Hello guys, Im almost ready to remove my engine and transmission together for a swap. I have everything disconnected except the transmission stuff. What do you guys recommend me doing with the torque arm? I hear its dangerous because of the tension with the rear end. I have the rear of the car on ramps and the front on 3 ton jack stands. Do I just unbolt the clam shell like mount/bushing where the TA connects to the tranny tail shaft, and it'll be free enough to get the tranny out of there? Also how do you guys unhook the cable for the speedo, and metal lines for trans? Can I undo the cross member and lower with a floor jack to have better access with out breaking anything? Thanks in advance!

 

Support the rear "frame", just in front of the control arm bolts, on a pr of stands. Let the rear hang down as far as it can go (bottom out the shocks), then jack it back up about an inch or 2 by the pumpkin, and set the axle tubes on another pr of stands, just up off of the stops in the shocks. The axle tubes; NOT the shock brackets, NOT the control arms, NOT any other part, besides the axle tubes. In that state there's so little force on it you can move it with your little finger.

Unhook the speedo cable by unscrewing it. Unhook the lines with a flare nut wrench on the line nut and an open-end on the fitting in the trans.

 

Alright thanks for your help man. Do I need to completely remove the TA or just remove the side hooked to the tail shaft when I do this? When I was eyeing up the speedo cable and lines I seen there is no way I can fit my hand plus a wrench in there thats why I asked if there a better way to access it possibly like I had in mine (unbolt the cross member and lower the trans with a jack to have better access).

 

by removing the end connected to the pumpkin, youll be able to wiggle the torque arm out of the clamshell without loosening anything. When I first removed a torque arm I had no clue about the danger but I did it exactly how the previous poster described and It just fell right to the ground,

 

It's easier to unbolt it from the pumpkin and slide it out. Trying to get the clamshell to line up in a tight space with the torque arm in it is terrible.