Got a 2000 Mercury sable 3.0 DOHC that I am doing an engine swap in, and I can't get this motor out. Got all the bolts out of the bellhousing and nuts off the torque converter and it won't separate. I can pry the tranny off a little bit from the motor then it springs back on the cab side of the engine, making me think it's not a seized dowel pin issue. I was thinking the input shaft or whatever it's called on the torque converter that inserts into the crank was seized. But at the same time when I pry the motor apart there is a 1/16-inch gap between the motor and tranny on the side that's near the front of the car, and that doesn't spring back tight. So am I binding on the torque converter studs that mount to the flywheel, or the nose on the torque converter. If so, how do I overcome this binding. I tried letting the engine down and then having someone slowly jack it up as I try to pry and wiggle the engine away from the tranny, then I tried doing the same but slowly jacking on the transmission instead. Do I just keep trying that or my other idea was to get some wedges between the tranny and motor and pound them in or would that damage something. I thought if I used wood wedges that would be unlikely to break the casting.

 

after stewing on it for a while I think the game plan might be to pry it to get the wedges in, pound them in a ways, then go underneath the car thread a nut on to the torque converter partially and tap on the torque converter stud, then turn the engine over to the opposite stud and do the same thing and kind of go back and forth between that and pounding the wedges in. Does that sound like that would damage anything? Should I just lightly tap the studs or do you think I could hit it with a decent amount of force. Probably use a ratchet extension to reach the stud and hit with a hammer.