Do the front fenders and grill come off as a unit? I need to pull the engine (bad rings) and looking for the easiest way. It looks like I could pull the radiator support work and grill. Which way have most people done it? thanks

When I pulled the engine out of my 47 I didn't need to remove either the grill or fenders. You can get the engine out without that.

Remove the radiator though so you have room up front to work. Also, I removed the head first as this gave me a bit more clearance plus make it lighter. Manifolds off and generator and oil filter. Pull the engine and the trans together as the flywheel needs to come off to remove the bolts holding the bell housing. To take the flywheel off, you need to remove the rear main cap. Dont forget the fan too.

Get yourself one of those engine leveling bars that you can crank to change the slant of the engine. As it comes up you will need to raise the front of the engine. All the way to the front of the car and it should just come out. I didn't even have to put the car on jackstands.

I used moving pads to cover the fenders and grill and did no damage. Took about 2 hours to get it out and about 4 to get it back in.

Thanks for the info. I have a few other questions. Which head bolts did you use to lift the engine or does it not matter? Did you have the head on when you installed the engine or install the head latter?

I dont rember exactly which bolts I used, but most likely I used the two fronts and the two backs.

I installed the head after I had the engine in the car. The hardest part of the whole replacement was to get the torque tube matched up with the transmission. That took a couple of hours of messing around under the car to do.