I have a 1997 Accord with automatic transmission. It's got the 2.2 VTEC engine with 194K on the clock. About three months after buying it, the head gasket / head went out. Symptoms showed up sooner, but I thought it was something else. Rather than replace the head, I'm planning on putting in a JDM motor. I did buy the factory manual, but I'm sure information is lacking. The factory manual says to remove the engine and transmission from the top without disconnecting the A/C and the power steering but it sure seems tight, if not impossible. I've searched and read some threads on here and elsewhere, but the threads either went stale or didn't have the detail I was looking for.

Anyway, my question is what's the trick to getting the engine and tranny out? There's very little room and the bracket on the passenger side that's welded to the body sticks out about 3-4 inches over the tranny. Do I have to rotate the engine/tranny so that it's diagonal in the engine compartment? Or just tilt the engine/tranny at a steep angle? Should I separate the engine and tranny?

I'm hoping I don't have to drop it through the bottom because I don't think I can get the car high enough so that the engine will clear. I'm already 4 hours into this disconnecting and labeling vacuum lines, electrical connectors, removing the radiator etc. I don't mind a challenge, but I don't enjoy misery, either. Any advice is appreciated. Thanks in advance.

 

Unless your engine currently has other problems besides head gasket, this amount of work introduces additional risk of introducing problems you don't have at present. Head gasket replacement is most of 1-day for average DIY'r. Engine pull/replacement will be 2-3 long days, IMO (haven't done one yet knock on wood).

In my experience, if the manual says engine can be lifted w/ AC intact it should be do-able. Looking at manual, it may be necessary to use some bungee cords to hold the assy out of removal path.

The hard part of engine replacement job will be removing drive shafts and removing rear engine mount (this I've done twice).

Perhaps someone can provide more details.

good luck

 

Maybe I'm a little naive (could be, haven't done much with front wheel drive), but removing the axles didn't seem too bad. A guy at work has done this on his Civic and said it wasn't too tough. I read up on that before doing the job and took a look under the car. However, I've quickly learned that the manual makes everything seem simple. What have I gotten myself into?

 

Removing axle nuts can be challenging w/ break-out torque of 300-400 ft-lbs (air impact is best tool) and ball jt removal can occasionally be challenging. Sometimes rust will bind the axle outer end to the wheel hub and special tool is necessary to puch axle from hub.

Nothing in engine removal/replacement appears to be extraordinarily difficult, but there are a lot of steps (per shop manual procedure).

If you have an engine hoist and good working area, this should be w/i capability of most knowledgeable diy'rs.

good luck

 

It really isn't difficult with an engine hoist. Taking the radiator out gives quite a bit of wiggle room. The engine/trans does come out at an angle, with the timing belt side of the engine angling up and the transmission down. The only problem I had was cracking the grill while swinging the powertrain away from the car; something caught on the lip of the grill. You may want to take the grill off too since it's quick.

Don't separate the trans from the engine and just move the P/S and A/C pumps out of the way.

Give yourself and a helper about twice as much time to get the engine/trans back in. It's kind of a PITA to angle it back in and get the left and right side mounts lined up enough to get the bolts in.

 

Thanks, Roader. This is the kind of info I was looking for. I suspected this was the way to do it, but it's nice to hear from someone who's been there. I'm removing other things to give myself room, even if the manual says I don't need to (alternator, upper intake, etc.). It just makes things easier if there's more room. Plus, less chance for collateral damage.

Thanks to a hardcore gearhead at work, I have at my disposal a really sweet hoist with one of those load levelers / tilters. Should make the job easier. It's nice to know removal isn't that difficult - it looks like a really tight squeeze. If you can get it out, you can get it back in.

A couple more hours and I should be ready to pull the motor. I keep finding little roadblocks. The latest has cost me at least half an hour of downtime with no real progress. I think I know the cause and I'll get at it tomorrow evening again.