Whats the best way to drop the engine out?

moggy · Post by **moggy** » Mon Apr 30, 2007 10:27 am

Just about to drop the 1800 to install the 2000. Have got to the stage where it's ready to drop but having been used to dropping beetle and camper engines all my life I've gone for the usual 'seperate engine from gearbox and then drop' approach. However this looks awkward (especially with one person). Is it easier to keep the engine and gearbox together and drop them as one unit? Experienced voices to the fore please

swapped · Post by **swapped** » Mon Apr 30, 2007 10:38 am

No personal experience of the job (yet), but everything I've read on how to do it has said to take the engine and box out as a unit before splitting them - even if you have no work to perform on the box.

Carl

Nige · Post by **Nige** » Mon Apr 30, 2007 10:40 am

Whichever route you go you just need to make sure you can hoik the car high enough to slide the engine out from below.

Gilbert '71 T · Post by **Gilbert '71 T** » Mon Apr 30, 2007 10:57 am

I've done this a few times on a 914 and I'd advise to keep the engine/box together and take them out both at the same time. unless you have a hydraulic lift I'd say it's virtually impossible to get the engine out on its own, doesnt take long to disconnect the speedo cable/clutch/drivehshafts/shiftrod and gearbox mounts.

here's the method I went for on pelican... you really can't go wrong

http://www.pelicanparts.com/techarticle ... e_drop.htm

Good luck with it

defianty · Post by **defianty** » Mon Apr 30, 2007 11:19 am

Moggy, on Saturday I removed my engine and gearbox for the first time from my 914 to replace a knackered gearbox.

I followed the Pelican walkthrough that Darren has pointed to. It's a fairly simple process.

Good luck!

moggy · Post by **moggy** » Mon Apr 30, 2007 11:23 am

Thanks guys. Just read thru that article, looks like a peice of cake doing it that way, much easier than the way I was going to try to do it.

East Coast Dave · Post by **East Coast Dave** » Mon Apr 30, 2007 2:26 pm

Slight hijack of this thread, but:

Would you recommend the same method (i.e. both engine & 'box) for a 912?

Still not made a decision on what to do with my blown standard engine.

fourteener · Post by **fourteener** » Mon Apr 30, 2007 2:35 pm

The pelican way of raising the car off the engine and then sliding it out rather than raising car, balancing engine+gearbox on the trolley-jack and lowering it onto floor is the way to go.
I have a trolley that used to carry forklift batteries in a former life and it slides under the engine/'box snugly.
Undo all attachments then using a scaffolding plank (or similar) under the engine firewall use your trolley jack under the center tunnel to raise the rear of the car. (ensure front wheels well chocked)
This way you can get the rear of the car 3 foot in the air in one go and the drive shafts clear the carbs/F.I.

Gilbert '71 T · Post by **Gilbert '71 T** » Mon Apr 30, 2007 6:12 pm

East Coast Dave wrote:Slight hijack of this thread, but:

Would you recommend the same method (i.e. both engine & 'box) for a 912?

Hello Dave,

the 912 is easier & much quicker to leave the gearbox in the car, I've had mine out and back in already

took me around 2hours to get it out. Slow and steady was the way with a tea break too

next time i reckon I could have it out in about 1 hour. it's a piece of cake, the easiest engine drop I've ever done.

one thing...make sure the coupling to the input shaft on the gearbox is disconnected otherwise you can bend the shift rod.

Hope you get it sorted soon

JB-L · Post by **JB-L** » Thu May 03, 2007 7:19 pm

In a similar/ related vein, my record to remove and replace a VW engine used to be 30 minutes overalls on to overalls off!

Mind you I used to do it often!

bishbosh77 · Post by **bishbosh77** » Wed May 30, 2007 7:38 pm

defianty wrote:Moggy, on Saturday I removed my engine and gearbox for the first time from my 914 to replace a knackered gearbox.

I followed the Pelican walkthrough that Darren has pointed to. It's a fairly simple process.

Good luck!

How long did it take you to remove? and have you put it back yet? i will need to remove mine to repair the battery tray area.

moggy · Post by **moggy** » Fri Jun 01, 2007 11:40 am

From start to finish a few hours. I put it back in last weekend and will set the ingine up to run good this weekend. I'd recommend getting a mate to help you lower the 2 jacks at the same time, however it's not essential. I lowered the engine gearbox onto a trolley (i.e. little flat thing you lie on with wheels to go under a car), whole thing was easy to move about after that.