Engine crane for an Elan

[enskr]

I need to pull the engine and gearbox out of my Elan S4, but looking underneath, there isn't much room for the engine crane legs to pass under the front chassis crossmember and between the anti roll bar mounts - its both narrow and low to the ground. Can anyone recommend a particular make/model of engine crane that fits an Elan nicely? I'm not having much luck finding any drawings or talking to the tool hire people!

Thanks

Kevin

[gjz30075]

The brand I have, and works, is a Sunex 2 ton. The front wheels just need to be up on some 2 x 6s and
that's enough for the legs to clear. The lift's wheels are recessed in the legs and the 2 ton is needed
not because of the capacity but the length of the boom. It's a long way from the front bumper to the middle
of the engine.

[TroonSprint]

I have one of these http://www.machinemart.co.uk/p/cfc100-1-tonne-folding-workshop-crane/

Like Greg I stood the front wheels on a couple of wood blocks about 2-3 inches thick. The bigger issue was the length of the boom. The engine sits well back in the car and I ended up having to lift it from the side of the car, which was less than ideal. Try to get hold of a long reach crane if you can.

Mike

[webbslinger]

I've been using a portable lift from my local tool rental. It's a BlueBird. It comes apart for transport and storage. 1500 lbs max and 91.5" max lift. I've used it 5! times and it is just right, either engine alone or both engine and trans together. I block the car up about 10" (cynder blocks) when using it. The legs just clear underneath.

[ericbushby]

I had to lift the car onto blocks anyway, in order to disconnect the exhaust pipe, gearbox mount, speedo cable and anything else which is making progress difficult. I needed about 6" extra clearance in order to work underneath, so there should be plenty of room for the crane frame.
I have a chain block from the roof, so no clearance issues. The disadvantage is that I have to lower the car to the floor and push it out from under the suspended engine.
Best of luck
Eric in Burnley
1967 S3SE DHC

[rgh0]

Before I got the maxjax I would normally have the car on chassis stands when lifting the engine out. I would have 2 stands under the front cross member and then with the wheels off the engine hoist legs go on the outside of the chassis stands as it reaches in from the front.

cheers
Rohan

[enskr]

Thanks for the prompt replies. There seemed to be some consensus on the need for a long reach crane, so I've just bought one of these:
https://www.machinemart.co.uk/p/cfc1000 ... hop-crane/

Quite why I didn't think of putting some blocks under the wheels or axle stands under the cross member to lift it up a bit is beyond me.....but thank you for pointing this out!

With a following wind I should be pulling it all out next weekend to fix the damage done when the throttle stuck open and the revs went awfully high before I managed to kill the ignition...
I know the flywheel is no longer attached to the crank, but not sure what else I'm going to find. Ah well, I wanted to change the clutch anyway....

[denicholls2]

I know the flywheel is no longer attached to the crank, but not sure what else I'm going to find. Ah well, I wanted to change the clutch anyway....

Wow! Congratulations on still having your legs. Sounds scary.

The Twincam is a tight little engine so you might be in better shape than you think right now. Recommend close inspection of piston tops, valve seating, and timing sprockets and chain as well as crank and bearings where you're almost certain to be spending money.

Best of luck, but since you escaped uninjured you're already pretty lucky methinks, even if you're not inclined to agree at the moment.

[prezoom]

Back in the middle 60's, I in my S7, and a friend in his Elan, were having a spirited battle in a local SCCA race. I was leading, when I checked my mirror, my friend was missing. After completing the race, I saw his car parked, with no friend in site. Very soon, I heard he was in medical getting his legs attended to. This was in the days before scatter shields were required. At least with the 7, the flywheel was well ahead of my feet. Fortunately, his injuries were minor.

[enskr]

My guess is that the bolts holding the flywheel to crank have sheared. The flywheel still spins on the starter motor, it just doesn't turn the crank with it.Fortunately the flywheel didn't escape from the gearbox input shaft - it certainly could have been a lot worse
I expect its going to end up being a fairly major rebuild

[billwill]

I had a VW caravanette once upon a time and on one occasion a similar thing happened. I thought that the crankshaft had sheared just ouside the engine bearing, but I never really found out for sure as I got a VW garage to fit a new engine for me.

Fortunately the flywheel on those is way at the back well away from any legs.

[William2]

I bought a new crane from Ebay for about ?110 and to help overcome the reach of the jib I drilled another hole about 6" further down and reckoned that it would still easily be within limits to lift the engine alone.

[rgh0]

I bought a new crane from Ebay for about ?110 and to help overcome the reach of the jib I drilled another hole about 6" further down and reckoned that it would still easily be within limits to lift the engine alone.

You need to be careful the extended reach does not go past the ends of the legs, otherwise it may tilt over when you lift. Stability is why the limit on extension not necessarily the strength

cheers
Rohan

[mbell]

Looking like I'll need to pull my engine and gearbox from the +2. Does any one have a minimal jib length required? (Side or front removal)

I guess I could just get the tape measure out but would be good to hear from people with experience.

It's probably cheaper/less hassle for me to buy one and sell it than rent one and transport it around.

[rjaxe]

I have been giving my modest garage a clean up so I thought I would post a couple of pictures showing the engine hoist and car lift I have.
The electric hoist was a bargain buy from Aldi a few years ago highlighted by someone on this site I think. In order to avoid having to move the car out of the way to work on the engine I installed a beam across the garage and fitted a couple of large diameter wheels to the hoist so the assembly can be moved along the beam to the work bench area at the side of the garage.
The car hoist is from Germany and is very sturdy capable of lifting over 1000Kg, the platforms are raised via a pair of gearboxes and screw jacks using the cranked handle provided or a very powerful drill. But in its original form It raised the car at an angle with a pair of wheels still on the ground, not what I wanted so I modified the bracket geometry to enable the platforms to stay horizontal whilst being raised. The unpainted bits at the front in the picture is what I needed to add. It raises the car a treat, the rubber faced 32" x 7" platforms spread the load along the car floor just inside the sill flange and keeps the car reasonably steady whilst being raised up to a max height of 23". To increase rigidity I added four adjustable stands located into the jacking points. I personally would not leave it long term on just these jacking points but only whilst working on it in case the body work objects, I would welcome others thoughts on this aspect.
With this configuration there is not much that cannot be worked on at a relatively comfortable height.
Nothing is perfect of course and the car needed to be a couple of inches higher to get the hoist platforms under the sills so a small ramp is needed initially and with my single garage there is not enough width to slide the hoist in from the side but as it will split into two halves it just needs a bit of fiddling to get it into position.
I have used the engine hoist on quite few occasions and it is excellent, as far as the car lift is concerned I have only tested it so far in readiness for more major activity later.