Yep, it's that easy!
As a side note, if you immediately recognize the number listed in the thread title, you are a geek!
As some of you know, my last RallyX rust bucket met its demise sometime last year and I've been on the lookout for a suitable replacement shell ever since. I finally stumbled across a candidate a few weeks ago and, like so many strays before it, I brought it home to live with me. The car is a '88 Civic DX and the motor has a blown head gasket so I was able to pick it up for a song. Actually, I don't sing very well so there was some cash involved but it wasn't much.
Anyway, I decided to take some pictures of the dismantling process so I wouldn't have to remember where certain things went. I do have my AutoX CRX as a reference but I wasn't sure if there were any differences that might catch me out. When it came time to actually pull the dead Civic motor, I couldn't find the chain setup that attaches to the motor and I wanted it out NOW.
Lacking any real mechanical and/or fabrication skills, I did the only thing I could think of-- I used my geek skills! Sort of. After discussing the potential stupidity of my solution (after the fact!) with a few friends, they suggested I should share. If anything, it illustrates something you probably shouldn't do which can be just as valuable as knowing what to do. At least that's what I keep telling myself!
Removed radiator, battery, intake and exhaust shield - Rusty brackets everywhere!
A little more progress. No front bumper made it easy to remove the dead A/C stuff.
Yep, it's a Civic! Ready to pull the motor but where are the chains for my engine hoist?
Here is where the stupidity sets in. After looking for the chains that attach to the motor and then realizing an hour later that I lent them to somebody that lives an hour away, I had a conundrum. Was there anything laying about that I could use? I couldn't find anything suitable so I went inside to warm up in my office for a few minutes. After sitting down in my chair and looking up at one of the bookshelves, I noticed a box that I hadn't thought about in a long time. It contained some phone cabling that somebody gave me a long time ago thinking it was network cabling. I never used any of it but after picking up the box and examining the cable, I had what could easily turn into one of the worst ideas ever. See where this is going?
Innocent looking box of phone cabling. Will 1000ft be enough?
I wrapped ~15 loops of the cable around and through the side motor mounts and was fairly careful to maintain even tension across the strands. After that, I hooked up my engine lift and stood back to contemplate what was about to happen. After a bit of contemplation, I went back inside to inform my brother that he may need to be ready for a quick trip to the emergency room.
Hooked up and ready to lift?
The big picture: Will it hold? More importantly, will it blend?
Ta Da!
Still hanging in there!
Rusty brackets everywhere! Calgon, take me away!
I managed to survive the incident despite my best attempts to crush myself. When I first started to lift the engine, I was met with a bit of resistance. How much resistance? Enough to start lifting the entire front end of the car a few inches! I carefully dropped the engine back into the engine bay and looked the whole thing over again. Imagine my surprise when I realized that I forgot to disconnect the shift linkage. Doh! No problem. I'll just crawl under the car (and dangling engine) and disconnect it, right? Right. I did put a jack stand under the oil pan just in case but it was still a little spooky under there knowing what was holding the engine in place. I actually never got directly underneath the engine but the entire setup still made me a bit nervous.
When I started to lift the engine again, I noticed that one of the strands of cabling got pinched between a motor mount and the chassis mount severing it. I thought about redo my makeshift harness but then thought better (worse?) of it and pulled the motor anyway. Besides, what was the worst that could happen?
Now all I have to do is pull the drivetrain out of the busted CRX and move it over to the Civic. Unfortunately that includes the entire wiring harness and a few other odds and ends due to the fact that the Civic used the hated dual-port injection system unlike the CRX. I'd hate to know what the Vegas odds are on me getting the Civic running again but I try to ignore the haters anyway. Somebody explain to me why we do this again?
Jim
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