420A whats the easiest way to get the head off of my 96 420a?

[sway2this]

i'm fixing to take the head off of my 96 gs 420a to get new valves/seals/etc.
whats the easiest way to take the head off??
we have the tranny out right now due to a bellhousing problem.
do i need to pull the motor back out,or can i just take it out as the engine sits in the car?
thanks guys!!!
charles

 

[na90dsm]

with a wrench!!!



pop the valve cover off and take the( 6 i beleive) hex out then you shoudl be ok.

you shouldnt have to take the cams out if you just cut the timing belt but if you go to change it youll need to take the cams off

 

[aliczander]

with a wrench!!!



pop the valve cover off and take the( 6 i beleive) hex out then you shoudl be ok.

you shouldnt have to take the cams out if you just cut the timing belt but if you go to change it youll need to take the cams off

I took the head out of my 1 gen with no problems, and i didnt even really know what i was doin its a snap easy as cake

 

[martyd03]

First answer. Dynamite... and plenty of it Not that I had a bad experience or anything...
Second answer. Pull the valve cover, take of the radiator reservoir, power steering pump, loosen the alternator and remove the belt, the thermostat housing (optional on that one, I didn't want it to snag wires and stuff), exhaust manifold, front motor mount and passenger side motor mount (you'll need to remove the nuts, bolts, then jack the engine up and down to get the long bolts out that fasten the passenger mount to the engine, and yes it is possible to get a 5 inch bolt out with only 2-3 inches to play with), all the throttle cables including the junction box (it will help with raising and lowering the engine), and all the wires and vacuum lines from the intake ( I think that it is easier to remove the head with the intake still on because there isn't much room behind the engine at all to get your arm back there and even less room to use a wrench/ratchet). Behind the engine there are two metal bands that go from the engine block to the intake, they need to come off, and a black box (vacuum reservoir or something?) that also needs to come off.
Take out the cams (make sure you follow the loosening procedure in the books), both of the cams cover up the head bolts so they need to come out (the head bolts also have a loosening procedure), the crank pulley (I used a small three fingered puller and a bolt that's about 2 inches or so longer thann the original bolt from the hardware store). Then remove the plastic timing belt cover. While your at it take of the timing belt tensioner and pulleys and water pump and replace them along with a fresh belt. Once you see how much fun it is to get to the timing components you'll see that you don't want to do it again soon )
There will also be a steel coolant tube that goes around the engine, disconnect it from the rubber hose in front and take out the bolts that attach it to the head. There is also a wire harness that is attached to the head via a stud. Take off the EGR valve and hoses, and uhm....that may be about it. Don't forget that the head and cams have a loosening sequence to follow when you take them off.
I spent about two days fumbling around this thing with two books that really didn't show much of anything, from what I remember about the job this was about it. You can email me if you'd like if you run into any problems. There is a good chance that I had the same problem and could help you out.
If I forgot something add to it, flame away, come find me and kick me in the.... well, maybe just add to it
I may have put a bit much into this since you have the tranny out, but I wanted to make sure that I was thorough. This wasn't the easiest head to remove but it shouldn't pose much of a problem if you got some time and patience.
Good luck with everything!!!!

 

[sway2this]

martyd03!!
i appreciate the time you took to write that out for me man.
it sounds alot more complicated then it actually is as i can tell.
i think i'ma just go ahead and pull the motor and be through with it.
i need to re-do my bottom end as well while i'm at it.and i guess i should go ahead and get some more pistons while i'm at it.
i'm boosting again before christmas,so i just wanna run through everything and make sure everything is top notch so i don't #### anything up.
man its gonna suck not drivin my eclipse for more than 3months .
but man oh man its gonna be fast when i do drive it again
i will add on to anything you may have missed once it comes out this weekend.
charles

 

[RoasT BeeF]

I had one of the hardest times ever taking the head off a 420a the first time I did it. Patience is the key for sure. The hardest part is getting that damn motor mount off where like martyd03 said the bolts are about 5" long and you have to get them out between the engine bay sidewall and the mount where theres only like 2". The 4G63 is so easy you cant even compare them, its totaly different. But it can be done.

 

[martyd03]

Good idea taking the engine out. When I was about halfway through it I thought about doing the same thing. It would have made timing the engine a lot easier out of the car. Also, if you get Fidanzo gears the timing marks are off on the gears, and the Pacesetter header will work, but it will rub the fan shroud and it may push the O2 sensor into the A/C fan.
And your welcome for the help, if I got some info someone needs I'll do anything I can to help a brother out
Now, build that thing up and make us all proud!!

Marty