engine removal on Plus 2

[potleyu18]

Unfortunately after a long period of restoration it appears that despite turning the engine over by hand frequently when changing the flushing oil i noticed some bits of metal so its a full rebuild.
Question is which is the best method of removing the engine with or without the gearbox, the head is already off and thankfully no damage at all. It has a spider chassis if this makes any difference.

Grateful for any advice

Steve

[KevJ+2]

Steve,
I removed my engine (head removed too) with the gearbox because I needed to strip the box too. If I only needed to work on the engine / clutch, I would personally only remove the engine. When I put it back I replaced them separately with no problems. I also found the height restriction a bother (in my case) with the box attached.
All in all, a simple job to remove the block only.
Kev.

[potleyu18]

Thanks for the response and the engine came out nice and easy.

After stripping it down I found the water pump had almost disintegrated which explains the metal fragments.

Question is what's the best pump to replace this with and is it worth going for the burton alteration of replacing the front cover so the pump can be replaced without the usual strip down issues.

Steve

[KevJ+2]

Steve,
Well done on the stripdown. As for the water pump, I suppose it's personal choice and whether you want to part with a lot of money for something the original will still do. If like mine, your front cover is not damaged, a new pump for about ?40 should last many more years. The Burton type also needs the back plate and quite costly.
The assembly of the old pump is a pain but not too bad. After you have changed many things you will need to when rebuilding the engine, the pump cost may be more of an issue,
Good luck,
Kev.

[Speedster]

Hi. Need a bit of information. Can you remove the gearbox from a 1973 Elan Plus 2 without removing engine. Have lost reverse gear. Cheers

[fasterbyelan]

Hi. Need a bit of information. Can you remove the gearbox from a 1973 Elan Plus 2 without removing engine. Have lost reverse gear. Cheers

No

[Spyder fan]

Hi. Need a bit of information. Can you remove the gearbox from a 1973 Elan Plus 2 without removing engine. Have lost reverse gear. Cheers

No

I think you can, but you need to remove the body first

Sorry Speedster, I'm afraid you need to remove the engine.

[PeterK]

You're a wicked man, Alan

[john.p.clegg]

Alan
Don't be silly,you don't need to remove the body,just an angle-grinder on the chassis...

John

[DavidLB]

Ive seen a car where somebody did remove the bottom of the chassis(subframe) and pop riveted it back afterwards.

[alan]

Thanks for the response and the engine came out nice and easy.

After stripping it down I found the water pump had almost disintegrated which explains the metal fragments.

Question is what's the best pump to replace this with and is it worth going for the burton alteration of replacing the front cover so the pump can be replaced without the usual strip down issues.

Steve

i can't understand how metal fragments from the waterpump can get into the engine o?l.
Have i missed something

[Speedster]

Hi. Need a bit of information. Can you remove the gearbox from a 1973 Elan Plus 2 without removing engine. Have lost reverse gear. Cheers

No

I think you can, but you need to remove the body first

Sorry Speedster, I'm afraid you need to remove the engine.

Thanks for help, as only had the car a few weeks when box failed