Make the deluxe and use the Hacksaw to cut a screwdriver slot where the Heads were.

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84 300D, 82 Volvo 244Gl Diesel

The one place I worked that had Car lifts when you removed a Transmission (using a transmission jack) because the Car was up high you had to move a metal table under the Car with the Jack and when Transmission was out fix it on the Table or drag the table out from under the Vehicle (so the lift can be used for something else).

Personally I did not like that because if something happens there is a long way for the transmission to fall and you are near that if it occurs.

If you are going are going to deal with the Transmission attached to the Engine have someone else there to observe parts you cannot see while you are jacking the Engine up and down,

I was jacking the Engine+Transmission out of a vehicle with a Cherry Picker and I did not see that the Clutch Lever had caught on something and I ruined the Clutch Pressure Plate Springs. Which on my Chevy was a slotted disk with springy fingers that some of which got bent.

Also pulling an Engine by myself I smashed some of the Engine Sensors (hindsight, I should have removed them before pulling the Engine).

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84 300D, 82 Volvo 244Gl Diesel

Yes, this I do on older American stuff where the bolts are large, I don't think I'd do that on the 8MM bolts a Mercedes tranny is held in with .

-Nate

I've done four of of them and on three of them I just pulled the whole engine/trans as a unit, much more pleasant, and good opportunity to service a bunch of other stuff in the process.

I did my W201 from underneath and that was not fun at all.

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-diesel is not just a fuel, its a way of life-
'15 GLK250 Bluetec 118k - mine - (OC-123,800)
'17 Metris(VITO!) - 37k - wifes (OC-41k)
'09 Sprinter 3500 Winnebago View - 62k (OC - 67k)
'13 ML350 Bluetec - 95k - dad's (OC-98k)
'01 SL500 - 103k(km) - dad's (OC-110,000km)
'16 E400 4matic Sedan - 148k - Brothers (OC-155k)

If I were to go the bottom route, should I support the rear of the motor with a bottle jack and 2x4?

I pulled the engine and trans as a unit once for a swap, and that was tedious but the chance to clean everything up was worth it. I did one from underneath once as well (I stack the tires two deep under as a failsafe when using jack stands, as I’m thinner than two tires)

What works best is to hire two teenagers and pay them to crawl under. Its really a pretty simple task that seems to amuse budding gear heads.

What’s wrong with cinder blocks ? They fit perfect along the frame rails. U put a 2x6 across the top and the car sits nice and sturdy on them.

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What Would Rudolph Do?
1975 300D, 1975 240D, 1985 300SD, 1997 300D, 2005 E320 , 2006 Toyota Prius

I did some research and cinder blocks are designed for 100% compression loading. U guys are right. Cinder Blocks not good choice for cars. Thanks

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What Would Rudolph Do?
1975 300D, 1975 240D, 1985 300SD, 1997 300D, 2005 E320 , 2006 Toyota Prius

As a former mason I would never use cinder blocks; they get tossed around and can have hidden faults that will make them collapse. Any stone under an edge will crack them on a concrete floor.

If you insist on cheating death, Cinder block would have to be capped with 8” wide lumber at a bare minimum, not 2x4 which would magnify a fault. Really the best makeshift are car wheels; nice and wide and stable on the flat: with tires mounted even better.

Bingo! The voice of experience, listen and learn. It may seem like more work, but in the end it will be faster and the end result will be of higher quality.

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Respectfully,
/s/
M. Dillon
'87 124.193 (300TD) "White Whale", ~392k miles, 3.5l IP fitted
'95 124.131 (E300) "Sapphire", 380k miles
'73 Balboa 20 "Sanctification"
Charleston SC

I second this. You can have both out in a couple hours and it makes getting to the top bell housing bolts a breeze.

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TC
Current stable:
- 2004 Mazda RALLYWANKEL
- 2007 Saturn sky redline
- 2004 Explorer...under surgery.

Past: 135i, GTI, 300E, 300SD, 300SD, Stealth

I think the process I’ve settled on is to put the car on ramps. Set the trans jack in place and remove as expected. Raise the car on jack stands to get the necessary clearance to roll the trans out. Swap it and do the reverse of what I said above to reinstall. It looks like I can rest the engine on the front cross member temporarily during the switch over unless someone objects. This will limit my time actually under the car using the stands and minimize the potential of twisting it off of them.

Not to sound like Mr. Gloom and Doom, but if you are going to use ramps, make sure they are solid ramps like Rhino ramps of similar. I have seen two instances with the stamped metal ramps where the weld joint cracked, and the ramp collapsed!!

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2012 Mercedes ML350 Bluetec 91K (hers)
2005 Corvette 55K (fun car)
2002 VW Jetta TDI 231K (mine)
1998 Volvo S70 T5 Turbo 196K (kids)
1994 Ford F150 4WD 249K (firewood hauler)
1983 Mercedes 300D 376K (diesel commuter)

Years ago I was helping my father in law r & r the transmission on his 1960 Mercury Comet wagon. The car was supported on some cheap jack stands and sure enough the car came down with me underneath. Fortunately I was able to get out from under the car just in time.

Another story - a friend of mine who was an auto shop teacher in Southern California agreed to replace the transmission in his principal’s car. The car was left on the raised two post lift over night and unfortunately around 1:00 am an earthquake hit. The car fell off the lift. The principal was not real happy but his insurance took care of the damage.