I'm in the middle of swapping the engine I killed in my self taught mechanic course and have a question. After everything, I'm super familiar with the engine bay. I have all the hoses, the wire harness, the ps pump, the alternator, uim, and ac compressor off. I also took off the upper and lower oil pans so I don't need to get as much clearance to get the engine+tranny out from under the car. But I have 0 experience with brakes, struts, shocks, axles, drive shafts and so on... Pretty much i'm down to detaching the drive shaft from the engine bracket and from the transaxle. I don't mind learning, but at this point I think it's saer to stay out of unexplored territory if I can.

My plan is: Unbolt the driveshaft bracket from the engine instead of trying to pull the shaft out of the bracket and so I don't have to remove the passenger side knuckle and all that extra garbage.

My questions are: Can I get the shaft loose from the right and left sides of the transaxle without removing the knuckle and strut bolts and all that from both sides? Does anyone have a shortcut or preferred way to detatch the shaft so they can drop the engine? Or should I just buckle down and do it the was the FSM says?

Thanks, Dan

 

Honestly if you can tackle a whole engine swap, you can yank the axles out. All those things you've taken apart so far are more complicated than the things you say you have zero experience with.
I dont think its physically possible to pull them out of the transaxle while still being in the knuckle anyway. There isnt that much free play. On the driver side theres only 3 bolts. The 2 on the strut. And then the 36mm axle nut. Once thats off you just pull the knuckle towards you and to the side so the end of the axle has enough room to pop out. The you just yank(or gently pry) it out of the tranny.The passenger side is more of a pain only because the 3 bolts on the bracket can be somewhat difficult to access. Otherwise its the same thing.

 

LOL!!!! Everyone I’ve seen post on here has a different opinion about the axle nut. Half say 32mm and half say 36mm. I just bought the 32mm and we’ll see. I might have to swap it for 36mm.

Anyway thanks a lot for the input. I’m a little gun shy about new territory after having killed the valves in the old engine after fixing an oil leak behind the timing chain cover. I just started to DIY at the end of last year and I didn’t have any prior knowledge of cars. That coupled with the fact that my wife is about ready to push the car off a cliff makes for a wholesome fear of exploration.

Is there anything I need to look out for while removing the shaft? Any mandatory replacements when I remove the axles? Other than cotter pins lol.

 

the axle nut is 36mm ppl...

when removing the axle, remove axle nut, then loosen the ball joint, hit knuckle with hammer till ball joint comes loose, then move the strut aside and pull axle out. easy.

 

The front axle nut is definitely 36mm. The rear is 32mm. Usually you are supposed to replace the axle seals when you pull the axle. They are just rubber seals where the axles enter the transmission. They are relatively cheap so no reason not to do it when you have the tranny out of the car.

I hear you about being gun shy of new things. I just replaced my clutch 2 months ago. I had never seen a clutch, let alone dropped a tranny, or even pulled an axle before I did it. It certainly didnt go off without a hitch. I actually broke my passenger axle trying to get it out. But it was my fault. I removed things in the wrong order and just got frustrated. Just remember on the passenger side to pull on the long shaft that goes into the tranny, not the short part closer to the knuckle. Also pull the axles before you remove the crossmember. Thats all I can really think of regarding pulling the axles. There really isnt that much too them. You will want an impact of some kind to get the axle nut off though. You can do it without, but I wouldnt want to. I believe its the highest torqued bolt on the whole car. So have fun without an impact.

 

You don't have to mess with the ball joint, maybe the tie rod though.

 

i just removed my pass side axle.. i didn't even look at the tie rod. just undid the ball joint, got a giant pry bar lowered the control arm, and popped the axle out..

 

actually the rear is 30mm...

 

Thanks a lot guys for the help.

Just for information’s sake… why does the center member need to be on in order to pull the axle? To keep the engine still while I yank? I weigh in at 130, but I don't have an impact so I'll just have to see how long of a cheater bar I can make .


Ok so it sounds easy to remove. Any problems encountered in re-installation? Also I saw pics of a guy swapping the 3.5 into his max and he dropped the engine with the axles in it. Any opinions???

 

nop no problem during re install..

 

I took the crossmember off before pulling the axles and even though I had the engine supported it was sagging in a way that didnt allow enough clearance to pull the axle out of the hub. Thats when I broke it out of stupidity and frustration. Live and learn.I had to pull it again after putting it all back together due to a leak at the seal. The crossmember was attached at that time and the axle came out no problems.

I have an electric impact. Its nice but very bulky and heavy. But it took the axle nuts off no prob. You'll have to jam something between the wheel studs to keep it from turning while your hanging on the end of your cheater bar.

During reinstallation make sure you push the axles all the way in. Wait till you're sure the splines are lined up and push it in real good. I also messed that part up too. Amazingly you can put it all back together even if its not all the way into the tranny. Who knew? My painfully expensive learning experience will hopefully save you the same headaches.

That 3.5 swap guy; He dropped the 3.5 into the car from up top with the axles hanging out? Or he dropped the old engine out the bottom with the axles. I suppose you could pull the engine up from the bottom with the axles installed. I dont know? Is there clearance to pull the engine up from the bottom. I've never attempted or even helped with an engine swap before so I dont know.

 

The FSM says to drop the engine from the bottom and install in like manner. However many have evidently pulled it from the top too. But to me it looks a lot easier to drop it. That may just be cuz I have the oil pans and stuff off already lol.

Thanks again.

 

The FSM says to drop the engine from the bottom and install in like manner. However many have evidently pulled it from the top too. But to me it looks a lot easier to drop it. That may just be cuz I have the oil pans and stuff off already lol.

Thanks again.

 

I would think its easier from the top but only wokred on hondas so far.

 

Update.

I pulled the drive shaft with no problems. Well almost... The axle lock nut was obviously a pain to remove. I had to get my bro in law to hit the brake while I jacked up the breaker bar until the nut came loose.

I wound up pulling the motor from the top as some have suggested. It was easy with 2 sets of hands and eyes making sure nothing was smashed.

Question though... How much trans fluid gets put in the torque converter when re-installing? I can't find anything in the FSM. It talks about installing it under the transmission removal section but not in detail. Any help is much appreciated.

 

All together it holds 10 qts according to the FSM. Nissan Matic "D". If all the fluid doesnt drain out during the removal process, then I guess use a clean catch pan to measure how much you drain out. Then refill that much. Just check the dipstick to make sure your not over or under by too much. Glad the axles werent too bad for you.

 

Thanks for the idea.