The body is done

This year we put the engine back finished up the body and moved the car to the barn until the interior can be done

The engine installation

First this young lady claimed all the credit, thanks Tory for doing the videos
Its been a year but the engine finally got done. and we moved it to the car today and installed it.
This is a big milestone for me and over 5 years to this point.

We slid it on to the trailer and move it with the 4 wheeler

slide it off and move in the engine hoist

Raise it up this was a bit scary because the car is on jacks and the engine had to go high.
we moved the hoist with the 4 wheeler because it was just too heavy to move on the crummy floor we have to work with.

the only way to push

the exhaust bracket had to come back off as well as the cross member because the engine wont go in, its just too tight. Make sure you take out the steering rod also or it wont go in.

You cant beat this video that my camera person took its so cool,, thanks Tory

The transmission

Today we scrubbed down the transmission  using marvel mystery oil , goo off and mineral solvant
This combination with a good brush really shines up that old corrosion , it comes off with just a bit of elbow grease.
The mounting bracket was not installed properly ,with the wrong bushing so the whole thing wore out in no time . This may be why the car did not shift well and may also be a factor ,why the owner did not drive the car after all this work was done  . The new bushing was installed incorrectly with the wrong side shims so the result, total failure of the shift linkage after a very short time.
The transmission itself was on great shape with a new throughout bearing and arm .
Lets see what the clutch plate reveals . I think its new also.

cleaning aluminum engine block

A question came up by a friend recommending a hot cleaning for the engine.
I said NO and here is why.


HOT TANK

Hot tanking is the traditional way to clean dirty cast iron engine blocks, heads etc. The hot tank is just a big metal tank with a very nasty, caustic hot water solution in it. The parts are submerged in the solution and allowed to soak for many hours with the solution slowly circulating around them. This is sometimes referred to “vatting” or "boiling" the block, because it is being soaked in a large “vat” of almost boiling liquid. A hot tank does a good job of cleaning engine parts but does not always remove all of the rust and old paint. Because of environmental rules and regulations, a lot of shops are doing away with this method of cleaning.

Aluminum parts cannot be cleaned in a hot tank as they will dissolve. 

Also on the question of magnaflux on the block, It wont work because its aluminum



Before we go into the “how” of magnetic particle inspection, let’s look at where it will work and where it will not. First of all, being magnetic, it requires a ferrous metal base. For the most part, with our oldercars and trucks, that’s not a problem. Most engines and engine parts are iron or iron-alloy based. It won’t work on aluminum engine blocks, pistons or other aluminum parts; pot metal (not used for an engine block, but frequently for components), copper or brass, and most stainless steel. The MPI has to set up a magnetic field within the metal so that the identification powder – usually an iron oxide – will react to the magnetic waves.

The engine in detail

The heart of the car is out.
It wasn't easy the unit should have come out with the head on and transmission attached.
I couldn't get the speedometer cable off the front of the engine so I had to cut it , bummer but I do have parts from the other 77 Alfa that can be used, Thats what its for.

Today i will move the engine into the shop and that will be it for the winter.
My first problem was cutting the speedo cable , that thing is hard.
Looks like some engine bay cleanup as well.

transmission

The transmission should have come out with the engine.
What i did not like was I had to disassemble the front console and remove the shift handle.
Also the tach cable broke so that has to be replaced.
Once it was separated it came out easy. Its not heavy and I put it into the shop by hand.
When it came out it rolled on the floor and a fair amount
of water came out of the upper shift housing. It must have been there for some time and it may have gotten there the first year I had the car and just covered it up for the winter.

The transmission has a newer throughout bearing as well as a new arm
 This drive train has definitely been overhauled. The bell housing was full of oil to show that the rear seal has been leaking for a while.
It needs a good cleanup and washdown.

The drive shaft came out easy

The drive shaft came out easy .It seems the engine was out of the car at one other time in its life and the hardware was not at all rusted in. This was good.
The front damper was cracked so i did not put a collar around it
You can tighten a hose clamp around the damper and it will act the same as the retaining collar that came with the new one. This makes installation a lot easier later.
I do need to replace this one ,its cracked.
When you remove it ,loosen the  the center barring support but don't remove the nuts
Remove the support plate across the shaft.

Take the bolts off that are attached to the transmission
Put your parking brake on and then remove the drive shaft from the differential
remove the center bolts and the hole unit will slide back.
Before disassemble take a chisel and hammer and mark the collars on both ends so you can assemble them the same way later.
The drive shaft is one of the most expensive parts of the car.