pulling motor out of 55 pontiac, what am I instore for?

Hello all,

Got a freeze plug leaking on my 1955 pontiac chieftain at the back of motor. Probably going to pull motor out and replace all plugs. 287 stratostreak.

Never pulled a motor out of something this old. Wondering if there are some tips or things to look out for before I get started.

How easy does this motor come off of the tranny? No idea of what tranny I have. Auto of course.

Looks really simple...but... something this old I am sure they did things different back then.

Any and all help appreciated.
J

 

Big spiders and rat poop...


On a more serious note, spray every bolt and nut with Kroil a few days before trying to remove them.

 

To separate the torus assembly from the flywheel, there are THIRTY TWO bolts (that's right, 32!). Best to go to a library that has old MOTORS MANUALS and read up on it. The trans bolts to an "adapter", the "adapter" is bolted to the engine. All that, plus the flywheel, will have to come off the engine in order to get to the rear soft plugs. Throw in hoses, wires, motor mounts, radiator, exhaust, etc, etc, etc, and it gets complicated real fast. Butch/56sedandelivery.

 

I would pull the engine and transmission together. The way the flywheel and bell housing come together is odd on these. Assuming you have a automatic trans?? Get a service manual, Kanter has reproductions and read up on it. Engine and trans together is going to be HEAVY. Use the BEST, HEAVY DUTIEST engine lift you can find/borrow/rent.

 

Never did a pontiac. The 55 chevy was pretty easy if you pulled the radiator and cut the cross brace that holds the top of the radiator. This allows the motor to come forward more with the trans attached. Then weld the cross brace back in place.

 

PM me if you need anything out of a Motors Manual, I should have one that has your car in it. You are better off pulling the whole works out and separating the engine & transmission on the floor, at least loosen everything on the hoist and look it over.

Tag all wires, bag & tag all hardware, make notes, take pictures.

Bob

 

ANY old service manual is a must for you to make sure you have a way to answer questions that may pop up thru the process.

You're going to find it pretty easy to get the eng/trans out as a unit. The shift linkage, acc pedal, driveshaft, etc are all pretty straight forward.

 

Thank you all very much!

Yeah how the trans bolts to engine would be the big unknown for me.

Appreciate the input very much.

J

 

Well I know my 55 Buick was a pain.. definitely different that today's (easy) stuff.

So have patience and be methodical.. take note (or pics) as you remove.. Have manual for reference.. not brain surgery, but can test your blood pressure.

 

I know this is not the way to properly repair this but, has anyone had any luck using any of the stop leak products for a leaking freeze plug?

Not going to keep this car and time is limited. Can't figure out how I am going manufacture time to pull motor out.

 

73 super, see you have a more door as well. Looks good.

 

I would pull the front clip , remove Eng and trans together. do what repair is necessary clean and paint eng compartment also the engine and trans. change filter and oil in transmission .

 

If you're going to sell I would not put a band aide on it like stop leak. Next person will have to deal with the problem. You're better off selling "as is" and letting the next buyer know up front that the freeze plugs need replacing. If you don't have the time I would see this as your best option. Just my 2 cents.

PS... thanks for the comments on my 4-door. Still has a way to go.. need to bring it down a bit.. but we're having fun with it.

 

Maybe this will help.....I use this entire website a lot! Great stuff here.

http://www.pontiacsafari.com/55/ShopManual/index.html

 

Holy shit Batman, this beats anything in my stash by far. This should be what is used and should be very helpful.

Bob

 

So your the guy

 

YOU...are a good man! Thank you for the manual.

 

Explore that whole website! Lots of good stuff all over it including the factory master parts catalog! Larry (the site owner) is a very knowledgeable and helpful guy. His help and website has gotten me out of more than one jam with my '56 Star Chief!

 

Freeze plug is on the heads should not have to pull motor...just the head(s). There was a quite long thread about this a couple of years ago use search. good luck

 

I thought the same thing.

 

If its the plug in back of the head,Hole saw a 1" hole thru firewall,use a drift to cock plug so a pliers can grab and pull it out. drive a brass plug in hole and seal a round 1 1/2" patch over the hole. Thats the old way.If its a show car etc.,pull the head.

 

we just did a 55 Pontiac but we just put a small block Chevy in it....

 

Thanks for letting me know about the head. Way easier.

Somebody sent me a picture of their block where it had smaller plugs behind the transmission adapter.

Will have to look again to see if it is just that plug in the head.

If you know for sure that there is only the plug in the head at the back of the motor and not under trans adapter please let me know!

Not sure what block I was being shown.

Thanks!

 

nah wish this thing was of show quality. Didn't think of putting a hole thru wall. Also would be easier then pulling motor. Thanks.

 

Exactly what I have...your paint looks much nicer.

 

When I was an apprentice, we hole-sawed GM firewalls steadily for leaky freeze plugs.

It was my job to weld the hole-sawed blank back in. (oxy-acet) Always a 3-puddle tack job, never a full circle weld.

I once had a leaky freeze plug in the left rear head on my '54 Ford Coupe. I could reach it, but space was precious...
I cleaned the rust and paint out of the plug, then mixed a small ball of Bondo...worked it into the deep plug and let it harden.
3 years later, the engine was ready to come out, never a leak in all that time.

 

You don't need to pull the front clip, remove the radiator and top support bracket that goes over the radiator with the horns and all the wiring on it and the engine and trans will fit thru there. You'll need the seal between the flywheel and torus and also some sealant for the flywheel to crank. Something similar to the gm red anarobic sealer will work, not rtv.

 

heres your plugs, i have the same leak.

 

Don't use a cheap engine hoist. I saw one break ( weld broke ) where the jack support pad was welded to the main vertical post. No body got hurt thank God.

 

Flyboys,

Yes, Bars-Leak will stop the frost plug from leaking. I've done so twice over the years. Just last summer I used it to stop a bad leak on a 283 Chevy in a C-30 dump truck. Water was running out in about a 1/8" - 3/16" stream. Started it up, dumped it in & presto. Good enough as I don't give a sh*t about the 283 & even less of a sh*t about the dump truck.

Did similar thing years ago on a 1970 IHC 4 x 4 pickup. That one I changed later when I had time. Bars-Leak worked for several months until I could get the time to work on the old turd.

It's good stuff. Just make sure to let the engine run a good long while to ensure all the pellets disolve.

Good luck,
Worken2much