[DeTomaso] How easy to pull a ZF vertically using an overhead beam?

[JDeRyke at aol.com]

In a message dated 9/16/09 12:49:10 PM, kenn_green at yahoo.com writes:

> Is this a one man job with the deck off?
> 
Maybe: the ZF with bellhousing and clutch release weighs 155lbs, and is 
usually slippery underneath from leaking lube. Kind of a handful for one guy 
unless you have an engine crane. Two guys can wrestle a ZF up and out of the 
rear compartment with little trouble & no damage, without a crane.  And when 
you actually separate the ZF from the engine, remember those two little 
1/4-20 screws that go thru the motor plate into the bellhousing bottom. Pantera 
rookies often forget them and I've actually seen the steel plate bent from 
their efforts to separate the parts.

> Do the motor mounts alone hold the engine OK with the ZF out?
>  
> 
Yes, but there will be a little rear sag, making a floor jack important to 
relevel the engine when reinstalling the ZF. It takes very little effort 
with the floor jack to elevel, so jacking against the backside of the oil pan 
will be OK. I made two guides for reinstallation from a couple of 3" long 
hardware store bolts with the heads cut off. You temporarily screw these into 
the engine by hand, in place of two bellhousing bolts and they act as guides 
for the bellhousing onto the engine. it makes things much more pleasant. 
Good luck, Kenn- J Deryke