Questions on propshaft and exhaust when pulling Duratec engine + Mazda transmission

[wdb]

From pictures, posts, etc. it definitely does appear as though there is more bracing under newer Caterhams. Even looking at my 1995 car it would be difficult if not impossible to drop the engine/trans out the bottom, unless I committed to drilling out the rivets for the transmission mount.

[11Budlite]

8 hours ago, hahuang65 said:

 

Thought about this a bit more and I'm not sure this is possible. There's a crossbar almost right where the bellhousing joins the transmission that makes it impossible to drop through. Also, (at least in my case) the transmission tunnel is V shaped if you look at it straight from the nose of the car. The bottom is not wide enough for the transmission to drop through regardless.

 

This is why when I installed the engine, I had to make sure the transmission didn't go lower than the floor of the car, cuz you just cannot tilt it back up.

 

You are correct. You can support the eng/trans on a Birkin and lift the body over it, because of the removeable crossbar in the transmission area. It's held on with 4 bolts IIRC. Not possible on a Caterham because of the fixed crossbar..

[BlakeJ]

I’ve always wondered why Caterham doesn’t use bracing down there that’s bolt-in instead of integral. It would make drivetrain install/removal much easier.