<VV> Strut Rods and LM Engine Removal

[John H. Green]

We are removing the engine and transaxle from our 1965 110/4 for the first time and have two related, and one unrelated questions.

1. Is it necessary or beneficial to remove the strut rods from the car body - suspension? It looks like engine and transaxle will come out easily with the struts hanging down, but still attached to the car.

2. We encountered problems when removing the struts from differential using the instructions in Finch's "How to Keep Your Corvair Alive." Specifically, the struts pushed down when the some of the bolts were removed, leaving the remaining bolts under tension. We used a floor jack to release the stress. Are we doing something wrong and can we use the floor jack when reinstalling things?

3. The engine - transaxle is at a slant (back to front) while our ATV jack and Fitch-like cradle (made from 2x4's) is parallel to the floor. What is the proper procedure in this case? My son thinks we should lift the front of the car to level out the transaxle. 

Thank you,

John Green