Tranny Bell housing install..Tips?

[ChiGGz]

Holy cow, I am having so much trouble trying to get the bell housing back on my 2G GSX.
First you have to maneuver and trick it into place, and the when its there it won't go on properly. I was able to get the top two bolts in as holders losely screwed on, and one side of the bottom, but the bottom firewall side just will not swing and leaves a 2.5" gap that will not budge.

I didn't use a transmission jack so this also made it a pita to level it as we tried to hold it up and push it in place. Does anyone have an tips or suggestions they can provide me with? This is very frustrating because once the tranny is back on, it's just smooth sailing.

 

[Avionixx]

You're probably going to have to take off those holder bolts so you can better maneuver the trans. It sounds like the splines just aren't lining up properly. Having a tranny jack really helps; I was able to swap the trans in my 1G with zero human assistance.

Essentially, the trans has to be as close to straight as possible when you're closing in the last few inches (when you begin to mate the splines). I used a motorcycle jack which worked perfectly for the job, since it can hold the trans at an angle to clear the control arm, etc and when the bell housing is just about to cover the clutch, you can lift the ass end of the trans to straighten it out and jam it in. I used a scissor jack to lift the back part of the trans until it was straight as possible (when the bolt holes lined up) and literally drop kicked it until it was practically flush against the engine.

Keep in mind, I did not use any real strength, you don't want to hammer the transmission in there; if everything is lined up correctly, it should spline almost right away.

 

[ChiGGz]

Hey Avionixx, Thanks for the reply.

I couldn't believe how much effort I had trying to get it in, and once it was almost there it wouldn't budge. But I did not tackle this from a leveled tranny, kinda inched it in one side than the other.
I'll definitely have to use a tranny jack then.

Also, how perfectly aligned does the friction plate have to be? I used a generic alignment tool that had no splines and eyeballing it looked fine to me after wards. But then again, the car was on an angle because of the jacks so it's not really as easy to eyeball it.

 

[Avionixx]

I would definitely recommend getting a specific alignment tool (splined!); I got mine for a couple of bucks at the local Carquest. It's just one less thing to be worried about.