How to Take an Engine Apart

by Cayden Conor

You may want to add some internal horsepower to an engine, so you will need to know how to take it apart – or you may not have a choice, because something is broken. Either way, you will still need to know how to take an engine apart to hop it up or fix it.

Step 1

Drain the fluids from the engine. Drain the oil into a catchpan and dispose of it properly. Drain the antifreeze into a clean catchpan and dispose of it properly. You do not need to drain the brake fluid, power steering fluid or transmission fluid at this point.

Step 2

Remove the radiator hoses and radiator. Unclamp the hoses and set the hoses and clamps aside. If the car is not equipped with a transmission cooler, the transmission lines will be screwed into the radiator. Unscrew the lines and set them aside where they are not in the way.

Step 3

Remove all of the external accessories. These include the air pump, power steering pump, alternator, air compressor and accessory belts. Set these aside. When removing the power steering pump, allow the power steering fluid to drain into a catch bucket.

Step 4

If the vehicle is carbureted, remove the carburetor from the intake manifold. If it is fuel injected and has a throttle body, remove the throttle body. If it has multi-port fuel injection, carefully remove the fuel injectors from the engine. Remove the intake manifold.

Step 5

Disconnect all wires and hoses from the engine. Lay each wire and hose aside. Most of the connectors for the sensors are individual (not one looks like another), but if you are not sure, or notice more than one that looks the same, you may want to label the connectors. Set all hoses, vacuum lines and wiring aside. Make sure you place it where it will not catch on the engine when you remove it.

Step 6

Unbolt the transmission from the engine. Make sure you get all the housing bolts. Depending on the type of vehicle you are working on, there may be wiring from the transmission to various components. Be sure that no wiring is attached in any way to the engine.

Step 7

Attach the engine hoist to the engine. Remove the engine mount bolts. Lift the engine enough so that you can remove the engine mount bolts. Using the hoist, lift the engine out of the engine compartment. You can now finish taking the engine apart.