Technical 2004 Panda Dynamic engine + gearbox removal

[WildFeraligatr]

Hi all... thanks for having me.

I've owned my 2004 Panda since about 2016/17 odd before 'selling' to my partner last year as I inherited a new car. Unfortunately he is a very new driver and ignored the engine temperature warning light, which led to a very stressful breakdown on the side of the M25 and a diagnosis of a very likely bricked engine.

As a budding mechanic (and a Panda lover!) I am giving replacing the engine myself a go, and have almost everything set up (including the new engine). The main problem I'm having is that the Haynes manual seems to want me to take the engine and gearbox out together through the bottom of the car, and now I've got the air filter and battery/tray out I can see what looks like a bit of the chassis blocking the gearbox coming out the top.

Is there a way around this where I'd be able to get the whole setup out the top of the car or, failing that, just the engine? It seems I'd have to jack the car up really high to be able to get the engine/gearbox setup out from underneath and I don't really have the means to do so.

Thanks in advance for the help! I've attached a picture of what it all looks like so far.

 

[varesecrazy]

Hi

It is far easier lowered under the car

To be honest.. its HEAVY

I would remove the gearbox 1st.. get that out of the way.. then lower the engine

That way you can make sure the clutch is A1 on your rebuilt car

 

[WildFeraligatr]

Hi

It is far easier lowered under the car

To be honest.. its HEAVY

I would remove the gearbox 1st.. get that out of the way.. then lower the engine

That way you can make sure the clutch is A1 on your rebuilt car

Hi mate, thanks for your reply. I'll be using an engine hoist to get the assembly out so the weight isn't too much of an issue for me.

I had the clutch replaced on the old engine a few years back when I owned it so I was going to move the clutch onto the new engine anyway as the clutch on that one looks to be the original. But from what you're saying it sounds like it's not impossible to separate the gearbox and engine while they're still in the vehicle?

I've never done anything quite on this scale before and this is a bit of a baptism by fire for me so apologies if I'm asking questions that make me sound a bit clueless!

 

[varesecrazy]

Put a block of wood under the engine sump

Remove the starter motor..

Then the gearbox is relatively simple to withdraw

With the gearbox off there Might be room to get the motor up through the top..

But Ive always raised the sills up on ramps ( nobody wants car ramps nowadays.. so handy to have some around)

@koalar will probably give you accurate pointers

Ive not done a panda.. but have swapped a few FIRE motors over the years

Where are you based..??

Somebody might be local enough to offer assistance

 

[koalar]

First does the engine need to come out ? Most overheating its cylinder head gasket upwards that’s damaged


Finding the correct engine isn’t that easy

Square oil fill, round oil fill, cam sensor, cam sensor plus VVT, are at least 4 I know of.


Square oil fill to any with a cam sensor probably will be quite hard to get going someone on here failed.

To answer your question

If you mean you can’t lift it up because this area is in the way

it doesn’t come into play as you shift the weight on the hoist so gearbox end is dangling down at about 45 degrees and it slides underneath

 

[WildFeraligatr]

First does the engine need to come out ? Most overheating its cylinder head gasket upwards that’s damaged


Finding the correct engine isn’t that easy

Square oil fill, round oil fill, cam sensor, cam sensor plus VVT, are at least 4 I know of.


Square oil fill to any with a cam sensor probably will be quite hard to get going someone on here failed.

To answer your question

If you mean you can’t lift it up because this area is in the way

it doesn’t come into play as you shift the weight on the hoist so gearbox end is dangling down at about 45 degrees and it slides underneath

View attachment 414447

Hi mate. Thanks for responding.

The chap who towed it back home when it broke down plus a friend of mine who does cars in her spare time have both looked at it and said that yes, it's very likely the head gasket, but given that the throttle was full of oil and the engine lost power completely then it's likely that the piston rings damaged the engine wall enough that the engine lost compression altogether. It won't start at all now aside from a couple of chugs on the starter motor.

I've managed to source an engine already - same engine code and although there are a couple of differences (the new carburettor is electric whereas the old uses a cable for example, and the oil is a round fill rather than square fill as you mentioned) the rest of it looks more or less exactly the same as the old one and I'm pretty confident I can get it fitted in.

And yeah, I did mean that - if that's the case then no bother, thanks!

 

[koalar]

Unless you carry on driving for a prolonged time then the bottom half normally survives okay

Make sure the new engine has the same crank pulley and sensor.

If the pulley is different but you can swap them over it shouldn’t matter

The compression ratios are ever so slightly different. I think it will effect the ECU

Google

Fiat panda 1.1 (169) 2007 engine replacement

There’s a couple of videos knocking about


Here a screenshot from one showing the angle