cute02spec wrote:

Drop the tranny... it's very very very hard to pull both out the top.  So drop the tranny, and get a shop crane and pull the engine out from the top.

Just the answer I needed. Thanks

cute02spec wrote:

Heh, my engines been out a few times now

Invest in a tranny jack and shop crane for sure, though!  Pep Boys have them decently cheap.  If you don't already have them, or access to me

Do I "HAVE" to drop the tranny to make the engine swap? My tranny is in great condition, so I don't want to mess with it if I don't have to.

I'm going to beg, barrow, rent, and/or steal a lift.

Black04SpecV wrote:

Ekshail wrote:

cute02spec wrote:

Heh, my engines been out a few times now

Invest in a tranny jack and shop crane for sure, though!  Pep Boys have them decently cheap.  If you don't already have them, or access to me

Do I "HAVE" to drop the tranny to make the engine swap? My tranny is in great condition, so I don't want to mess with it if I don't have to.

I'm going to beg, barrow, rent, and/or steal a lift.

If you can put the car on the lift you can drop the engine and tranny as a whole, HOWEVER you have to separate the engine from the tranny in order to exchange the engine... Unless you are exchanging the engine tranny as a combo...

I don't have a problem disconnecting the engine from the trans, but If I don't have to drop the tranny to pull the engine, then:biggrin:.

cute02spec wrote:

If you don't have a lift, and are doing this at home... you're going to have a very tough time getting the two out still attached..

And you can't leave the tranny all bolted in the engine bay, as the single mount will no support it.  It has to come out no matter what. 

That's why I'm not understanding why you don't want to "drop it."  Would you rather pull it out from the top or ???

OH! OK. That's what I was getting at. Just wondering if it was possible to leave the tranny in place, unbolt it from the engine, & still be able to lift the engine & replace it with the new one, then bolt is all back up.

Black04SpecV wrote:

Ekshail wrote:

cute02spec wrote:

If you don't have a lift, and are doing this at home... you're going to have a very tough time getting the two out still attached..

And you can't leave the tranny all bolted in the engine bay, as the single mount will no support it.  It has to come out no matter what. 

That's why I'm not understanding why you don't want to "drop it."  Would you rather pull it out from the top or ???

OH! OK. That's what I was getting at. Just wondering if it was possible to leave the tranny in place, unbolt it from the engine, & still be able to lift the engine & replace it with the new one, then bolt is all back up.

No it's not possible you have to drop the tranny either way...

Got'cha. Next time you're down South, look me up. I owe you a drink! Thanks.

syhnthetik wrote:

When I pulled my engine, it looked like it would be possible to pull it out the top (tranny engine combo), but it looked like a pretty tight fit. It is possible to pull an engine out the bottom in your garage without a lift, been there done that lol. I can tell you its not fun though. I used 4 scissor jacks to do this. Jack up the front of the car with 2 jacks, then put 2 more jacks about 6 inches behind those and jack all the way up. take the first 2 out and place them behind the jacks that are now supporting the car. Basically you just keep working your way back with the jacks until the front of the car is up high enough to get the engine out from underneath. Super ghetto and not very safe, but it is possible. Just make sure you don't go so far back with the jacks that you pass the center of gravity, then the car will tip forward and the ass end will be up in the air <--bad news. Good luck!!

I'm going to get some taller jack stands & rent a hoist once I get the old engine ready to pull. I have to drop the tranny first. Gonna go ghetto there & used a floor jack & some rope to lower it. Wish me luck ya'll!

i pulled my engine and trannie from the top..and droped them from the top too...bolted up...cant say it was that difficult...although putting it in place was a lot harder than taking it out...possible..will probably take longer than dropping it

One side note for anyone trying to do this at home...

MAKE SURE YOU GET YOUR HANDS ON A TP50 TORX BIT!!!!  It is VERY difficult to get the flywheel off without one. I've broken 3 T55's trying to get around this tool. I finally found one locally through Empire Tools. I've tried, Autozone, O'Rielly, Advanced, Napa, Carquest, Sears, & BAP GEON & none of them carry this product in stock.  You will also need a clutch alignment tool. You can do what I did & order a clutch for the auto parts store, then tell them you just need the tool.

cute02spec wrote:

02/03s with original flywheel is TP50, but all you can buy now from Nissan is the new redesigned ones that came stock on '04+, which is TP55.  That's Torx Plus.  Normal Torx won't work.

Well, I found out after I got home yesterday that my car has the TP55 bolts. So I had to go back to the store & exchange the TP50. I would have been soooo pissed if I had ordered one online like I was going to. I still have a few misc items to connect so hopefully I'll be up and running soon.



I can honestly say that putting in a new engine isn't that hard. I'd say if you can replace an alternator, you can do this job & in your own garage. Some of the things you will need are:

Tall jack stands (at least 24") I got mine from Harbour Freight tools.

A floor jack that can match the height of your jack stands

A good torque wench

2 good breaker bars

Lots of liquid wrench

Maybe a pipe or something to slide over your breaker bar to give you that extra torque you will need to get the axles out

a clutch alignment tool

TP50 or 55 torx bit

Lots of lights

Engine hoist - Can be rented from Sunbelt for $30 per day $100 per week.

Pens, markers, nail polish, or whiteout pen so you can number or mark the position of various plugs, screws, etc.

A camera so you have a visual reference. (Take lots of before pics)

Of course a good set of tools, standard & deep sockets, box wrenches, extenders, etc.

Music - So you can't hear yourself go crazy

Beer - To help ease the pain of bustin your knuckles on cold steel.