JANUARY 2010 - ENGINE INSTALL!!!

Let me first start off by saying this was easier than I thought.
Of course, trying to install the headers was a different story.
Here is what transpired:


The car was prepped and staged. Pretty simple
stuff here except for the fact that I had to get my
brand new rims and tires mounted :(
The old 14" wheels wouldn't allow for clearance from
the oversized calipers. Oh well.


The engine was carefully moved into position.
A little help from my brother in law Tony made
this go smoother than I had anticipated.







Ahh....almost there
But wait! Those damn tower braces are getting in the way.
Half hour later:

There we go.
Unfortunately I didn't photograph how difficult it was to
get the bolt holes lined up for the motor mounts.
This really ticked me off. Don't wanna talk about it so
don't ask...
Could it get worse at this point?

Yes! Take a look at the clearances that I had left in
order to install the exhaust manifolds.
Yes...it's tight

The good news? I get to pull the motor out one more time!

2010 and what have I done!

Wow, so it's been a few months and I would assume that most of you think I'm almost finished the car. Not quite. Lets take a look at the last couple of months:
It was time to bolt the tranny to the engine. What did this involve? Installing the flex plate first. This wasn't too difficult once I figure out which way the plate faces :) Unfortunately I didn't snap any shots of that part of the install. Also I neglected to photograph the stall converter install. This wasn't too difficult. I followed the manufacturers
recommendation which is filling the converter part way and then carefully
installing it ensuring that it "drops" twice during the install in order to seat itself
properly. A critical stage of tranny install.


With the cover plate missing (need to
order it) I was able to spin the flexplate using the flywheel giving myself access to
the 4 converter bolts. A few drops of anti seize and torquing to 30-35 ft lbs
ensures that this won't come lose.

Here is a pic of the tranny mounted to the motor.
Looks sweet eh?

I figured that since I have clear access
to the starter I might as well mount it onto the engine. I picked up a high output
"mini" starter from Jegs. Nice unit. It has allowances for turning the starter to
allow for custom install..i.e. if the headers are too tight you can turn it closer to
the block to prevent interference.