This past weekend my son decided that it was time to replace the stock muffler with a glass pack I had laying in the garage. I was planning on installing it when the truck becomes a trail rig only. Currently he uses it as his DD and we use it for off-roading. We keep hitting the stock muffler on things. While working on that I notice two different fluid leakes under her. Oil and tranny. Did some checking and sure enough the oil leak is from the oil pressure sending unit. I figured it would only be a matter of time before it started to leak. We ripped the wires to it off with the front driveshaft last time 4 wheeling. I tried to get it off, but nooooooooo. No room for my big hands and a wrench. The only wrench I can get on it is a stubby, about 3" long. Not long enough to break it free. Plus the oil filter is in the way. So I abandon that until next weekend. I'll change the oil filter, oil, oil pressure sending unit, and oil guage sender. All right next to each other. Hope I don't have to lift the body a few inches to do it.

Well in search of the other leak, it looks like it is coming from above the tranny, strange unless the case is cracked. Figure I'll get the glass pack on and look while it is running. Sure enough, leaks under pressure. Turns out to be the lower tranny cooler line is leaking at the tranny fitting. While replaceing the TV cable last weekend I must have pushed too hard on the line and warped it at the fitting. Regardless the line needs to be replaced. Way easier said then done. No room to loosen the fitting without jacking the body up 2", only took me 3 hours of frustration and bullheadedness to realize that. Monday night shot. So last night was round two, figured my son could give it a whirl, he has smaller hands. 30 minutes later, no dice. Bite the bullet, pull out the impact gun and start taking off body mount bolts. Based on past expierence I know I need to take the front 4 out and at least loosen the next 2. The last 4 I can leave alone. Two of the nut welds broke free so we have to pull up the carpet on under the drivers and passengers feet to have a pry bar hold the nuts while we unscrew the bolts. Had to drill holes in the steel floor last time we had to jack up the body. Jack it up under the radiator cross brace and throw some 2x4 blocks of wood between the body and frame up front. Still no luck breaking the fitting free. I didn't think I tightened it that much when we rebuilt the tranny last summer. Reason we jacked the body up last time. Needless to say time for the locking vise crips, off she came. Now to take off the radiator end. Pull the batttery, and battery tray, came right out. Off to the store. Noone sells prefit line, not event he dealer. No biggy, I'll buy straight stock and plan on using my fancy smancy tubing bender. First bend, kinked, crap. Not long enough to cut it off and still use it. I have a flaring tool so that is no biggy. Since this piece is shot, might as well experiement. Try using lubricant, still kinked it. Half machine, half hand, still kinked. Hmmm, do I have enough hand strength to bend it without kinking it??? I was able to bend the 1/4" line on my other sons rear brakes fine, although this is 5/16". Yep, hand method will work, great back to the store, MCD's for quicky dinner, and spend another $5.39 on another line. Prebent the tranny end by hand and spent the next hour getting it to line up so I could thread in the fitting. Numerous attempts, rebends, blow out all the dirt and clean the ends later I finally get it tightened down. Whew, only 10pm and the hard part is over. All down hill now.
Get the rad end in quick enough with some hand work. Put the Chevy orange battery tray in. My son has this rule, anything we take out and fix gets painted Chevy Orange. I almost get the tray bolted back in place and realize I don't have the bolt needed to hold the battery down. That would explain the extra bolt laying on my tool box. Take the tray off and install the bolt

 

Wow sounds like A LOT of work for you guys over the past couple of days! Glad that everthing went together well!

Would it have been any easier to drop the tranny crossmember and drop the trans down a bit? I don't know how much room you needed, but I do remember changing the tranny lines on my old '85 S10 2.8L 4x4 and we did it all by dropping the transmission crossmember and holding the trans up with jack on the transfer case.

 

We contomplated doing that. Although if it didn't give me enough clearance I still had to jack the body up. Figured I'd cut some time and go the longer route first.

 

By no means was I saying that what you did was wrong in any way.
I just remember that we got enough room (barely) on my old '85 S10 by doing as I had said. All that matters is that the repairs were made and the truck is back on the road!

 

I took no offense to your comments. Actually, it showed you have been in a similar situation. Dropping the tranny cross brace and tranny might have actually worked, however I knew for a fact raising the body will work. That is how we did it before. Rather then take a chance on dropping the tranny, and maybe wasting more time, I figured we raise the body even though it might take more time compared to dropping the tranny.

All is good so far.