Matt Drayer's Journal

"Good luck!"

"Thanks!"

I hopped in the Jeep and looked over my shoulder. With the back seats folded down the engine crane and stand just barely fit. I got them for a great price from a guy who had used it once to replace the engine in his Jeep XJ. Not a scratch on either one.

As I pulled away from his place I contemplated where I was going with this project. Am I really going to remove the engine and tranny? I couldn't see another way. Every interface is leaking oil. There's sludge covering every inch of the engine bay and tunnel. I can't let my daughter drive this car without knowing it's good, and considering the lack of vehicle history if I don't know for sure that the engine and transmission are solid, then as far as I'm concerned it's not driveable. So yeah, everything needs to come out.

We've already removed most of the auxiliary components from the engine bay. The front bumper and wheels, too, and put it on jack stands. The easy stuff.

Last night I removed the cylinder head, which I thought would be hard, but it was easy as well. I drained the oil from the pan and the coolant from the radiator, then pulled off the head. Bright green coolant poured everywhere -- whoops. Yeah, I'm definitely not a trained mechanic -- but I'm learning a ton of cool stuff and I'm having a lot of fun. If I can get this engine out, cleaned up, and painted I'll be really happy.