pulling engine in 1987 Trooper

Hi, I've skimmed the past few months of posts, and googled this, but can't find a specific answer. I am replacing an engine with bad cylinder in my 1987 Trooper. Everything else on this car (tranny, tires, brakes, etc) is good-to-almost-new. So I want to keep the vehicle, for sure. I have a line on a rebuilt engine, i think it's a good deal. Do I HAVE to pull the tranny to pull the motor? That is a huge P.I.T.A., and more work than I planned on doing. (Due to finances etc. doing the pull/install myself.) thanks for any advice/insight, k wallace

Reply to
k wallace
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Assuming the 87 is very much like the 86 model, which I did this same operation on, (mine was a 2.3L 4-cyl- I can't speak for the V-6), you DO NOT have to pull the tranny. Nor do you have to pull the front differential/axle. What you DO have to do is pull the oil pan so you can shoehorn the engine into the tranny over the front differential/axle (without the oil pan, taking GREAT caution that you don't bend the oil p/u tube and screen), then once the engine is in place (more or less) in the transmission (you will need to use a floor jack to raise the front of the transmission up to join the engine) behind the transaxle, then having already scraped and cleaned the gasket off the block and the pan, including the front and rear lip seals, reinstall the oil pan and tighten it up. I strongly recommend pulling the radiator, just so you don't damage it.

Something to do before you do all this, though, is to replace the rear main seal of the crankshaft on whatever engine you are reinstalling, and ensure the plugs at the back of the head and/or block are new or in very good condition. DAMHIK.

I'm sure there were other things I did but I can't remember any more. BTW, I picked up a wrecked Isuzu truck for 500 bucks and took the engine out of it - I think I had to swap out the intake manifold due to lack of some fittings that my truck had to have for the computer to work. You may run into the same problem. Don't forget to fill the oil up before you try to start it. Best way to do that is to take your keys and put them in the oil case so you don't forget to do it. Hope this helps. I wish I had my old 86. My 98 sucks oil and gas, much more than my 86 ever did. r/ Steve

Reply to
GreenGas

thanks for your reply. I've already pulled it, managed to do it w/o pulling tranny. I wonder why the manual insists it must be done? Thanks for the oil pan tip, we were wondering how we were gonna get it all put back in and aligned. It looks like getting the tranny-engine mated back together is going to be a pain in the butt.

I haven't yet seen the engine we're installing, but i'll be sure to check those. depending on some phone calls tomorrow, I may have a local garage rebuild this engine instead of ordering a remanufactured one. Lots depends on cost, and shipping adds quite a bit on ordering one.

yeah- I could have bought a newer car, even a newer Trooper, for what I'm spending on this one, but I'm fairly attached to it. Everything else is in really good condition. it's the 2.3L gas 4cyl, so no powerhouse, (96 hp and 125 ft.lbs. torque) but it's a car I like a lot. I have a friend that forgot to put oil in a BRAND NEW engine he'd installed for someone else. The damn thing melted. I won't forget!!

Thanks again, k wallace

Reply to
k wallace

one question about this part- what plugs are you referring to? Freeze plugs? The round, aluminum-looking things are the only plugs I see, and I thought those were freeze plugs. Are they not? As you can see, I'm rather learning-by-doing on this. I've done all my own maintenance and lots of minor repairs/replacements (brakes, timing belt, etc) but never pulled an engine before. What a learning experience! and so far, no broken bolts or parts, no tore-up knuckles. We'll see how it goes, putting the new one in. thanks for your previous advice, too. regards, k wallace

Reply to
k wallace

On my 1990 Trooper, 2.8 V6, I dropped the front axle down to the frame (4 bolts on each side). This allowed the axle to clear the oil pan, and made engine removal easy. Don't have to pull, or reinstall the pan after engine installation, or drop transmission. Don't know about 4 cyl.

Reply to
Charles Strahan

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