Lifting Plates and Aluminum Manifolds

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Maverick
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Lifting Plates and Aluminum Manifolds

Post by Maverick »

Ever wonder if its safe to lift an engine, or engine/transmission combo, with a lifting plate attached to an aluminum manifold? The question was discussed on the mmb.maverick.to and one member found this study from a plate manufacturer.

I use a lifting plate for the SBF and C4 together but I use studs screwed all the way into the manifold.
Load Leveling Lift Plate
Destructive Tensile Testing Results

Iron vs Aluminum Manifold

Knowing that there are some genuine concerns associated with using an engine lift plate attached to an aluminum manifold, Kaizen Motorsports wanted to evaluate the validity of this concern. To do so, we sent two of our lift plates to a certified test facility, along with an iron and aluminum intake manifold, to evaluate the difference between the two set-ups. We think the results will surprise many people!

First, one of our plates was attached to the iron intake with four high strength carburetor studs. With the plate and manifold in a level position, the leveling device was positioned at each end and pulled to 2000lbs with no deflection. The leveling device was then centered and the entire set-up was pulled to failure. The figure below shows the results (failure point highlighted in red). It can be seen that the system did not break until it reached 7,890 lbs! Having established a baseline, we were anxious to see the results for the aluminum manifold.

IRON MANIFOLD TEST RESULTS

The second test was conducted in precisely the same manner, except the plate was attached to an aluminum manifold. The results of this test surprised even us. For this test the load was applied progressively from 1250 lbs to 2000 lbs and then to ultimate failure. At 1250 and 2000 the leveling device was actuated from one side to the other. The load was then centered and pulled to destruction. The ultimate load was 8950 lbs.
The plate in the first test failed at a lower load simply because the lifting eye was not perfectly centered and at around 4500 lbs the plate began deflecting at a slight angle which in turn reduced the amount of force that the plate could withstand. The plate in the second test (aluminum manifold) began deflecting evenly and remained even until failure. The difference between the ultimate loads in the two tests has nothing to do with the manifold material.

ALUMINUM MANIFOLD TEST RESULTS

Upon inspection of the manifolds after the tests, we found that the steel carburetor studs could still be removed by hand on both the iron and aluminum manifolds. No visual damage to the manifolds was apparent.
NOTE: Despite these test results, Kaizen Motorsports does not recommend lifting anything over 1000 lbs.
Please see our Product Disclaimer for a complete set of proper lifting guidelines.
Maverick
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oldvettedad
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Re: Lifting Plates and Aluminum Manifolds

Post by oldvettedad »

I take the race car motor in and out with a lift plate. I use steel cap screws which are long enough to grab all the threads. Never had a problem. We have used this technique on many motors, never a problem. I use the same technique on the Corvette manifold too. When i took the motor and tranny out as a unit, I used a leveler and attached lift hooks to the intake at 4 corners. No problem.
Of course there is always no problem until there is a problem.
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