wanted....

would i have to worry about the clutch's alignment by chance?.....the clutch i'm getting does no include the clutch alignment tool.....i've been told that i shoudln't have to worry about that too much with the cougar.....but none of the people who told me that own a cougar.....so you know how that goes.....

thanks

 

[mcon99]

what's the Ford tech CD?....

it is the complete shop manual for our vehicles. lots of places to get them, ebay for one, or post in FS, as I believe at least one person one this board copies and sells them for $5 - $10

would i have to worry about the clutch's alignment by chance?.....

It is not absolutely required but it will give you piece of mind. You can borrow one of these from autozone or whatever auto store around you has a tool loan program

 

[Fett]

I am going to have to disagree with this assesment. Changing the clutch by removing the entire engine and tranny from the top, is a horrible idea. That is like having a root canal by entering the anus.

Even the Ford tech guide tells you to remove the tranny only, and remove it from the subframe. Rent a stall with a lift and do it in one day, do not lay on your back for two weeks.

 

[carsnrockmusic]

dude...i get confused wayyyy too easily.....i know nothing about this so that could be it...i'm looking into gettin the cd now...waitin on clutch to arrive...and orderin the flywheel soon...so it'll be a lil while.....but i just wanna know what i'm gettin into...i'm not the type to let somethin sittin around uninstalled for too long

 

[Fett]

Well, you could rent an engine lift and pull the entire assy, but that really is much more "involved" than it needs to be.

After reading the replies at work, I asked both transmission techs and the shop foreman what they thought. They all agreed, pulling the entire engine from the top to change the clutch and flywheel is 10x harder and more "involved".

If you have access to a lift and air tools, you can do the swap in a matter of hours. Remove the wheels, drop the subframe, remove the left axle, drop the tranny. Set the tranny on a bench and replace the clutch, look up and replace the flywheel....reverse. I am planning on doing mine in a few months, because I know the clutch is going....and while I am up there I am going to replace the flywheel because I have access to an SVT one for free. I have access to a lift and all the air tools I need, as well as techs to help me if I need it. It should not take me more than a few hours....most likely I will take all day long because I tend to goof off a lot.

If you remove the engine from the top, you will still need to disconnect the engine and suspension from the subframe, as well as all lines, fittings, and what not. Then lift the entire engine/tranny/axles/ect in one assy, THEN disconnect the tranny from the engine. By going from the top you will spend twice as much time as needed. True, it would be the easier way if you have no access to a lift, as you will not be able to drop the tranny while the car is on stands. But to be honest, if you don't have access to a lift, and you don't have a week to go without a car, I would not attempt it yourself.

 

[Zalec]

Originally posted by: FastZetecCougar


cause i'm not a spoiled brat and/or rich

lets not start this again.......... :disgust:

 

[mcon99]

Fett is right. It is easier to drop the left side subframe and just remove the transmission, but that assumes you have access to a lift, which 99% of people would not.

And yes, you can rent a garage bay with a lift, but if you've never done the job before, it is going to take you more than a day.

Most people has access to one thing - a regular garage. And am I assuming that you can have your car off the road for a week or two - thats what having a beater is for. Therefore, putting your car on stands and pull the entire engine/transmission from the top is very doable.

Also realize some of the other nice benefits of taking your engine right out... you can clean your entire engine bay, do some touch-up paint if required, clean your entire engine, paint the engine/transmission a nice colour, even do your valve covers pretty easily. It also gives you a chance to rework the engines wiring harness to have a cleaner install once everything is reassembled.

 

[DaButcher2]

when i blew my tranny and had to replace parts and added some trans upgrades, the only way that it was possible was to drop the subframe and then take the tranny out. no other way of doing it. we have a lift at home so it was easy. without the lift i would say good luck. you are better off taking it to a shop.

 

[mcon99]

look, here is the proof an engine will go in and out of the top of the engine bay, courtesy of PuckPuck. From this point until we had the engine bolted in and ready to go was about 4 or 5 hours at the most....and a Zetec should even be easier because you'de have more clearance front to back.