The Stovebolt Site Forums The Parking Lot '60-'66 Trucks I hope I'm missing something, pushrod installing

Long story short, I installed the 292 in the 66 burb with out the valve train on it, rockers and pushrods. Now a year, and much installation later, I have tried to install them, and there is not enough room to get the back (2) pushrods in the engine, because they hit the cowling above the firewall. Please tell me there is a way to do this without having to pull the motor out. Thank you for your help.

Instead of trying to drop them in, can you remove the lifter cover plate and slide them up or is that angle too great also?
Just a thought really. I have never tried it.

I'm missing something here....How is the fire wall to close to the rear pushrods? I've never seen a 6 cylinder burban, but I assume they're the same as the trucks as far as that goes. You should be able to remove the side cover and install them that way. TJ

I actually recall having read a TSB on this.

Chevrolet directed the technician to drill a hole slightly larger diameter than the push rod in the cowl and to install them through this hole, then to plug it with a rubber plug.

I just found the TSB...

This is from LIGHT DUTY TRUCK SERVICE COMMUNICATION "CC-66-1-7"
and is a 292 specific issue:

Drill a hole through the drip rail to remove the Intake push rod.

Then, remove the intake grill and disconnect the wiper linkage and drill a hole up through the bottom of the plenum and a matching one at the top to get the Exhaust rod out.

Of course they expect that the engine was complete and suggest pulling the rods up to where they touch and marking for the holes, but probably not too hard to figure out with a stick or pencil.

Oh, and they also say to "Caulk the hole in the body drip rail and smooth it out for a neat appearance"



Good Luck!

Rick

Well, I guess I wasn't missing something easy. I took off the side cover, no luck. It is not the actual firewall, but at the top where the cowl curves out over the back of engine for the wiper galley. That is why they say to drill holes thru there. I suppose it just amazes me, that there is an engine compartment big enough for 2 small blocks, and you can't get the pushrods out of the motor. Hopefully I can loosen some things up, and move it ahead and down in the front enough to get them in. Thanks everyone for your help, very much appreciated.

I just wanted to follow up on this. If you take out both of the motor mount towers that bolt to the frame, totally remove the rear mounts on the bellhousing, set the motor down on the front crossmember, and roll it toward the drivers side a bit, you can just get the back one in. With the entire front end off the vehicle, it still was a 4 hour process. So, make sure you put all the pushrods in before installing the motor, and if it's in a running vehicle, you may want to consider the drilling of the holes option. Lesson learned.

Glad you were able to get it all back together. TJ

FWIW: There are Factory Manuals that explain how to service every single component on a vehicle, and it's been my experience that following Step By Step the instructions provided by the manufacturer in those various manuals is the best and ultimately the most efficient way to properly and satisfactorily perform any job on a vehicle.