In an earlier thread I asked about any potential problem area in changing a water pump on a 350. I was warned about the possibility of over tightening the bolts that hold the pump to the backing plate. Well, low and behold a previous owner stripped 3 out of 4. The top 2 I was able to install a 2nd nut and torque them correctly, but there is no access to the lower 2 without removing the bAck plate. It looks fairly straight forward in the manual. Remove the oil pan and remove the plate.

Is it that easy to remove the pan, without having to jack up the engine to gain access? Also, when the plate is off, can I support the plate and tap a new crank shaft / balancer seal into the plate?