Removed XJ engine, now questions...

[karter74]

Hey guys, I pulled the engine out of my 87 Cherokee Laredo and boy, what a job! We had a bunch of small quirks that was a pain and I wondered if we did more work than needed on removing it. First off, when trying to get to the 2 reverse torx(who the hell puts reverse torx on 2 bolts of the bellhousing?) bolts on the top of the bellhousing, we had to remove the entire head, was that necessary, could we have just somehow gotten to it from the back? Also, when removin the bolts from the engine mounts, the oil filter holder was in the way of removing the bolt, forcing us to remove it (what a huge PITA) Can is just reverse the bolts you think so I don't have to go through this again? If anyone else has removed their XJ engine, can you give me some tips on this? I want to be able to just drop in the long block pretty much and not have to assemble the head and such while its in the engine bay. Any help is greatly appreciated!!!!

 

[tlman]

You can reach the Torx fasteners from the rear with about 36" of extension if you remove the cross member and allow the engine/trans. assembly to tilt back and expose them. This is much simpler than removing the head. You can reinstall it in reverse order. I found that by substituting a socket head cap screw for the Torx fasteners when you put it back together you can use a ball end socket which makes installation much easier.

 

[tighttrailxj]

I just pulled out my tranny and found the same problem, I loosened those top bellhousing bolts before I dropped the crossmember by using a long extension and a universal type swivel on the end. Good luck with the reinstall

 

[karter74]

What about the oil filter holder? did you guys have to pull this like me? If not, what did you do differently?

 

[5-90]

The "E" head bolts are threaded 3/8"-16, so just replace them with hex head capscrews. That will make them easier to work with, and you won't need to keep track of that damn socket.

Oh - you can assemble the head and manifolds before dropping in the engine (and assemble the manifolds to the head first) or assemble the top end and drop it in after the short block is in place. It would probably be easier to install the short block, which will give you greater clearance to install the top bellhousing bolts. If it were up to me, I'd install the short block and then install the top end as a unit - but that's just me... I'd DEFINITELY replace the bolts - I've done it on two XJ's already with no ill effects.

5-90

 

[Spudboy]

If you weren't planning to pull the tranny anyway, the easy method for getting to the bolts is to remove the engine mounts and let the engine drop down. Then you can get to the bolts with a long extension and the appropriate socket on a swivel adapter. The reverse torx-head bolts are to give the socket a better contact surface in a tight location. Since I had already bought the socket to get the bolts out, I just put them back in. Now I know what to expect and its no big deal.

 

[karter74]

Can anyone help me on the engine mount bolt hitting the oil filter adapter? Have you guys had to remove it like me, or is there a way around it?

 

[Spudboy]

Yeah, you have to remove it. Replace the o-rings while you are in there.

 

[afjeep2082]

hey, sorry for the unexpected problems I too just pulled my engine (and just droped my new one in :woohoo: ) for the POS torx bolts I just chained up the engine and took off the mounts and droped the engine down enough just to where you could get a rachet on it (you will need to have the long end of the rachet towards the middle indent and you will have room). I replaced those pice of crap torx bolts with normal hex bolts and it went back in even easyer. As for the install I just droped in the long block and did everything in reverse and it worked out fine.

 

[woody]

I dont know for sure, but maybe an oil filter neck from an HO motor will clear that motor mount bolt? They are 90 degrees off from the non-HO. OTOH it is only one extra bolt to remove and a good excuse to put fresh o-rings in there.

 

[Zebaru]

I thought I was being smart when I reversed the bolt direction on the motor mount when putting my engine back in only to find the filter housing no longer fit (the bolt threads are too long and interfere). After looking at passages in the filter housing, I decided that it could be rotated back 90 degrees without any problem, and so that is what I did. That was about two years ago, and I haven't noticed any ill effects other than that my oil filter is a bit of a pain to get in and out.

I think that a shorter engine mount bolt might work also. I don't remember how much space there is between the mount and the housing, but I do remember that those stock bolts have alot of extra thread.

Travis

 

[csr_011]

I pulled my 87 4.0 a few years ago. dropped the tranny crossmember and lowered the engine and tranny, came right out with the 3' of extensions. Put hardened hex heads back in though. I dropped my motor in complete from the machine shop, was a tight squeeze, but with a couple of helpers we got it in about 20 minutes. I seem to remember the PIA engine mount bolt, i flipped it around during reassembly. Good luck and have fun!
Cory