from what i can see, that dont look like a key. try to see if the washer has a space in it the can go through the notch. sorry, is it possible to post a clearer pic of that notch. thank you.
is the part looks anything like this, try hitting it on the top of the key, at the outer most side facing the crank bolt location. hit it hard were the red dot is with a flat blade screwdriver. if it does not come off, than it is not a key. or is has weld it self in there quite well.
Thanks for all of the input and suggestions, we finally got it out. Now we're faced with an even bigger obstace. We have to remove the oil pan from a 5-speed. It appears that the crossmember has to be dropped to get to all of the bolts and drop it, buuuuuuut, both engine mounts are on that cross member. Any input/suggestions for this? The whole idea here is that we are actually trying to remove the oil pump, hence the pan needs to be dropped to access the two bolts attaching the strainer to the pump. Thanks.
Even with the crossmember removed (and two engine mounts attached to it), the engine will not drop. The engine / gearbox assembly is being held by other mounts, bolted to the cehicle's chasis.
Never the less, be carefull when working under the car with the cross-member removed. I ideally, I would put some wooden blocks enderneath the gearbox for safety.
It appears that the crossmember will be interfering with some of the oil pan bolts. Also it looks like some of the transmission bolts are through the oil pan.
Well just to share some success/knowledge...I got the old oil pump out, by just dropping the front of the crossmember. That provided enough clearance to remove the pickup bolts. *side note* the leganza and nubira oil pump housings are the same, except for the fact that the nubira uses smaller bolts for the thin aluminum oil pan. So if you ever get an oil pump housing from the nubira for a leganza, be sure to take the 2 oil pan bolts as well.
