Engine/Tranny re-install

After the main pieces of the engine were assembled, we painted the block, head and oil pan. Then we installed many of the other components, such as water pump, thermostat, engine mounts, valve cover, ignition coil, intake and exhaust manifolds etc. With the engine assembled we removed it from the engine stand, installed the rear main bearing seal, flywheel and new clutch. We then attached the freshly rebuilt transmission, and dropped it in the Jeep. We are in the process of connecting the various wires, hoses, distributor, clamps, to the engine/tranny combo. Then we have the transfer case to install, a few driveshafts, linkages, new radiator and we should be ready to see if it starts. :-) In the process of installing the accessories I pulled out the alternator from a box only to find it had seized up solid. So......another new part and away we go.

Engine Assembly - Part 2

Here are a few more shots of the engine assembly...........

Engine Assembly - Part 1

After 5 weeks we finally got the engine parts back from the machine shop. They bored the block 0.020" over, cleaned the block, polished the crank, rebuilt the cylinder head, replaced the cam bearings, resized the connecting rod journals and installed the new pistons. They also sourced all the parts we needed for the rebuild: gasket set, bearings, rings, oil pump, lifters, timing chain and gears. See photo.

Step one was to install the crank bearings, and crankshaft, then plastigage the bearings to check for clearance. The clearance for all the main bearings was 0.002" - perfect. Once the crank was in, we checked the ring end gap and side clearance, then installed them on the pistons. With the rod bearings in the rods, we aligned the end gaps of the rings and installed the pistons. Jason did a great job of installing the pistons. Then went in the camshaft, timing gears and chain and timing cover. Next was oil pump and oil pan. Today we will work on the cylinder head, lifters, push rods, and rocker arms.

Tranny work

We disassembled the transmission a few weeks ago in order to replace the syncro's, bearings and seals. Upon disassembly we found the reverse gear and the reverse idler gear had some wear and so I ordered new gears (~$400 for the pair). We took a day to remove the input, output and counter shafts. Then used the new press to remove the gears and syncros from the shafts. The parts are held in with small metal circlips. In the process of disassembly we bent 3 of the circlips. I thought .. no problem I'll just go to the Jeep dealership and order them, they should only be a few dollars each. Well, at the dealership I was informed that Jeep no longer carries those clips. I couldn't believe it. For a 13 year old vehicle, you can get all the large tranny parts, but not the tiny clips that are critical to hold it together. I went to Just Jeeps and they said they could get one of the clips, but the most severely damaged clip was showing as no longer available to them as well. They ended up ordering both just on the chance they could get them, and both came in. Hurray. The last clip I rebent and feel pretty good it will hold. The tranny is still disassembled, but we hope to replace the clips and assemble to day. Here are a few photos......

Few more pictures.

Here are a couple more pictures. You can see the engine tranny combo, then a close up of the very dirty clutch housing. The inside of the clutch housing was just as oily and dirty as the outside, which looks like was caused by a leaking valve cover gasket as well as a rear main crank seal.

I must say that with 266K km on the Jeep, the clutch itself looks in great shape, which shows how nice Jen and Michael treated it over the years. The release bearing for the clutch is showing signs of wear, so we plan to replace the clutch, pressure plate and release bearing just because we have them apart. The rad on the other hand was close to disintegrating, :-), likely as a result of years of salt spray. So a new rad is at home in a box.

While we wait for the machine shop to complete the engine work, and supply the rest of the rebuild kit (pistons, rings, bearings, gaskets etc), we will start work on the transmission rebuild today. We obtained a rebuild kit with new bearings, gaskets, and syncros from the US, and are looking forward to seeing the inside of the tranny.

Work continues...

We have been busy disassembling the engine, cleaning parts, and painting parts. The dismantling was fairly straight forward, with many pictures along the way to ensure we had a reference for the re-assembly. Most parts were cleaned on the wire wheel to remove rust, washed in the varsol tank, dried, and painted. It has been a few parts each night, but most of the direct engine ones are done.

Removing the external parts, like the engine mounts, water pump, valve cover are required but not really that exciting for the boys. When we removed the cylinder head, the timing chain and sprockets, then the cam, they started to appreciate what went on in the engine. The big moment was pulling off the oil pan, removing each piston/connecting rod assembly, and finally removing the crankshaft.

You can see in the photos the parts that are all set to go to the machine shop: the engine block, crankshaft, cam shaft (hidden in the red rag), cylinder head, oil pump, rocker arms, lifters and push rods. The machine shop will hot tank most parts (very good cleaning) then measure everything to determine what needs to be machined and what can be reused. The pistons are very worn so the block will need to be bored 0.010" or 0.020" oversized. The crank looks very good so may only need to be polished. The cam is 50/50, but the rockers, lifters, and push rods all look good. The head will be disassembled, 3 angle valve job, new valve seals, and reassembled. Our list of "other" parts is still relatively small which is nice.

Finally the Big project

While doing the smaller projects last year and enjoying the Jeep, it became evident that the syncros in the tranny were in need of replacement. Also a compression check indicated that cylinders 2 & 3 were below minimum and hence implied an engine rebuild would be required. Over the last few months we spent some time planning a complete engine and transmission rebuild project. An excellent learning opportunity for the boys. Well last weekend we finally started it.

I won't go into all the details, but we spent ~9 hours disconnecting everything from the engine and transmission, removing the exhaust system, pulling the driveshafts and removing the transfer case. Then yesterday we pulled the engine/transmission out as a unit, split them apart, mounted the engine on a stand and started to disassemble it. Plenty more things to do and photos to come.........