Murbella – Day 18 – FI Engine – And then I discovered something!

So there’s a basic series of steps that Type 1 Beetles require to remove the engine. It is all very simple usually.

You typically ensure all of the wiring connections of off the engine. Then the fuel line connections are off. Then the rear tin has to come out to allow for some space to play.

After all of that, you remove the 2 nuts at the bottom transaxle mount (the 2 lower engine case studs), then the nut at the top of the bellhousing that locks the 3/4 engine case stud, then the major pain in the ass nut inside the engine bay above the 1/2 side that holds the starter bolt mount in.

With these 4 engine to transaxle connections off, it is a simple matter of sliding a jack under the engine at the oil plate (I usually put a 2×4 wood buffer as protection on the oil sump plate), grabbing the tail pipes and pulling towards you to pull the end off the 3 studs and the transaxle driveshaft out of the flywheel.

You can then lower the engine downwards, and if you are lucky, it will slide right onto your rolling engine cart or, if not lucky, you need help raising the body up at the bumper a bit for the fan shroud to clear. (We don’t all have shop lifts where we can just raise the body off the engine.)

However, I learned something really important today that I cannot be certain I was aware of before: the FI engines require the muffler to be removed prior to pulling the engine off the transaxle, thereby clearing enough space to come off those 2 bottom case studs and let the flywheel clear the bellhousing.

Let’s just say I tried the typical carb engine method and.. well.. even with the much larger apron of the FI bodies, there is not enough space to pull the engine off the transaxle to clear to flywheel.

I just see no way to make the extra space I need without pulling the muffler first to allow more space. I cannot get the engine off the transaxle any further than above (pic).

So. And this is why I am not worried.

I have never had an old engine come off without severe issues getting the corroded muffler components off.

If this muffler was shit, I’d just cut it out and use the new one I have for the reinstall. However, I’ve decided that the aftermarket stuff can’t match this quality so I intend to have this blasted and ceramic powder coated to last many more decades.

I tried some heat on the 3/4 side and that did not do much for the nuts.

I’ve got them all sprayed down with penetrating oil right now and I hope that makes a difference when I go back out and I can at least get some movement.

The FI mufflers connect to the heat exchangers at a flange, and not a clamp over a pressure fitted pipe marriage like on typical stock mufflers.

I suspected this would be difficult and slow to remove, but I really thought I’d be able to do this all with the engine out of the body.

Sockets don’t really fit well here, and there’s a massive risk of stripping the surfaces trying to get these to move. I felt that already on the 3/4 bolts and immediately stopped trying to get the 13mm nuts to move.

So in terms of the engine, I’ve at a stand still until I can get the muffler off.

This will be a slow process since I cannot risk any damage to either the muffler or the heat exchangers.

This sucks balls.