How to remove 4G64 intake support bracket?

[Spectre]

Hi all, I'm new here. I am helping a friend of mine with his 1990 Mighty Max 2.4L - someone converted it to a carburetor system with parts from an unknown donor. We're trying to convert it back via parts scavenged from a junkyard. We've gotten all the parts off but this one, the lower intake manifold support bracket. We can't seem to figure out how this is removed.

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/40692846783_8d62e3504f_z.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/24ZTtCB)
IMG_1624arrows (https://flic.kr/p/24ZTtCB)

How is this removed with the engine in the vehicle? There doesn't seem to be room to get a wrench or a socket/ratchet combo in there. Does the engine need to be removed from the mount or something?

[geezer101]

Hi and welcome to mightyram. You'll need to unbolt the mount and raise the engine enough to give you clearance. Removing the support while the engine is still sitting in there isn't going to be a fun job but it should be do-able. Best bet is to try and gain access through the wheel well/fender arch while it's being lifted. You're not going to get much movement so try taking it apart in stages - undo the main rubber mount bolts, loosen off the centre bolt to the block mount and pull the rubber cushion block out and then you should be able to get an extension bar and socket in there to finish it off.

There is a real risk of getting a hand crushed if this goes south, so have a buddy on stand by to help you and do whatever you can to support the engine - and bring something to kneel on so you don't bust up your knees in the yard :thumbup:

[royster]

Not sure you want to remove that, unless it's different from the fuel-injection plenum. I have the same year truck and the 4G64 (photo below) uses that bracket to support the plenum.

22375

[Spectre]

Not sure you want to remove that, unless it's different from the fuel-injection plenum. I have the same year truck and the 4G64 (photo below) uses that bracket to support the plenum.

To clarify, the picture is of the donor truck I am harvesting parts from. I want to know how to remove it so I can send it down with the rest of the parts to my friend with the converted truck; when his truck was converted to carburetor, they removed most everything that was EFI related and we believe this bracket is now missing on his truck. Judging by the way the donor truck was put together, it rather does need the support to prevent the intake assembly from cracking off over time.

The reason we are converting the truck back to the factory EFI system is because it has had multiple parts failures and we are unable to find any good matches to the mystery parts used in the conversion. The distributor has failed and the closest match we can find is a 1985-only Galant variant. Even then it's not that close a match and the bloody thing costs more than all the EFI parts from the yard cost.

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/33791553728_1a0b878aa5_z.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/Tu3xDj)
E229EA23-066E-4BC6-8B56-FDF250EBE3DD (https://flic.kr/p/Tu3xDj)

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/33791567238_69c97c1ab3_z.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/Tu3BEf)
IMG_1772 (https://flic.kr/p/Tu3BEf)

It should perhaps be mentioned that while I'm in the US and the truck in question is a US market 1990, the truck is not presently in the US; neither is my friend who owns it. The truck is currently somewhere there's basically no parts down there for it and I'm trying to help him out.

[Spectre]

Hi and welcome to mightyram. You'll need to unbolt the mount and raise the engine enough to give you clearance. Removing the support while the engine is still sitting in there isn't going to be a fun job but it should be do-able. Best bet is to try and gain access through the wheel well/fender arch while it's being lifted. You're not going to get much movement so try taking it apart in stages - undo the main rubber mount bolts, loosen off the centre bolt to the block mount and pull the rubber cushion block out and then you should be able to get an extension bar and socket in there to finish it off.

There is a real risk of getting a hand crushed if this goes south, so have a buddy on stand by to help you and do whatever you can to support the engine - and bring something to kneel on so you don't bust up your knees in the yard :thumbup:

What's the underside of that mount look like?

I have some ratcheting wrenches, would removing the top nut from the rubber mount first (as I think I have clearance for that) help?

[geezer101]

You are doing your friend a solid - awesome. The manifold and carb in the pics are a cobbled together combo of a G62B FWD manifold and a Nikki carb (which is nasty) Almost any G3XB or G6XB distributor will work but you're going to need the matching distributor for the 4G64 retrofit. Steer away from the 1991 EFI ECU set up as it was a single year specific production and was problematic to work on.

[Spectre]

The donor vehicle is another, slightly older 1990 Mighty Max in a Dallas junkyard - we got lucky on that one. Again, to be clear, his truck started out life with the 4G64 EFI engine in it and someone down in Honduras did the conversion as pictured, including the stand-alone distributor. There's no matching distributors in Honduras and there's definitely none in the US that we've been able to find. I don't think we got either of the engines you reference as donors up here in the US.

I assumed that the Mitsu would need the EFI distributor after viewing wiring schematics and finding out the EFI took its crank position from the distributor. This isn't the first time I've done a carb to EFI conversion and I take the EFI system's distributor as a general rule.

The only thing left that we might need on the donor truck is that bracket. I pulled pretty much everything else on the intake and electrical sides and whoever converted the truck in the first place left the EFI exhaust manifold on it.

What the donor vehicle looked like when I began:
https://live.staticflickr.com/7825/40585896983_d8895b1af2_z.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/24Qrkbx)
IMG_1316 (https://flic.kr/p/24Qrkbx)

https://live.staticflickr.com/7818/46828294194_701c391893_z.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/2em4foE)
IMG_1354 (https://flic.kr/p/2em4foE)

https://live.staticflickr.com/7835/46828294424_fa6780a947_z.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/2em4fsC)
IMG_1358 (https://flic.kr/p/2em4fsC)


What it looked like when I got done with it:
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/32683075567_401fae6191_z.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/RN6iGT)
IMG_1657 (https://flic.kr/p/RN6iGT) by Texas Spectre (https://www.flickr.com/photos/160772509@N03/), on Flickr

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/32683075667_5975a6c59f_z.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/RN6iJB)
IMG_1658 (https://flic.kr/p/RN6iJB)

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/40659350613_2b82fb848b_z.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/24WVNor)
IMG_1680 (https://flic.kr/p/24WVNor)

With the exception of the brake parts and non-EFI related dash parts, if it's missing from the 'after' pics, I took it. Inner and outer intakes, throttle body, distributor, complete EFI wiring harness, the rest of the intake tract, complete fuel rail with injectors, you name it, I took it.

[Spectre]

Just tried replying to the thread with some pictures, but it apparently has to be approved by a moderator. Anyway, yes, I took the distributor... and pretty much everything else.

[Spectre]

Looks like my post was finally approved. Anyway, again: I have some ratcheting wrenches, would removing the top nut from the rubber mount first (as I think I have clearance for that) help?

[geezer101]

Yep. You need to undo the main mounting bolts first, then get in there and undo that single nut on the stud and wriggle the critter out when you've raised the engine. That metal shroud around the engine mount will be a PITA as long as it's in the way too.

[Spectre]

Yep. You need to undo the main mounting bolts first, then get in there and undo that single nut on the stud and wriggle the critter out when you've raised the engine. That metal shroud around the engine mount will be a PITA as long as it's in the way too.

Do you happen to have any pictures of what I should be seeing on the block or on the rail for the bolts? Thanks.

[geezer101]

Sorry but I don't have pics. I've dropped whole drivetrains in and out of the 2.0 which obviously doesn't have the support bracket. This is going to take 2 pairs of hands, patience and some muscle.

[Spectre]

Just to close this one out for the archives - if pulling this support in a junkyard setting, you don't have to detach the mounts from the frame. You only have to take off the heat shield over the mount on the exhaust side (one bolt), use a ratcheting wrench to take the single nuts off the motor mount studs (one nut each) and then lift the engine. The engine will pop up off the studs and you can get access to the one bolt holding the support on.<br><br>https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/46991868084_3b9f24e597_z.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/2eAvBd9)<br>IMG_1964 (https://flic.kr/p/2eAvBd9)<br><br>https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/46991869164_9d9b3df7a5_z.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/2eAvBwL)<br>IMG_1968 (https://flic.kr/p/2eAvBwL)<br><br>https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/46991869564_1732169602_z.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/2eAvBDE)<br>IMG_1970 (https://flic.kr/p/2eAvBDE)<br><br>https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/46864770595_050c415163_z.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/2ephcy8)<br>IMG_1971 (https://flic.kr/p/2ephcy8)

[geezer101]

Awesome. You got it without losing a finger or crushing a hand. Keep us posted with the retrofit :thumbup:

[Spectre]

After the parts spent several months in stupidity and in transit, my friend reported delivery. He sent me this video yesterday.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fgtp56tG30g

His 1990 is now back to stock configuration; hopefully he had the rigged-up carb and distributor hurled into the nearest pit of fire.

[Spectre]

Yes, the O2 sensor is not fitted - the new one he bought was the wrong size and he just wanted to get it running.