Engine in Tilted Position ?? (Is this due to accident???)

[Warren C]

I just purchased a 92 SVX that rearended an SUV ...ran up under the back of the SUV......so point of impact is just above the front hood opening. The impact bent the upper radiator support crossbar, cracked the radiator and crumpled the hood......

My question is that I also notice that it appears the engine does not sit perfectly straight up and down.....perpendicular to the level horizontal axis of the car......it is tilted slightly..... so that the front timing belt cover is angled slightly back at the top towards the rear of the car........I suspect (and worry) that this tilted position is due to the impact of the collision.....but since I'm new to the SVX I'm not sure.......could someone tell me for sure....

Should the engine sit perfectly level....horizontally front to back....with the cam belt covers straight up and down....or is the normal postion slightly tilted back???

Thanks for your help.

Warren C.

[lee]

Warren,

Just went out and checked my car. If I put a small level against the cam cover, I have to move the top of the level out so there's about an inch gap between it and the cam cover.

So recapping: bottom of level touching bottom of cam cover, top of level about an inch out from top of cam cover for bubble to be centered. Don't take that inch as gospel, it's just a guess made by eyeball.

hope that helped.

the engine should rest slightly lower in the rear (closer to the driver) and slightly higher in the front (next to the radiator).

the reason for this is so that in a serious front-end impact, the entire deck will slide underneath the passenger compartment. i have read one account of a woman who got into a head-on collision and the motor wound up underneath her instead of on her lap. very good work on FHI's part

-adam

[Mr. Pockets]

Originally posted by alacrity024
the engine should rest slightly lower in the rear (closer to the driver) and slightly higher in the front (next to the radiator).

the reason for this is so that in a serious front-end impact, the entire deck will slide underneath the passenger compartment. i have read one account of a woman who got into a head-on collision and the motor wound up underneath her instead of on her lap. very good work on FHI's part

-adam

That's Subaru's marketing line, anyway. And, yeah, it's part of the truth. The rest is that it keeps everything in a straight line, right back to the rear diff. Keeping everything in a straight line means there are fewer gears to reach the axles and it's all cheaper to produce.

Of course, if they didn't tip the engine up like that, the cars would have an even lower CG, lower profiles, etc. They'd also have more drivetrain loss and would likely be heavier.

That's my take on it, anyway. Somewhere on this site is a cool see-through side view of the SVX, and you can see the slant of the engine and drivetrain.

[Warren C]

Finally found a cutaway drawing here.....at the bottom of this specs page....

http://www.subarusvx.com/specs.html

Its small...but clearly shows the tilted drivetrain.. as designed...probably no effects from the collision.

Guess I'm OK and with no worries.....now just to get a new radiator, hood, front headlights and turn signals and I'll be good to go.

Warrne C.

[Mr. Pockets]

I haven't seen the car, so I don't know how bad the impact was - but are you sure that the whole thing is straight? A set of factory service manuals would definitely help you with your repairs, but it would also provide you with measuring points and dimensions to make sure that the car isn't bent up too badly.