Fast Eddie Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 2000 Legacy GT Wagon, 2.5 single cam NA. Can I loosen the engine mounts and jack up on the engine to get clearance to remove the driver's side cylinder head? Right now, it seems like the only option other than pulling the engine (now I know why ). I don't have a cherry picker, and I don't have the buck$ to buy one either right now. My Haynes manual has a procedure. You strip the rocker arms and cam on the vehicle and then (according to Haynes) you can remove the head. I took the rockers off (easy meat), but I'd rather not remove the cam; it will not really gain any clearance anyway I think. It will be a pain to install the cam in the vehicle. If I remove the nut on the driver's side engine mount, and loosen the other nut, can I gain any clearance for the head? Even raising it an inch would gain a lot of clearance, it looks like. Any comments? Thanks so much for reading. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JB02 Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 Remove pitch stopper, unbolt exhaust(place bag over exhaust to prevent coolant from entering) and allow to hang down a little. Remove driver side motor mount bolt and loosen passenger side mount. Once everything else is unbolted and out of the way you can jack the driver side up by the front bolt of the motor mount. now when it comes to how far to jack the motor you need to be careful. Jack about two inches up and remove valve cover. now loosen all head bolts( only break free). once all are broken free go back around a loosen. I jack the motor high enough at this point so that the front lower head bolt will slide out over the frame rail. the middle and rear bolts will still hit the frame. If you go much higher you risk popping the axle apart. The head will have room to come out then. Single cam motor does not need cam removed to take head off. Hope this helps Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fast Eddie Posted March 12, 2012 Author Share Posted March 12, 2012 Hope this helps It sure does help! Thanks for the tips. Edit- what's the pitch stopper? The arm on top of the engine? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
01rs25 Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 Yes it can be done. But it's a pain in the ass! Slammed more than your girlfriend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JB02 Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 Yes the arm that goes to the fire wall. I find it much easier doing it this way then pulling the motor. First time is going to be a pain though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yamen.dannan93 Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 Remove pitch stopper, unbolt exhaust(place bag over exhaust to prevent coolant from entering) and allow to hang down a little. Remove driver side motor mount bolt and loosen passenger side mount. Once everything else is unbolted and out of the way you can jack the driver side up by the front bolt of the motor mount. now when it comes to how far to jack the motor you need to be careful. Jack about two inches up and remove valve cover. now loosen all head bolts( only break free). once all are broken free go back around a loosen. I jack the motor high enough at this point so that the front lower head bolt will slide out over the frame rail. the middle and rear bolts will still hit the frame. If you go much higher you risk popping the axle apart. The head will have room to come out then. Single cam motor does not need cam removed to take head off. Hope this helps Wow man :O do you drink Diesel juice for breakfast :O Looks like you know car's like the back of your hand Great experience man Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fast Eddie Posted April 22, 2012 Author Share Posted April 22, 2012 Remove pitch stopper, unbolt exhaust(place bag over exhaust to prevent coolant from entering) and allow to hang down a little. Remove driver side motor mount bolt and loosen passenger side mount. Once everything else is unbolted and out of the way you can jack the driver side up by the front bolt of the motor mount. now when it comes to how far to jack the motor you need to be careful. Jack about two inches up and remove valve cover. now loosen all head bolts( only break free). once all are broken free go back around a loosen. I jack the motor high enough at this point so that the front lower head bolt will slide out over the frame rail. the middle and rear bolts will still hit the frame. If you go much higher you risk popping the axle apart. The head will have room to come out then. Single cam motor does not need cam removed to take head off. Hope this helps That is exactly how I did it. I made a saddle out of 2x4 and plywood scraps. I screwed it to my flat jack saddle and it lifted the engine at the mount bolt precisely and with no drama. The other side was starting to weep so I changed it as well. I installed the dealer's "updated" gasket (it is different) and they swear up and down that it will never ever leak like all their other headgaskets. But the car does run fine and for the first time since I've owned it there are no leaks from the engine compartment. So I want to say thanks for all the help. It can be done. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JB02 Posted April 23, 2012 Share Posted April 23, 2012 Glad to hear you got it all done and your car is running good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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