Because I have frequently swapped motors and cars, I have never had to do a clutch job on any of my cars (except when swapping, of course). It is only now that I am faced with the job. Which brings up this question. Due to the size of the B-series drivetrain with respect to the engine bay size, it looks like it is not going to be terribly easy to pull the transmission with the engine in the car. But maybe if it is all tilted down somewhat, it might be doable. On the other hand, it would be nice to not need to get a cherry picker. But regardless, if you have done a clutch job, do you think I should just do it with the engine in the car? Or is it better to pull everything out?

 

I've replaced the trans on my b series with the engine in the car. Now that was a pita but once you get the trans out changing the clutch is cake since you have plenty of room. The trans is the only part that would make me even think of removing the entire engine to do the job.

 

Shortly after I installed my B16,
One of the locating pins in the flywheel broke,fell into
the clutch pack and shreaded the disk.. 500 miles=$500.00

To make matters worse;
At that point in time,I was headed to the doctor
due to a ruptured disk in my back..

Based on my physical limitations at the time,I deceided to just drop
the engine rather than wrestling with it in the car..

I was also concerned with the possible stress that might be inflicted on the car
by the engine hanging from the structure if the jack slipped or something
did not go as planned..

 

I say drop the transmission. It's actually not that hard. Just make sure that the engine is supported under the oil pan with a cinder block or something. However, the Mounts are plenty strong too, strong enough to hold the engine up with just 2 mounts (I wouldn't have both the engine and tranny being supported by just the 2 mounts though).