How to Remove the Transmission in a 1999 Chevy Cavalier
- 1). Remove the ground (black) battery cable with a wrench.
- 2). Detach the air intake assembly to gain better access to the transmission from the top of the engine bay area. Use a Phillips screwdriver.
- 3). Disconnect the shift cable linkage and bracket with a ratchet and socket. The linkage is the mechanism connected to the shift lever inside the vehicle.
- 4). Label all the hoses and electrical connections accessible from the top of the engine bay area with masking tape and a black marker. Next, disconnect all those hoses and unplug the electrical connectors.
- 5). Detach the power steering pump from its mounting bracket and secure it away from its original position with heavy wire to gain better clearance between the engine and the transmission. Use a wrench, ratchet, short ratchet extension and socket.
- 6). Unfasten the bolt securing the transmission dipstick tube to the engine using a ratchet and socket and carefully pull the tube from the transmission.
- 7). Install support fixture J-28467-A on top of the engine bay area to support the engine. Unfasten the top bolts holding the transmission to the engine with a breaker bar and a six-point socket and then use the ratchet and the six-point socket to remove them. Organize the bolts you are removing since they come in different sizes and you need to replace them in their original place.
- 8). Loosen the lug nuts on both front wheels with a lug wrench and the hub nut on the center of the steering knuckles with an axle nut socket and ratchet. Next, Raise the front and rear of your Cavalier with a floor jack, support it with four jack stands and finish removing both front wheels.
- 9). Put on your safety glasses, get under your car and place a large drain pan under the transmission pan. Remove all the transmission pan bolts with a ratchet, short ratchet extension and socket, except for the bolts located on each corner of the pan. Loosen the four remaining bolts and break one of the pan corners lose, using a plastic scraper as a pry bar. Gradually drain the oil by removing the bolts and tilting the pan. Replace the pan mounting bolts using the ratchet, short ratchet extension and socket.
- 10
Detach the antilock brake sensors (ABS) from the back of the steering knuckles, where the wheel assemblies mount on, using a ratchet and socket. Also, remove the ABS sensor harness from the driver's side suspension support using the ratchet and socket. - 11
Remove the cotter pins and castle nuts securing the ball joints to the bottom of the steering knuckles. Use a pair of needle-nose pliers for the cotter pins and a wrench for the nut. The ball joints are part of the lower control arms, which connect to the steering knuckle on the outer side and to the frame on the opposite side. Next, disconnect the stabilizer shaft links, or bars, connected to the control arms using a ratchet and socket. - 12
Remove the cotter pins and castle nuts securing the tie-rod ends to the side of the steering knuckles. Use the needle-nose pliers and wrench. - 13
Detach carefully the ball joints from the steering knuckles using a ball joint fork tool and the tie-rod ends from the steering knuckle using a tie-rod end puller. - 14
Finish removing the hub nuts and washers from the axle shafts using the axle-nut socket and ratchet. - 15
Unfasten the left, driver's side, suspension support with a ratchet and socket. This support is a shield-like component that covers the left side of the transmission. - 16
Pull one of the steering knuckles from the end of the axle shaft using a three-way puller. Have an assistant hold the axle so that it does not hang from the transaxle. Next, pull that axle shaft off the transaxle using a pry bar. - 17
Disconnect the brace and transaxle converter cover from the bottom, between the engine and transmission using a ratchet, short ratchet extension and socket. This will expose the converter, a doughnut-shaped component sandwiched between the transmission and engine. - 18
Remove the starter motor using a ratchet, short ratchet extension and socket. - 19
Remove the nuts holding the converter to the flywheel using a wrench. You will need to rotate clockwise the center bolt on the crankshaft pulley located on the front and bottom of the engine to gain access to all the converter mounting nuts. Use a breaker bar and a short socket to rotate the center bolt. - 20
Disconnect the cooler lines from the transmission with a line wrench. These two lines go from the transmission to the radiator. Next, unfasten the braces from the cooler line and exhaust pipe. - 21
Unfasten the bolts from the engine and transmission mount with a ratchet, long ratchet extension and socket. Secure the transmission with a transmission jack, strapping the transmission to the jack with the chains or straps provided with your jack. - 22
Check for any components or brackets still holding to the transmission and remove them, if necessary. Unfasten the bolts holding the transmission to the engine and vehicle's body with a ratchet, long ratchet extension, socket and universal joint. Connect the universal joint between the socket and extension. Carefully separate the transmission from the engine, lower the transmission and remove it from the vehicle.
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