lining up trans with clutch

[racingmason]

I have spent the last 2 hours trying to get the dang trans and clutch lined up under the car. Ive tried turning the crank back and forth to try and get the splines to match but no luck. I have it at the same pitch and centered as the engine. This trans swap is becoming the project from hell.

 

[akira235]

make sure the splines are free from ALL dirt, grime, debris. even the tiniest sand grain sized bit can mess it up. then lube the input shaft with some grease and try again, sometimes you just have to step away for a minute and relax, then try again. keep at it, it'll go on.

 

[Tanro]

Just lube up the transmission spline with a small about of molygrease. use a qtip or something to apply just enough. A little bit of force and it will rotate into place as it goes in.

 

[94_TSi]

Its more or less just a feel/practice thing, you will get it I have been there to.

 

[racingmason]

ughh 2 more hours and ive gone backwards. I couldnt get the drives side axle off when i pulled it ( broke my impact, and tried a 7 foot cheater bar and still didn't budge.)so i had to leave the axle in, and now i keep binding up on it, no matter what i do with the trans jack the dang trans is not clocked right. hopefully tommorow with a friend i can get it, all the trans swaps ive dont on other cars, mazdas, probes, mustangs, i have never had this much of an issue.

 

[Tanro]

I've allways found it far easier to just pull the engine to change the clutch/tranny. But I am also rocking an AWD, and all the clutch swaps I have down were on AWDs. That tranny is a heavy sunfabitch.

 

[Imback]

I remember how my back felt after lifting that heavy tranny from up top .

 

[ReYnd]

It may help to raise your engine up a bit, that's how I got mine in. The mounts for yours are different, 3 on the tranny and only 1 on the engine from what I recall. So it's probably sagging a little. An engine hoist would probably serve you well, though I made a jig of sorts out of wood to go around my oil pan (so as to not crush it) then jacked it up just an inch or so. Still a tight fit, and I missed once. But finally got it on. And celebrated by sleeping, as it was about daylight by then.

And the trans is only about 80 pounds empty, if a skinny guy like me can do it, anyone can!

 

[Killa_dsm]

It can sometimes be tricky, as you need to wiggle/rotate the tranny a bit while pushing towards the block. Its always nice to have someone help lift the tranny as one person pushes and lines the splines up.

 

[turbo tim1]

I have done many and I stopped using a tranny jack after the first one. I found it easier to hand bomb it in with the help of a friend. when I got my engine lift I started using that and it is way easy, u hook up a chain to 2 points on the tranny, slide the tranny under the car put the engine picker in position and lift to the desired height and now u can move it how u want it with ease, will slide on like a hot knife in butter.

 

[LTUDSM]

I have done many and I stopped using a tranny jack after the first one. I found it easier to hand bomb it in with the help of a friend. when I got my engine lift I started using that and it is way easy, u hook up a chain to 2 points on the tranny, slide the tranny under the car put the engine picker in position and lift to the desired height and now u can move it how u want it with ease, will slide on like a hot knife in butter.

thats how i do all the time. Yesterday i mount the tranny on in less then 5 mins Lifted up with the engine hoist, pushed to the engine with a little wiggle and here ya go...... its on .....

 

[JStrateger]

There isn't much else for me to contribute because everything I can say, has been said. I will say that I've put in about six to seven transmission through different vehicles and it never gets any easier. In fact, using a transmission jack in my experience makes it a lot harder to get it lined up.

The easier method is having a friend help. You wanna make sure the transmission is going in straight in comparison to the engine block. (Sometimes you'll get it cocked in at a slight angle and it'll seem like it's in there but isn't.)

If I didn't have a friend to help me, I would use an engine lift. That sounds a little excessive but I'm a skinny guy, not a lot of muscle and it's very easy having it suspended in the air and being able to adjust the height.

The easiest, by far, method of doing it is pulling the motor; just like Tanro said. Once you get the transmission out of the car it's very simple to pull the motor. It comes straight out and only has two mounts holding it in. It takes a lot more time but makes things a lot easier, it's worth not getting frustrated trying to work under the car getting the transmission in. If you have the tools, I recommended pulling the motor.

Last, but not least, once you pop that bi*** in there... It's so relieving. Like.. the biggest sigh of relief of your life. It's like driving your DSM for the first time and wondering why you've been driving a Honda you're whole life. It's like doing that first turbo upgrade and boosting hard as f--k, looking for victims. It's like finally getting it done with that girl, the one you've been trying with for months. It's like holding it in for an hour, not being able to find a good restroom to use because every stall is either out of paper or the toilet is covered with diarrhea, piss or worse. You're last resort is to tough it out and make your hour long journey home. On the way home you have doubts if you'll make it, every pothole and road bump is your worst enemy. Each one you see spells demise for your underpants. Finally you make it home and rush to the restroom to unleash to biggest relief of your life: Destruction of your toilet!

It's a relief like that... well... maybe not but it's a pretty big relief once you get the transmission in there. Good luck!

 

[turbo tim1]

I do not recommended pulling the engine to do a clutch, that is alot of unnecessary work, especially if u already have the engine picker.

I have pulled alot of engines in 1g dsms and I always remove the tranny before I pull the motor and the same in reverse order when assembling, I find it much easier this way, cause u do not have to remove the hood and u do not have weird angles going on while pulling and putting back in.

in the 2g's it is easier to pull as a complete assembly because of the motor mounts.

if u are doing a 2g clutch right now u some times have to remove the rear motor mount off the tranny to put the tranny back in, that would also make it alot easier, if u haven't done that already.

 

[LTUDSM]

if u are doing a 2g clutch right now u some times have to remove the rear motor mount off the tranny to put the tranny back in, that would also make it alot easier, if u haven't done that already.

Its much easier to take the rear motor mount bracket of the tranny,then taking the whole motor mount off of the frame

 

[turbo tim1]

Its much easier to take the rear motor mount bracket of the tranny,then taking the whole motor mount off of the frame

+1 I agree that is what I meant.

 

[i3oi3c78]

The many times I have changed the clutch. I found that the fork and throw out bearing somehow got pushed to the out position, and stopping the transmission from going in to the engine. You should check that out.
Good luck and I hope you get it.

 

[BLINKY619]

sunfabitch.