What is your fastest time to pull an engine, install another and drive it away?

[pauly]

It wasn’t a Mopar but I pulled the motor on my VW Baja Bug and replaced the clutch and pressure plate and back running in just over an hour. Granted there’s only 4 bolts holding the motor to the transaxle and there was no sheetmetal in the way to contend with!

 

[1973dust]

I had a 66 Chevy pick up with a 250 6 cylinder and a three speed. 45 minutes to drive under the A-frame and drive out to the other side. We just swapped one engine for another.

Wow! I sometimes take longer than that to do an oil change.

 

[Professor Fate]

It wasn’t a Mopar but I pulled the motor on my VW Baja Bug and replaced the clutch and pressure plate and back running in just over an hour. Granted there’s only 4 bolts holding the motor to the transaxle and there was no sheetmetal in the way to contend with!

Heck, you don't even need an engine hoist to pull a VeeDub motor!

 

[Ottmundr]

It has been awhile since I have done this.
Years back when I was short on cash, I'd swap in junkyard engines with no rebuilding done to them and have the car running in a day.
Back then, my cars were fun but not show quality. I didn't take the time to repaint engine bays, change anything or make upgrades except to swap engines. I've done several.
I had a 350 in a station wagon and a 305 in my Camaro. Both ran but the 305 was tired. I did a car for car swap and sold the wagon.
My brother had a Camaro with a dying 350, a buddy of his had a great 350 but his Camaro was a wreck. Nose to nose on the street, we swapped engines from car to car and the wrecked Camaro got junked.
I used to be able to do this in one day. This was with limited tools in less than ideal conditions.
Now I have plenty of tools and a roomy shop. I plan to do a 360 for 360 swap in a couple of weeks to this car:

View attachment 1716496149

The car will eventually get painted but not right away. If I did have a plan to "do it right", I'd strip down the engine bay, weld up any and all unused holes and paint it the color that the car will be. For now, I just don't know what color that I want to paint it so I won't do anything but clean things up a bit.
This time I plan to drive it into the shop....

View attachment 1716496150

.....Pull the running 360, install the rebuilt 360 and then drive it out.
The exhaust will stay in place. The transmission will stay in place. The 360 going in is a 9.5 to 1 roller 360 with #308 heads, 1.6 Hughes rocker arms, a mild roller cam, Air Gap intake....

View attachment 1716496151

Those headers came from FABO member @MidnightSwinger. They were test fitted to see about oil filter access. They will go in later, not the day of the engine swap.
The engine coming out is a late 70s 360 from a junkyard. In 2000 or 2001, I helped a buddy of mine and his kid pull this engine, strip it down and after he had it cleaned and honed, we screwed it together with stock pistons. He built a better engine later and I bought this from him.

View attachment 1716496152

It has about 8 to 1 compression, #308 heads, a MP 280/474 cam with a Weiand dual plane intake. The car runs pretty strong for being such a low compression mill.
I'm keeping the 8 to 1 360 for another car.
So what are your stories? Who has tales of their one day engine swaps? Maybe less than 6 hour swaps?

It used to be a day, and now it's a couple of weeks?
Advil and tylenol help a lot yah old codger!

 

[Ottmundr]

Heck, you don't even need an engine hoist to pull a VeeDub motor!

Without the right tool, it takes longer to get the shaft in the hole...
But sometimes you get lucky and it slides right in.

 

[Ottmundr]

Wow! I sometimes take longer than that to do an oil change.

 

[Ottmundr]

Wow! I sometimes take longer than that to do an oil change.

Falling asleep on the creeper does that.
Then the wife asks what took so long. Better have a good excuse, like, the moron who changed the oil last time tightened the filter too much and forgot to lube the gasket.
Then she reminds you that you were that moron.

 

[Kern Dog]

It used to be a day, and now it's a couple of weeks?
Advil and tylenol help a lot yah old codger!

I turned 60 in November but I am still as active and capable as ever. I sympathize for the older guys that struggle to get up from laying under the car or to bend over the fenders to work on their stuff.
Currently, I am blessed. I have no limitations like that.

 

[ch1ll]

One hour, not me, but a guy an acquaintance hired to pull and replace the V8 in a 70's impala. I saw him start as I was walking up to my girlfriend's apartment and he told me about it. I thought yeah right, ya'll full of ****. An hour later I walked back out and saw the old engine laying on the ground in a tire and the car with replaced engine running. I was stunned to say the least. To this day I wonder how he did it, then again the dude was ripping around with his feet barely touching the ground.

 

[missing linc]

I've done slant 6 swaps in about 3-3.5 hours with only hand tools and jackstands, no lift when I was younger. Most recent one I did was about 4 years ago, pulling the 360 out of my Dart Sport, swapping the torque convertor and going for a test drive in just over 3 hours. I had some advantage in that I have a lift, and had just recently installed the motor, plus I had all the tools immediately at hand. Some would argue it would be quicker to pull the transmission, but I felt it was easier to yank the engine since I could move the headers out of the way instead of having to remove and reinstall them.

 

[Darter6]

I turned 60

Oh,, when I turned 60 and everything went down hill from there.. I'm one of those guys that can get down, it's hell trying to get back up.
I'm not overweight just my joints don't like me anymore..

 

[kiwigtx]

Are the A Body guys faster?

Should be easy to work that out with this thread covering multiple sites.

 

[Elmo65]

Wow! I sometimes take longer than that to do an oil change.

There were two of us. We only did it about 15 times before that. It gets easier every time. The first time took about eight hours.

 

[Kern Dog]

Here is the mill that will be going in:

It has a Hughes roller cam with the fuel pump adapter on it.

Painted GoManGo….

May 7 1990.

 

[NC Engine Builder]

Looks sharp!

 

[tom999w]

Oh,, when I turned 60 and everything went down hill from there.. I'm one of those guys that can get down, it's hell trying to get back up.
I'm not overweight just my joints don't like me anymore..

Hurting joints can be attributed to diet, not necessarily old age or wear.

 

[RustyRatRod]

So how long would it normally take to remove and/or install a slant six?

Kitty and I had the original 170 out of Vixen, resealed and back in in less than a day. That was two old retired folks. I don't goof around with pulling the engine separately. I pull the engine and transmission together. It's always easier and faster.

 

[Ottmundr]

There were two of us. We only did it about 15 times before that. It gets easier every time. The first time took about eight hours.

8 hours, and how many beers. You can't count the time spent running to the store for smokes.

 

[plymouth67]

Younger we would do it in a couple hours. Now it takes about 8 good hours.

 

[Elmo65]

8 hours, and how many beers. You can't count the time spent running to the store for smokes.

Well, neither one of us drank. We did smoke a lot. Not just cigarettes, well him anyway, I don’t do the other. The first time it was crusty and dusty. Never been apart in its whole life. We just never could get the rebuild right on it. The last time was a junkyard engine and it was simple as all get out. Those were fun times. Most times after the first were about two hours.(I quit smoking in 2007.)

 

[FlamesAreWicked]

I’m soon gonna be doing an engine swap with a buddy. We’ll have stands, jacks, and a hoist for the engine.. hoping to leave the trans in the car than to contend with the shifter, linkage, driveshaft, and so on. I think getting the engine out and new one in will be the easy part.. it’s all the small details that go along with it that’ll be time consuming. I’m also gonna be removing the power steering box in favor of a manual one since it’ll be easier while the engine is out.. I’ll be installing Doug’s headers while I’m at it. Hopefully that’ll be a relatively small headache..

Shooting for a 3 day weekend to cover it all. Here’s to hoping lmao

 

[RustyRatRod]

Surely as we get older we slow down. I wonder though, just how much is attributed to getting older vs taking your time and being careful and safe?

 

[413]

1998 Camry 4 cylinder automatic threw a rod, so bought a used engine. This was in 2004 so many engines out there.

It took forever to remove the oil pan and balance shaft assy to clear the debris to turn over the engine and unbolt the torque converter. I am not familiar with bolt sizing on a Jap ride so I always had the wrong size wrench and socket. But I learned the system and got it all apart. Changed the rear main seal to be safe. 4 hours back in and running like new.

 

[Kendog 170]

One hour, not me, but a guy an acquaintance hired to pull and replace the V8 in a 70's impala. I saw him start as I was walking up to my girlfriend's apartment and he told me about it. I thought yeah right, ya'll full of ****. An hour later I walked back out and saw the old engine laying on the ground in a tire and the car with replaced engine running. I was stunned to say the least. To this day I wonder how he did it, then again the dude was ripping around with his feet barely touching the ground.

In the 80's I worked at JDC Autobody / Grays Towing in Reading Mass. My friend that I worked withs friend Tom Connery went out back and got a 350 ready to pull out of a wreaked Impala in an hour. He came in and said I'm ready. My friend told him to let us know when he was ready to pull the motor because I wouldn't believe it. This guy literally pulled the motor with no help or hoist. He reached over the motor from the side, grabbed the exhaust manifold and rolled the motor up to the apron, got another grip and rolled it up over the apron and top of the fender, then blocked it with a piece of wood so he could back his tailgate to the fender and rolled it in the truck. No bullshit. My friend was right! I never would of believed it without witnessing it.

 

[mygasser]

i used to swap a 1.6/2.0 engine in a ford cortina in 2 hrs. didn't need to even jack the car up, all bolts are 'reachable' from up top.