440 Freeze plug replacement - Engine-in replacement?

[watermelon]

doing some prep work for the future owner of this 66

got a leaky freeze plug behind this motor on the 440cu

looks like a removal of the power steering unit and motor mount


anyone experience replacing this hidden one successfully without removing the engine from the bay?




thx,
watermelon

 

[Rishi]

I did, or once did, back in the late 1980s, replace leaky rusty freeze plugs, one by one as they began leaking, in a 440 e-body car. At the very end, when one of them (I forget which one) required my pulling the engine and transmission (together as one assembly) to access it, I finished out all the others I had not replaced until then.

It took me one Saturday (day off from work) to pull the engine, replace the remainder of the freeze plugs, and return the motor, hook it all back up, and drive to my local In-n-Out for a dinner burger.

I then realized if they were all going to leak eventually, just doing the nasty and pulling the motor was less work, than those times it took me a whole day or two, to replace a single freeze plug without removing the engine.

With hindsight, I realize my car was stored with plain water in it for some number of years before I was the owner. Had I known then, I would be replacing them all, the "pulling the motor" thing-deal is the least amount of work, overall.

As a bonus, I flushed out a good amount of casting sand from that motor with a bunch of freeze plugs removed. Afterwards, it ran very much cooler than it did before this chore.

The next motor I rebuild from the pan upwards, I will make an effort to flush out any residual casting sand.

 

[MoparLeo]

1 bad, all are bad. Just some are worse than others.

 

[eldubb440]

rubber expansion plug for the win.......I have one in my Durango right now

 

[eldubb440]

1 bad, all are bad. Just some are worse than others.

not necessarily.....


freeze plug in my Durango rusted out. I figured; Great, they are all probably getting thin...... another thing to watch out for

but no, this one had a piece of casting slag behind it, causing it to fail...... at least it was easy to get to

 

[PurpleBeeper]

If you have access to the freeze plug, remove it and tap in a standard replacement freeze plug. If you can barely get to it, use one of these (parts store)

 

[Bighouse]

I did one- I used a socket on an extension with a swivel to knock it in from off to the side. I coat them with gasket sealer too.

 

[Doorkicker]

It "can" be done, but the trick is getting the new plug back in correctly at that odd angle with the engine in the car - not a lot of space. And that's why those typically leak.

Honestly, you have to pull the mount on that side anyway... so you might as well remove the bolt from the other mount and lift the engine as far up and forward as possible, which may eliminate the need to pull the steering. From there... you can replace all of them, which is advisable, assuming you're comfortable with replacing plugs.

 

[watermelon]

thx all. appreciate the guidance.

looks like i have a bit of a project on my hands


watermelon

 

[Cheapsunglasses]

Bring beer and patience when you do it

 

[watermelon]

still in process of disconnecting lines n stuff

engine out it is




watermelon

 

[Doorkicker]

send pics!

 

[watermelon]

watermelon

 

[watermelon]

no hood

might run it on the streets like this





watermelon

 

[watermelon]

all plugs replaced. and do use a 2-ton for engine removal, the 1-ton didn’t have the reach.

need to find a slot of time to plug it all back in


watermelon

 

[Don Frelier]

View attachment 1543756

no hood

might run it on the streets like this





watermelon

I always leave the hood off after any surgery.
Easy to check for leaks and loose stuff

 

[watermelon]

engine back in.

an awesome experience if you have never be so blessed. i highly recommend it.




watermelon