Has anyone successfully removed and installed an engine without removing the hood or the condenser and core support?

I have the block stripped to a short block and I think I could get that out but don't think I could get a dressed block back in with the extra height of the assembly while clearing the core support and coming in under the hood.

The simplest would be to pull the core support and condenser but the hard line going to the transmission cooler and the condenser appear to limit their ability to move out of the way.

Was curious if anyone has done it and had success.

Thanks!

 

I removed/installed the engine without pulling the condenser/core support, but I did remove the hood and the radiator.

 

Removing the hood sure makes it a lot easier..... Don't need to remove the core support, etc. Pull the radiator though. Otherwise, it can be easily damaged.

 

I don't pull the hood (never had another person) I do pull the core support and the condenser. The condenser will swing enough out of the way

 

Sounds good, I think I am going to take a hybrid approach of all the above and remove the grill off the hood and the radiator core support while leaving the condenser in place and dropping it either down or swinging it out of the way, whichever affords the most room.

Thanks for the suggestions. Trying to avoid the cumbersome hood removal or the need to evacuate the AC if possible.

 

For what its worth, I had a helper with me on the day I removed and re-installed the hood. As long as you use a scribe to mark the hood's location on the hinges, its not hard to remove and re-install the hood.