Buried vital engine parts

[djvx]

Isn't it nice having an engine that buries it's vital parts. Oh the designers were so smart. I learned alot helping my friend pull a 3.5 out of his Trooper.
So putting the starter under the engine is a good idea why????
And sticking the waterpump behind the timing belt is good because of what?
And hiding the thermostat under the intake manifold is brilliant for what reason?

I can see why they junk their cars in Japan after 40k, they've made them nearly impossible to work on. I know some of you enjoy putzin' in the garage with this stuff, but for some of us it's a serious money issue. And a downright PITA. I for one say the engineers and designers of this engine were idiots.
Period.
End of story.

[Ldub]

Isn't it nice having an engine that buries it's vital parts. Oh the designers were so smart. I learned alot helping my friend pull a 3.5 out of his Trooper.
So putting the starter under the engine is a good idea why????
And sticking the waterpump behind the timing belt is good because of what?
And hiding the thermostat under the intake manifold is brilliant for what reason?

I can see why they junk their cars in Japan after 40k, they've made them nearly impossible to work on. I know some of you enjoy putzin' in the garage with this stuff, but for some of us it's a serious money issue. And a downright PITA. I for one say the engineers and designers of this engine were idiots.
Period.
End of story.

Always follow the money...

They realized early on, that stealerships can charge more for repairs if parts are buried...the deeper the better.
Just be glad that the crank case oil filter isn't INSIDE the oil pan, like the trans filter...

In all reality, the starter has to be located near the flywheel.

[crotchrocket]

Isn't it nice having an engine that buries it's vital parts. Oh the designers were so smart. I learned alot helping my friend pull a 3.5 out of his Trooper.
So putting the starter under the engine is a good idea why????
And sticking the waterpump behind the timing belt is good because of what?
And hiding the thermostat under the intake manifold is brilliant for what reason?

I can see why they junk their cars in Japan after 40k, they've made them nearly impossible to work on. I know some of you enjoy putzin' in the garage with this stuff, but for some of us it's a serious money issue. And a downright PITA. I for one say the engineers and designers of this engine were idiots.
Period.
End of story.

Dude, honestly i can tell you after owning a 300zx TT (Fairlady to you US guys) this VX engine bay is HEAVEN!!!!! You could spend days trying to recover a dropped spanner from the 300zx engine bay, lol you cant get your hands around it and there are SO many components crammed uner the hood. You are guaranteed to scrape the back of your hand just putting oil in it!!! and to change a starter motor means dropping the exhaust and possible tranny !

This is a VERY tidy engine bay with alot of redundant systems removed, as you can see .....its TIGHT






This was mine lol.....a bit dirtier!





And just for the hell of it whilst im searching my photobucket account.....i think there is an engine bay here somewhere

[vt_maverick]

Same story for my Infiniti G35, especially if you need to change the battery, since you have to take apart significant pieces of the underhood trim to even access it, then practically rotate it sideways to get it out. Japanese engineering is amazing for cramming a bunch of components in a tight space, but I agree that it only benefits the dealerships.

Nice pic crotch...

[deermagnet]

Here's the secret that dealers use for changing the starter, from the Planet-

How to replace the starter on a Trooper, Rodeo, Amigo, VX
The secret.... Remove the 4, 14mm engine mount bolts, 2 on each side just below the exhaust manifold. Easily accessible but putting them back can be a challenge, just be patient. Anyways, once removed jack up the car, actually jack up the engine. With the engine lifted about 1" or so it will give you enough room to remove the starter out the rear of the truck with a little wiggleing to line it up through the opening. I actually slid out the old and slid in the new one under @ 3 minutes total after lifting the engine.

Mark

[tom4bren]

Here's the secret that dealers use for changing the starter, from the Planet-

How to replace the starter on a Trooper, Rodeo, Amigo, VX
The secret.... Remove the 4, 14mm engine mount bolts, 2 on each side just below the exhaust manifold. Easily accessible but putting them back can be a challenge, just be patient. Anyways, once removed jack up the car, actually jack up the engine. With the engine lifted about 1" or so it will give you enough room to remove the starter out the rear of the truck with a little wiggleing to line it up through the opening. I actually slid out the old and slid in the new one under @ 3 minutes total after lifting the engine.

Mark

Good call. I remeber having to do a very similar trick on my ol 79 Dodge P'up. Of course, my woes in that case were self imposed by headers (thankfully I never got around to installing a crossover pipe - that would've been a real nightmare).

[circmand]

for changing the timing change in an Isuzu I-Mark. This is really not a conspiracy but a result of change to designing cars by a computer engineer rather than a mechanical engineer. For those of you who watch Mythbusters you are probably already aware of this because it is a pet peeve of Jamie. It got TV play on a car myth where they have to take off the front drivers side tire to change the battery. On my Spectrum (Chevy versionof the Imark) I could not find my oil filter and neither could 2 oil change places. I had to call the dealer to let me know you had to go in from the bottom and over the front axle to find it in its recessed space.

[TheGanzman]

You want some cheese with that whine? Us "old timers" can remember working on '60's Shelby big block Mustangs (spark plug change=7 hours) and big block Stingrays from the same and later era. Bottom line - "10 pounds of ****e in a 5 pound bag" - same as it EVER was! Gotta go back to the early '60's and back to have it "easy"; trouble is, you had to work on THOSE cars 3 times as OFTEN!

[nfpgasmask]

I dunno, I think the VX is pretty easy to work on. I've done my timing belt, and while it's a slightly complex process, it can be done by a non-professional mechanic. Cars are complex machines and I really don't expect them to be simple to fix. That said, I have seen under the hood of my brother's 350Z and I have seen the 911's engine bay and I want nothing to do with either!!!

Bart

[pbkid]

ya, im gonna have to agree that this is a fairly easy motor to work on for a japanese car...my integra is at least twice as bad.... there are SO MANY damn wires and hoses in that motor that it could drive a man crazy. (its not as bad as CR's 300zx)

on all three of those pics...

[Y33TREKker]

While some buried components on the VX are definitely worthy of a head-scratch or two, things could be worse. I've heard the same joke from workers on a couple of different vehicle assembly lines that goes something like this.

"At the end of the line, if we pour a bucket of water on top of the engine and any of it hits the floor, we know we've forgotten to install something."