TR6 1974 TR6 Engine Rebuild and/or Repair

[2wrench]

Horrah! Got the Bentley repair manual in the mail
today, thanks to Alana. Appreciate that Alan.

So now we begin what I expect will be a real journey
and a stretch for me. Never tore an enine apart before
in my life.

I do have friends with limited knowledge, albeit more than
mine, who have agreed to come over and urge me forward,
just for the free food, drinks but mostly to be entertained
at my expense -- and I don't mean by money expense --
although I must say it would apply as well.

So the first steps in the plan are to: Remove the bonnet
and pull the head. Sounds easy enough, roit?

So I will drain the fluids and proceed to remove the head
backing offf the head bolts in reverse order in 20 pound
increments.

Now, once I am in, the idea is to look for bad/worn parts
right? So, here I plan to post pics to the Forum and discuss what it looks like with you all...ya'll... and
allow my pit crew friends at home to weigh in.

The over-all approach is to purchase parts and have them
installed by a machine shop.

I have a very good notion to "upgrade" parts. Concern is
whether I would be moving tuning stuff and the like out of
specs. Just setting car to specs is enough of a challenge
for me, without adjusting for changes that are too radical.
Thinking to go with a little bit hotter running crank, for
starters. Don't think I want headers. Planning to stay
with original carbs for simplicity and cost concerns.

Any advice, comments or concerns are welcome. First
opportunity to start work is this weekend, December 8/9.
Hope to pull the head and get a look for what is going
on. Hoping my friends on the Forum will keep an eye on
me.

 

[Guest]

You mean hotter cam I hope?

You might find it easier to pull the engine first, then pull the head. Especially since you are probably going to have to pull it anyway.

HF sell an engine crane for about $120 (I just got a flyer about it) that'll do the job if you don't already have one. That and a $90 engine stand and you'll at least look like a pro /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/wink.gif

 

[TR3driver]

So the first steps in the plan are to: Remove the bonnet and pull the head. Sounds easy enough, roit?

You'll learn quickly enough that it all sounds easy.
<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:]So I will drain the fluids and proceed to remove the head backing offf the head bolts in reverse order in 20 pound increments.[/QUOTE]Overkill, IMO. Just spin those puppies off. You're going to replace the head gasket anyway.
BTW, don't forget to remove carb linkages & whatnot first; I'd suggest removing the carbs and manifolds as well.
<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:]I have a very good notion to "upgrade" parts. Concern is whether I would be moving tuning stuff and the like out of specs.[/QUOTE]While I won't deny the pleasures of a "warmed up" engine, my suggestion would be to start with keeping it stock. 'Improvements' almost always involve compromises and changes to specifications; for example a hotter cam will change the mixture adjustment, optimum ignition timing (not just the initial advance given in the manual but the entire curve), idle and valve lash. Save the changes for after you've cut your teeth (so to speak).

Obviously it's best to have an idea what things need to be replaced before you open it. If, for example, the rings are bad, there is no sense in reinstalling the head since you'll just have to take it off again to change the rings.

And if you're going to have the engine out, I agree it's likely easier to remove it with the head rather than pulling the head first.

 

[2wrench]

Yup, Alan, I meant a cam. (Gotta laugh) See, just a very small part of me says: You could have only blown a head gasket.
Now, this car has been burning hecka oil before it
croaked, so it is likely that it will need more, but
I thought I'd just take a look-see first.

Believe it or not, I have an engine stand. Okay,
just for sake of discussion, say I'm gonna pull the
entirety of the engine. Where do I grab and do I have
to add any hardware anywhere to help me do this?

Anybody want to lay out steps do pulling the entire engine?
What say ya?

 

[tomshobby]

I chose to remove the head while the engine was still in the car. Partly to reduce weight and partly to have better clearance for the lift cables.

Take many pics also bag and clearly label all parts. Especially since you have never done this.

Before you start have plenty of area to lay out your parts. Try to group them, it will save much time when you will not have to do so much searching later.

Can someone tell me why one pic opened and one is a link?

 

[2wrench]

All roit. Didn't take much to convince me. So, this
car's parts will be replaced with strictly stock stuff.
Job will be easier...and can rely on all settings to
stock specs. Nothing fancy here.

I am pretty sure this engine is going to have to be
gone through and might just as well accept it and proceed
accordingly. Burned wayyy to much oil before head gasket
issue.

I think I'll go for a engine pull complete. Got suggestion
for Cherry Picker purchase and think I'll go for it. So, with these decisions, I'm all ears if you want to comment.
Short of flat-out directives from you guys, I'll read,
read, and read some more.

 

[NutmegCT]

"Can someone tell me why one pic opened and one is a link?"

'fraid the only part of this thread I can comment on is the above!

Tom - your second pic is 80K in size; the first one is 72K.

T.

 

[tomshobby]

Thanks Tom, I resized them the same but the originals must have been quite different.

 

[2wrench]

You mean hotter cam I hope?

You might find it easier to pull the engine first, then pull the head. Especially since you are probably going to have to pull it anyway.

HF sell an engine crane for about $120 (I just got a flyer about it) that'll do the job if you don't already have one. That and a $90 engine stand and you'll at least look like a pro /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/wink.gif

Alan: Can you give me a part number or identifier of
sorts on that $120 engine crane. Sounds like a great
deal, but don't find it on their web site.

 

[poolboy]

2wrench, there's a whole lot you can replace w/o pulling the engine. Removing the crankshaft, however, isn't one of them. But you can drop the oil pan and "mike" or "plastigauge" the journals to see if it is necessary to have it turned. If it does, the engine must come out.
All the rod bearings, rods, pistons,rings, thrust washers etc. can be removed and replaced with the block in the car.

 

[TR3driver]

Possibly the one Alan saw hasn't hit the web site yet; this is the cheapest I saw just now :
https://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=93840

Tom, JPEG is a compressible format. Even though you specified the same size, one photo compressed a bit better than the other, hence the slight (10%) difference in size. Some tools (like PhotoShop) even let you determine how much compression to apply (but more compression means lower picture quality).

 

[TR3driver]

2wrench, there's a whole lot you can replace w/o pulling the engine.

But not replacing the rear seal. And if the rings are worn, likely the seal is too.

 

[poolboy]

Yep, you're right. Forgot about that. But hey, he's going to need a leak somewhere.

 

[Guest]

You mean hotter cam I hope?

You might find it easier to pull the engine first, then pull the head. Especially since you are probably going to have to pull it anyway.

HF sell an engine crane for about $120 (I just got a flyer about it) that'll do the job if you don't already have one. That and a $90 engine stand and you'll at least look like a pro /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/wink.gif

Alan: Can you give me a part number or identifier of
sorts on that $120 engine crane. Sounds like a great
deal, but don't find it on their web site.

https://www.harborfreightusa.com/usa/itemdisplay/displayItem.do?itemid=35915

I have an email coupon that gets it down to $129.
PM me an email addy and I'll send it to you.
You have to pick it up (obviously) but then shipping something like that makes no sense.

 

[2wrench]

Yep, you're right. Forgot about that. But hey, he's going to need a leak somewhere.

Got the leaks, got the leaks. Might as well for
doing this right.

 

[AltaKnight]

2wrench....
You can see the "pick" points to lift the engine (and transmission together or seperate) on Toms pictures above, they are the 2 plates with a hole in them on the front left and right rear of the cylinder head.
If you're pulling it with the transmission attached then it will be a lot easier if you have a "tilting" device (you can see them in the on-line catalogs for Moss and TRF) to get the right angle (particularly on reinstallation)it can be done without but not easily.
Oh, and please be REAL careful as you're doing all this, that motor is not light, don't end up beneath it! make sure you're rigging gear is good and your spectators/helpers are sober.

 

[tomshobby]

Tom, JPEG is a compressible format. Even though you specified the same size, one photo compressed a bit better than the other, hence the slight (10%) difference in size. Some tools (like PhotoShop) even let you determine how much compression to apply (but more compression means lower picture quality).

All settings were the same, the light was different when I took the second one and it created a larger original file because of the increased color enhancements. Usually the great alogarithms in the Microsoft Powertoy photo sizer do a good enough job that I don't worry about the original size.

 

[bash]

I am just preparing to pull my engine this weekend too! I don't know if you have Pep Boys on the West coast, but they have a clearance deal at the moment, and I just picked up a 2 tonne folding crane (with an air hose to allow the ram to be pumped up at the touch of a button, no less!) for $62 (after $50 rebate) and a 1000 lb engine stand for $19. I put them together last night and I can tell you that they are made of some seriously thick steel! Might save you a few dollars if you can pick them up for those prices - can't be any worse than Harbour Freight, quality-wise.

I started out to do a simple valve job but the usual "while I am at it" mentality has taken over, so I now have increased ompression, a GP2 cam, recurved distributor, and a whole lot of other parts sitting in the garage waiting for me to have some time to do my first rebuild. I am really looking forward to getting stuck into it.

Cheers
Alistair

 

[davidk]

I have just pulled and replaced the head on my '74 to replace the head gasket. It took every trick previously mentioned on this forum to get it to come off (cranking, rope in cylinders, lifting with engine hoist, etc). When it finally came loose, there were three studs that were badly rusted holding it in place.

The suggestion: leave the engine in the car and pull the head first. If the head is really stuck on, you'll need the weight of the car to hold the engine down while you use the hoist to lift the head. Be careful! Mine came off slow and easy, but you never know.

Also, go ahead and pull the drain plug on the back of the engine. This will allow the coolant to drain below the level of the head, so you don't have water down into the cylinders.

 

[2wrench]

Thanks for the feedback, I'll keep the group apprised.