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Duncanincapable

Active Member
Started ar 430 this morning attempting the engine swap. All going reasonably well until we got to the bell housing bolts. How does one get these beggars undone no room to get spanners on. I am at my wits end have had to cancel wife's hospital appointments until I get this thing going. If anyone can physically help there is a case of beer on offer.
 
Duncanincapable said:
Started ar 430 this morning attempting the engine swap. All going reasonably well until we got to the bell housing bolts. How does one get these beggars undone no room to get spanners on. I am at my wits end have had to cancel wife's hospital appointments until I get this thing going. If anyone can physically help there is a case of beer on offer.
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Usually drop the rear of the gearbox down a bit and use a couple of long socket spanner extension bars and a universal on the socket spanner to get up, around and over the top, can be a challenge all right, but definitely doable. Start on the top bolts, remove each one completely as you go, work top down either side leave one each side at about the horizontal centreline that are more easily acessible till last, just make sure everything is well supported, you are going to have your head under there remember. Would love to assist but I'm a long way from your place. Good luck with it.
 
If it's an auto, I'm not sure but I think you have to undo the flex plate bolts and ensure the torque converter stays in place. I do know that it's possible to break the oil pump drive tangs.
 
Datatek said:
If it's an auto, I'm not sure but I think you have to undo the flex plate bolts and ensure the torque converter stays in place. I do know that it's possible to break the oil pump drive tangs.
Click to expand...
In place on the gearbox that is. As Gazbo posted, drop rear of g/box and lots of long extensions / u/ joint and a short cracker bar.
 
I didn't do that. I removed the heads to access top bolts. You will have to remove the flexplate bolts. Remember how they go back. When you get to the lift out stage you will think it's stuck just persevere cos it will come eventually. Lever knock check All the bolts are out. Try again. The bell housing is quite a tight fit. Remove the sump to access flexplate bolts. Don't move the torque converter. And put a ratchet straps around the gearbox.
 
As per Gazbo. You might want a bloc of wood at the front of the engine because it will pivot forward at the bottom and try to smash into the cross-member thingy. Assume you already have the viscous fan off and the housing.
 
If you want to avoid faffing about with some daft socket extension creation, one of these turns it into a five second job getting the top bolts out of the bell housing.
tite-reach-31.jpg
 
You need the 1/2” really. I got mine for about £40 delivered some years ago but the exchange rate was much better then. Don’t use it often but when you do it usually makes a seemingly impossible job possible or saves hours of stripping down work. (For disclosure I have significantly more than one unreliable Land Rover product in the stable plus assorted other marques also of the appealing but unreliable nature)
 
+1 on removing the heads first, which makes access to bell housing easier. I tried lowering the gearbox & transfer case, but access still challenging, so bolted it back up.

Did mine by removing L & R mounts, and then dropping the lump a bit which gives lots more room around the bell housing. Also using a swivel head socket wrench to crack the bolts is easier than messing with long extensions past the gearbox.

clarke-pro159-3-8-swivel-head-rapid-wrench-292mm-long-1700559-1340-p[ekm]299x299[ekm].jpg
 
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