Alfa Romeo Owners Club of Australia Forum

Technical => 932 Series (156, GTV, Spider, 147, GT, and 166) => Topic started by: Cool Jesus on January 19, 2013, 12:26:24 AM

Title: Alfa Romeo 147 2.0 TS engine removal
Post by: Cool Jesus on January 19, 2013, 12:26:24 AM
Troops, does anyone have any insight on whether a 147 2.0 TS engine is lifted out or dropped from the engine bay to remove it? and how is this achieved? I can't see any securing hooks or a particular stud by which to secure it to a hoist or jack to achieve its removal...

PS. all ancillary items have been removed from the engine bay, there's just the engine and garbox to come out  ???
Title: Re: Alfa Romeo 147 2.0 TS engine removal
Post by: colcol on January 19, 2013, 10:10:09 AM
Never done a 147 or 156 before, but on Suds and 33's, you remove the bonnet, put some hooks on the strut towers, lift the body up as far as you can from a block and tackle on the ceiling, put chassis stands under the car, onto the jacking points, connect the block and tackle to the engine, loosen off the subframe bolts and drop the motor down underneath, i usually drop it on my motor mechanics creeper, and if there is space permitting wheel it out from under the body, you may not have enough clearance, so you will have to lift the body up higher, but there is no engine weight, so this is easy, Colin.
Title: Re: Alfa Romeo 147 2.0 TS engine removal
Post by: Cool Jesus on January 19, 2013, 08:23:54 PM
Thanks Col, can always relie on you for some wise counsel. I'm thinking its and under car removal, just trying to find where to bolt up support to take the engine weight... I'll have a look at the manuals I have to see if there is any insight there  ???
Title: Re: Alfa Romeo 147 2.0 TS engine removal
Post by: colcol on January 19, 2013, 10:12:49 PM
You could always make something up like a few pieces of flat 12mm steel with holes drilled in them, to be bolted off manifolds, cylinder heads and or something solid and holes drilled in the other end to attach shackles, you could always get some nylon towing rope, and wrap it around the engine and gearbox, [like i do], and drop the engine down on a garage creeper, hasn't got far to fall, Colin.
Title: Re: Alfa Romeo 147 2.0 TS engine removal
Post by: Cool Jesus on January 20, 2013, 12:55:44 AM
eLearn disc was as useful as pockets on a singlet. Only spoke of a hydraulic hoist, although it did mention chains, so perhaps it is an up and out? I like the tow rope idea though, see how I go.
Title: Re: Alfa Romeo 147 2.0 TS engine removal
Post by: colcol on January 20, 2013, 10:50:44 AM
I always use a block and tackle off the roof, because the engine lift cranes won't go high enough, about 25 years ago when i started fixing Alfa Romeo's, engine lft cranes were about $1,000, now they are about $500, and they don't fold up, a block and tackle is about $100 and folds into a box, when wreckers remove a motor, they don't use special tools, just chains and rope around the motor, those good twin carb 33's and Suds had an engine lift bracket still attached to the 2 manifolds, because the factory decided it wasn't worth taking them off, Colin.
Title: Re: Alfa Romeo 147 2.0 TS engine removal
Post by: Mr156_2.0 on January 20, 2013, 11:24:49 PM
I just pulled out a twinspark from my 156 through the engine bay. Took two days to swap and get running. Finished it about 2 hrs ago. To answer you yes it can come out through the engine bay. U need a engine lifter, and a lot of patience.
Title: Re: Alfa Romeo 147 2.0 TS engine removal
Post by: colcol on January 20, 2013, 11:51:25 PM
You say Mr 156 that you have to take it out through the engine bay, through the top, or out the bottom, i have always found that lifting engines out the top requires a very high lift crane, where out the bottom is a bit easier, as when it is sitting on the ground you just lift the body up off the floor and wheel your engine out, but i have never done a 156 [yet], so i have a lot to learn, why were you replacing your engine?, Colin.
Title: Re: Alfa Romeo 147 2.0 TS engine removal
Post by: Cool Jesus on January 21, 2013, 09:18:53 AM
From his adjectives, it sounds as though he pull it out through the top. Not that removal of items is an issue for me, everything else is out just engine a transmission to go. I'd be curious to know though, I'm assuming the bonnet would have to be removed? I'm more interested in what anchor points Mr 156 used? In retrospect engine removal for this series could effectively be accomplished from above or below. Depends on your equipment and reason for doing so. If at all possible, as you mentioned Col, removal from below looks to be the easiest to me, if you can get the front of the car up high enough. I'm I little apprehensive about resting the unit on something below as it has no sump, guess ill have to remove oil pickup and rig something up for it to rest on? Sump was removed at some stage before I came across the wreck, seller thinks it was broken, couldn't exactly remember?
Title: Re: Alfa Romeo 147 2.0 TS engine removal
Post by: Mr156_2.0 on January 21, 2013, 09:33:01 PM
I removed it through the top. Took off the bonnet used a engine crane/lifter and shortened the chains so they were as close to the engine as possible and even then I had to pull the sump over the edge. It is possible. Took 3 days and 2 people. My dad and me.
Title: Re: Alfa Romeo 147 2.0 TS engine removal
Post by: colcol on January 21, 2013, 11:13:01 PM
The first time we did a Sud engine removal, we took the engine gear box out the top, couldn't get the gearbox over the radiator, support, so we put the engine gearbox back on the floor, hooked some brackets onto the strut towers, took the front wheels off the car, so its nose was sitting on the ground, then we lifted the engine and gearbox, over radiator support, jacked the front of the car up about 10mm, so it wouldn't rub on the ground, and pushed the car back away from the suspended in mid air engine gearbox assembly, would be easier with a 147-156 as the engine gearbox is shorter, Colin.
Title: Re: Alfa Romeo 147 2.0 TS engine removal
Post by: Mr156_2.0 on January 22, 2013, 07:30:01 AM
With the sud it has a extension on the back of the gearbox as a mount. That can be removed and the motor and gearbox will come out the top. The 156 gearbox has to come off because there is just no room. When you take the gearbox off which you will have to do watch it getting stuck on the xmember .
Title: Re: Alfa Romeo 147 2.0 TS engine removal
Post by: colcol on January 22, 2013, 09:53:42 PM
Is it easy to split the gearbox from the engine, and just leave it in the car with the subframe, and lift the engine out the top?, i had a look today at engine lift cranes that fold up, $350 now and some are air operated, the advantage with a crane is that you lift the engine up over the radiator support, and walk the crane backwards and leave car as is, remember when engine lift cranes were so expensive, you had to hire them, now cheap as, Mr156_2.0, why did you do an engine change?, Colin.
Title: Re: Alfa Romeo 147 2.0 TS engine removal
Post by: Steve S on January 23, 2013, 08:05:51 AM
They are designed to come out the bottom but either way will work.

You really need a hoist but you could try without. I would drop the whole lot out in one unit. That is often the fastest way. Take the brakes off, undo the struts, engine mounts and subframe bolts. Steering rack bolts. The whole engine, gearbox, subframe and suspension should come out in one go then. 
Title: Re: Alfa Romeo 147 2.0 TS engine removal
Post by: Mr156_2.0 on January 23, 2013, 10:13:59 PM
My engine did 305,000 km and the crank sensor went. Also I had to change the cam variator. Was going to cost a little. Then in a few months I bet it would start burning oil due to the high kms. So I priced a low km motor (45,000) for $700. Myself and my father installed it over 2-3 days. That's why I decided to swap it. As for the removal of the motor. I took the gearbox off the motor before lifting it out of the engine bay. Then we put the new one in after changing parts like the throttle body, wiring harness and exhaust manifold. Then attached the gearbox. Then attach the bottom mount to the motor and line up the motor and gearbox to attach it to the car. There is the bottom engine mount to put on, the gearbox mount and the top engine mount. After that we were connecting everything.eg hoses and wires to harness. While dad did that I changed the upper control arms and shocks. Then put them in and the drive shafts. Like I said. Big job
Title: Re: Alfa Romeo 147 2.0 TS engine removal
Post by: colcol on January 23, 2013, 10:25:18 PM
Great work, the upper control arms are an interesting job, nice the way the top mount comes out so you can change the control arm on a bench, i hope you replaced the bolts on the control arms, some don't, you can eliminate noise and slop with new pivot bolts, what sort of top arms did you use?, Colin.
Title: Re: Alfa Romeo 147 2.0 TS engine removal
Post by: Mr156_2.0 on January 23, 2013, 10:57:59 PM
The Standard suspension feels great. Handles great and is not to hard on the back. So that's what I put. Bilstein b2 struts and upper control arms. Yes I changed the bolts and reversed them so I can take them out without pulling the whole suspension out next time. From standard they are obviously put together then installed with the strut complete. You can tell by the way the bolts are in.
Title: Re: Alfa Romeo 147 2.0 TS engine removal
Post by: Cool Jesus on January 25, 2013, 10:04:34 AM
It may take longer than at the mechanics, but there's no feeling like having done it yourself and saved an absolute motza in $$$. Well, maybe there are one or two better feelings, but its pretty awesome to be able to say (Like that old soup add decades ago) I made that  :o
Title: Re: Alfa Romeo 147 2.0 TS engine removal
Post by: Mr156_2.0 on January 25, 2013, 08:42:56 PM
Auto mods quoted me $3500 as an estimate. Just labour. I was quoted $2800 by a mob in seven hills and another mechanic refused to touch it all together. So I said stuff it I'll do it myself! I either get chiseled out of 3 G's or bite the bullet..... So I bit it and hard.
Title: Re: Alfa Romeo 147 2.0 TS engine removal
Post by: colcol on January 25, 2013, 09:19:30 PM
And when it all worked, and you went for a drive, how long before you managed to wipe the stupid grin off your face?, Colin.
Title: Re: Alfa Romeo 147 2.0 TS engine removal
Post by: Mr156_2.0 on January 26, 2013, 12:08:14 AM
Still wearing it