[99EJ6T]

WTF? no new pics? what a fail...


:lol:

 

[beater90]

Ya it kinda gotten started that way somehow...lol
But i've been really lookin around for a pic like this for some time now.
Tells so much of how the combustion behaves with the quench pads of that head.
Neatly squished towards the center!
Look how uncolored (almost) the piston pads are.
It does its job pretty well I'd say!

ahhhh, yes I see what you mean now, I thought you were commenting on a pic of the head which has the quench chambers, but you put the comment on the wrong pic...lol You have a good eye and make a good point:TU:

 

[sql_civic]

Prepping to drop the tranny

OK, the basic idea here is that we'll separate the tranny from the block and just lay it down on the floor. Rather than pull the whole block, head, and tranny (which requires an engine hoist), the tranny will be separated and lowered to the floor using brute muscle. The tranny needs to get swapped onto the new block so no sense pulling it out. This is an EX tranny that I got from a salvage yard with 50k on it. It had a new Quaife LSD installed last year by Mike Belben so it's in good shape and ready for some added torque.

I began by removing the axles. Now when I swapped this tranny in, I just pulled the axles from the tranny and left them attached to the steering knuckle and left the tie rods connected. This was kind of a pain so this time I disconnecte the tie rods and left the outer axle attached to the hub.

So here's a shot of my favorite tool at work. It's like a $25 item and it will pop ball joints with no hassle. I know there's a trick where you can lower the car and wedge it free but I need this tool for my other cars. I even got it for Christmas. It won't damage threads or rip the dust boots.

The passenger side popped right out in a minute but the driver side was picky and took 20 minutes (it seemed). The passenger side is a CarQuest replacement axle and the driver side is the original OEM axle. CarQuest has a lifetime warranty on their axles. Notice that they don't coat the shafts and they rust. I wrapped the splines in rags to protect them from the falling tranny. That's the splash guard on the floor in the background and my Michelin X-Ice snows in the far distance.

Here's a top view of the tranny with the starter, clutch hydro hard line, some misc brackets removed. It looks ready to drop to me!

Ah, but not so fast. Once the tranny is out then the block will be barely held in by just the top mount. So let's remove some of the other heavy stuff so it will be easier to handle when it's time to drop the block. So next I use my third favorite tool to hold the pulley and break the bolt free.

While I'm there I removed everything off the front of the block including the timing cover, timing gear, tensioner, and water pump.

There's a little bit of anti-freeze in the coolant jackets that I drain next. That drain plug is a PITA being in the back of block. The B20's have them in the front so you can get to it easy so you can a complete flush. Go figure. I used a lid for a big plastic container that Mrs Sql_civic was gonna throw out so it was already conveniently in the garage by the garbage. Note that I removed the exhaust down pipe by this time.

I can't forget the A/C compressor. This part is outside the scope of this project otherwise I'd take it off to clean and paint it. Once the whole thing is put back together it'll stand out like a turd in a punch bowl. Remember, this is not really necessary to drop the tranny but I get better leverage removing the bolts when the block and tranny is still firmly bolted into the bay.

 

[sql_civic]

Down and out

Lastly the the shift linkage was disconnected from the shifter and the stabilizer bar disconnected at the tranny. Now all we have to do is put a couple of jacks below the tranny and block and get down to business.

OK - gotta disconnect the tranny mount to set her free. I think at this point I cleaned up the tranny case with some Simple Green in a spray bottle.

After removing all the bolts the tranny comes free with a little help from a pry bar. The jack underneath is just there to support the weight when you get tired of pulling on the tranny. Then my lovely 11-year old assistant lowered and pulled out the jack while I lowered the tranny to the ground on some cardboard. Viola! Actually it was a little bit of a fussy process because the axles kept getting in the way.

And there it is, resting comfortably on a bed of cardboard covered concrete waiting to mate with the D18.

Next... I discover my first setback in the project.

 

[pearl62]

You are going to love the Quaife LSD!!

 

[sql_civic]

You are going to love the Quaife LSD!!

I've been running the Quaife for about a year already. The improved traction is really noticable on wet or snowy roads. :TU:

 

[speedfoos]

Good stuff Carl! You're pulling the engine almost exactly the same way I'm going to. Except I am going to have to pull everything out the top because of the damn subframe on the D17. Oh well, been working out a lot and the block (no head, tranny or FW) can't weigh more than a 100 pounds so it shouldn't be too bad to lift out by myself.

Nice progress.

 

[sql_civic]

Be careful, Clint. While I'm sure you'll be able to lift the block, it is an awkward move and could mess up your back even if you've been pumping iron. It's best to have some fellow d-series members over to share the heavy lifting followed by lightweight 12-oz curls.

 

[shifty35]

Engine teardowns are fun. I've used your method for engine swaps / rebuilds without a hoist. Takes a bit longer, but it works

Everything looks nice, cept the blue crap everywhere is hurting my eyes.

 

[beater90]

god I'm glad I have a hoist....lol

 

[sql_civic]

Finally out comes the motor

Once the tranny is down on the floor all that's left holding the motor in is 2 bolts on the upper mount and off course a scissor jack underneath. After removing the bolts the engine (or the remnants of it) slides out of the mounting bracket as the scissor jack lowers. When the jack hits bottom you lift the block up as your assistant slides the jack away and then you put the block down the last couple of inches to the floor,

There's plenty of clearance to drag the block out from underneath the chassis.

Finally the motor sets sail across the garage floor as the tranny looks on longingly from the distance. My hands tremble with excitement as I struggle to hold steady to take a picture of this momentous event.

While in the engine bay only a empty space remains that awaits the arrival of the D18.

 

[sql_civic]

Just when all was going so well...

There's only a couple of things that still need to be removed from the old Y7 block that will go on the D18. And that's the clutch and flywheel.

To hold the flywheel steady while you unbolt the pressure plate, I put a tranny bolt back in a strategic location and have an assistant hold the end of a pry bar up against the bolt and into one of the flywheel teeth. I used the same technique when unbolting the flywheel.

Once the pressure plate came off I found my first (and hopefully only) set back of the project. Grease had found its way onto the flywheel, clutch, and pressure plate. The clutch is worn thin and the metal surfaces are discolored. The flywheel bolts are ARP bolts and I probably used too much ARP lube.

I'll figure out what to do over the next couple of days. In any event this marks the end of the tear-down. From here on we'll be building and installing the D18.

Here's a pic of a shelf holding the whale penis and other assorted parts.

And finally here's a shot of my work table loaded with tools and parts in the garage.

 

[cervan]

There's only a couple of things that still need to be removed from the old Y7 block that will go on the D18. And that's the clutch and flywheel.

To hold the flywheel steady while you unbolt the pressure plate, I put a tranny bolt back in a strategic location and have an assistant hold the end of a pry bar up against the bolt and into one of the flywheel teeth. I used the same technique when unbolting the flywheel.

Once the pressure plate came off I found my first (and hopefully only) set back of the project. Grease had found its way onto the flywheel, clutch, and pressure plate. The clutch is worn thin and the metal surfaces are discolored. The flywheel bolts are ARP bolts and I probably used too much ARP lube.

I'll figure out what to do over the next couple of days. In any event this marks the end of the tear-down. From here on we'll be building and installing the D18.

Here's a pic of a shelf holding the whale penis and other assorted parts. Mrs Sql_Civic's empty beer bottles are in the background. She has expensive taste when it comes to beer.

And finally here's a shot of my work table loaded with tools and parts in the garage.

Looks alot like my garage lol. Im just finishing my build though so im excited yet very afraid lol of that turn key moment, when you pray to the d-series gods that the masterpeice that you just slaved over wont turn into a paperweight. But your sooooo relived when it all comes together and works properly. Looking good man keep up the good work.

 

[sql_civic]

The head

As I mentioned earlier, the head will be going back on the D18 block as is. It's a 99 EX head that I rebuilt about 2 years ago and did my own PnP. I basically took out the casting marks, polished the exhaust ports, and port matched the intake.

Here's a shot of a couple of the intake ports.

And here's a close-up of an intake port. Not bad for my first DIY port job. Greg, the driver from Kakashi Racing, drove the mini-me setup and said he liked the flow characteristics. I have no idea how he could tell by just driving it.

Here's an exhaust port taken just after I finished the port work two years ago.

Here are the combustion chambers as they looked the other day when I removed it from the Y7 block. I like to use a copper pipe cleaning brush to remove the carbon from exhaust ports (bottom of picture).

To clean the CCs I rotate the cam till the valves are closed and soak them in Piston Kleen. It took about three 8-hour soakings to remove the carbon in 1 chamber. The carbon was removed by wiping it off or brushing it with an old toothbrush. The good news is that the valves still make a water tight seal. I was thinking of doing a compression check before tearing down the motor just to get an idea if there might be any head problems. I never got around to it.

Here's a before and after shot. I use a turkey baster to remove most of the dirty cleaner. Then I just sop up the rest with a rag wiping it clean.

For stubborn flecks in tight corners I use a dental pick to gently chip them off. I used compressed air to get any gunk or small loose flecks out from under the valve rims. Here's the whole head - in progress.

Finally, all the CCs are clean. The head is ready to go back on the block.

 

[1.5Slowmatic]

wow thats a huge difference in the chambers there. nice work on the ports too

 

[cervan]

I allways just used a nylon brush attachment for a drill, works well with some WD-40 and carb cleaner.

 

[sql_civic]

I allways just used a nylon brush attachment for a drill, works well with some WD-40 and carb cleaner.

I like to avoid using abrasives on valve heads so that the coating is not removed. Since I won't be hot tanking the head I don't want to create any loose particles that might make their way into the valve train. Piston Kleen has no odor and can be safely dumped down the sink.

To each his own I guess.

 

[99redek]

super nice just i hate all that blue thing u got going on there looks like BLUe's clues house

 

[cervan]

I like to avoid using abrasives on valve heads so that the coating is not removed. Since I won't be hot tanking the head I don't want to create any loose particles that might make their way into the valve train. Piston Kleen has no odor and can be safely dumped down the sink.

To each his own I guess.

Well its just a soft plastic dead end brush, im pretty sure you couldnt take off any alluminum with it. you have to keep on the carbon for quite awhile until it comes off, but it also polishes the surface abit. Wont take off the hard stuff, that will have to be removed by hand. but i like it saves me alot of time.

 

[sql_civic]

super nice just i hate all that blue thing u got going on there looks like BLUe's clues house

Thanks for the compliment but WTF is Blue's Clues house?

Well its just a soft plastic dead end brush, im pretty sure you couldnt take off any alluminum with it. you have to keep on the carbon for quite awhile until it comes off, but it also polishes the surface abit. Wont take off the hard stuff, that will have to be removed by hand. but i like it saves me alot of time.

I see. Sounds good. I usually polish the CCs with a soft wire brush on a Dremel but that's only if the head will get thoroughly cleaned afterwards cause those brushes do shed.