1991 Engine Swap

Reply Subscribe

Thread Tools

Search this Thread

May 13, 2005 | 02:10 PM

justroberto

Thread Starter

New User

Joined: Apr 2005

Posts: 16

Likes: 0

1991 Engine Swap

As I have said in a previous thread, I have known very little about working on my truck until the last year, and everything I know I have taught myself. With that in mind, I've decided to cut my teeth on swapping my old 3.0 with a taurus 3.0. I know that I have to use my old upper intake, exhaust manifolds, flywheel, and waterpump on the new block. I've got the Haynes manual and another which I downloaded off the Autozone website (which helped out much more than Haynes). I've got everything torn down and the only thing left before i pull the old piece of scrapmetal out is to mark the position of the torque converter and flywheel. Problem is, I have no idea how to do this and my only pseudo-mechanic friend has recently moved out of town.

I'm sure this is a no-brainer, I just don't know what I'm looking at here...
It is a 2wd auto tranny, and any help/further warnings would be greatly appreciated.

May 14, 2005 | 12:08 PM

TigerDan

Hotshot

Joined: May 2004

Posts: 12,170

Likes: 5

From: The hills of No. Calif.

A little shot of spray paint on one side of the converter, overlapping onto the flywheel if it's really important to you to get it back on where it exactly where it came off of. Shouldn't matter except on a professionally balanced engine. (I built a 2.8 a few years back, had it balanced right down to the pressure plate, he marked it with spray paint so I could put it together exactly as he'd balanced it.) -TD

May 14, 2005 | 12:40 PM

justroberto

Thread Starter

New User

Joined: Apr 2005

Posts: 16

Likes: 0

dan - the problem is i don't know what to look for here - i can see the flywheel thru the starter hole on the driver's side and the pressure plate on the passenger side. isn't the torque converter to the rear of the flywheel? do i have to remove the tranny?

May 14, 2005 | 01:00 PM

TigerDan

Hotshot

Joined: May 2004

Posts: 12,170

Likes: 5

From: The hills of No. Calif.

The torque converter bolts directly to the flywheel, or flexplate as it's called on an automatic tranny. The pressure plate is part of a clutch, so you would have one or the other but not both. You will have to separate the engine from the tranny to gain access to it, but when you unbolt the engine you can slide them apart and the converter will remain bolted to the flexplate, it simply slides into the tranny. Expect some messy fluid leakage. Or, you can remove the access plate from the bottom of the bellhousing just in front of the flexplate (on some applications, I'm not sure about yours) so that you can remove the bolts that hold the converter to the flexplate. You have to turn the engine over to remove them one at a time, there should be three or maybe four, I'm not sure. I'm talking general procedures for this process, I'm not certain of the specifics of your application. Hope this helps, -TD

May 14, 2005 | 01:16 PM

justroberto

Thread Starter

New User

Joined: Apr 2005

Posts: 16

Likes: 0

so why would my instructions say to mark the converter and flywheel before i unbolt the engine from the tranny if i can't even get to it then? i'm so utterly confused

May 14, 2005 | 01:25 PM

TigerDan

Hotshot

Joined: May 2004

Posts: 12,170

Likes: 5

From: The hills of No. Calif.

Probably to simplify reassembly. What instructions ar you going off of at this point? And is this the engine in the Ranger that you are pulling right now, or the the Taurus? -TD

On Edit: I just looked in my Haynes Ranger manual, and chapter 2, part C (3.0 engine) section 18 they talk about making marks with a centerpunch on the flywheel/driveplate (same as flexplate) and the crank to insure proper alignment during reinstallation. This won't be applicable to you as you're changing the flexplate to the other engine, correct? In this case, the marking is done with the engine already out. -TD

Last edited by TigerDan; May 14, 2005 at 01:34 PM.

May 14, 2005 | 01:31 PM

justroberto

Thread Starter

New User

Joined: Apr 2005

Posts: 16

Likes: 0

this is on the ranger engine i'm currently pulling out. the instructions are here:
http://www.autozone.com/servlet/UiBr...3d800e2d6c.jsp

I'm up to step 19, where I'm stuck

This Hennessey Takes the Expedition Tremor's Off-Roading Capability to the Next Level

Verdad Gallardo

Top 10 Fords at 2026 Carlisle Ford Nationals

Joe Kucinski

3 Best / 3 Worst Parts of Modern Ford Ownership

Brett Foote

10 Amazing Upgrades That Solve Common Ford Truck Owner Headaches

Pouria Savadkouei

Every 2026 Ford Engine Explained

Brett Foote

10 Ugly Ford Trucks That We Still Kinda Love

Joe Kucinski

10 Things Every Truck Owner NEEDS (2026 Edition)

Michael S. Palmer

Rezvani's Latest Post-Apocalyptic Monster Is a Ford F-150 Raptor Underneath

Verdad Gallardo

Top 10 Most Expensive Ford Trucks Ever Sold on Bring a Trailer

Joe Kucinski

2027 Ford Super Duty Buyer's Guide (Every Model, Engine, & Package)

Brett Foote

May 14, 2005 | 01:46 PM

TigerDan

Hotshot

Joined: May 2004

Posts: 12,170

Likes: 5

From: The hills of No. Calif.

Okay, I read step 19. They're talking about marking the converter to the flexplate as I described in my first post, you can hit it with a shot of spraypaint through the access plate on the bottom of the bellhousing. Look in your Haynes manual at Chapter 7, automatic transmission, figure 9.5. In my older manual it's page 7B-7. This is what you want to see on the bottom of the tranny. -TD

May 14, 2005 | 02:07 PM

#10

justroberto

Thread Starter

New User

Joined: Apr 2005

Posts: 16

Likes: 0

well, i don't have that access plate at the bottom of the housing, but i shot some paint from the starter hole thru one of the hole on the flywheel and onto the converter behind it. is that it? thanks for the help, td!