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My oil pan gasket is leaking like a sieve and my engine completely ran out of oil the last time I had the car out, so the time has come to replace it. The CSM says I need to lift the engine up to take the oil pan off. How would I go about doing that?
My oil pan gasket is leaking like a sieve and my engine completely ran out of oil the last time I had the car out, so the time has come to replace it. The CSM says I need to lift the engine up to take the oil pan off. How would I go about doing that?
While there are many ways of doing it, the 1967 Oldsmobile CSM shows two ways using tools BT-6606 and BT-6501.
That must be quite a leak if it got rid of a gallon in one outing.
Last edited by Ozzie; Dec 12, 2020 at 08:44 PM.
Reason: Added information
I haven't seen an oil pan gasket leak that much, it's possible but look closely at the rear main seal and anywhere else. Extra time into finding the source for certain may prevent double work e.g., replacing the pan gasket and finding the rear main seal is leaking.
If your situation allows you would find it easier to pull the engine to replace the gasket.
The engine went from sounding normal when I left to ticking to clattering as loud as a diesel truck engine by the time I got home. It took almost a gallon to refill it. It might not have been completely empty, but it was under a quart. It's leaking from the front where I replaced the timing cover and had to replace the front part of the gasket. Put huge blobs of oil-resistant RTV on the corners, but it still leaks anyways like they always do.
I have an engine hoist to lift the engine but I've never done it before. I'll have to take the hood off, won't I? Last time I had it off, I could never get it back on straight. I might just keep dumping oil into the engine until I get it rebuilt (whenever that is).
Most likely the hood will have to come off if not for clearance it will for convenience. Mark the bolt location with a sharpie before removing the hood so you so will know where to relocate it when it goes back on. If you heard major rattling noises hopefully it was just the lifters, if not the rods and main bearings are shot and you will need to start that rebuild sooner than later. Fill it up with oil and start it up and see if it is quiet like it was before the leak. Check your oil pressure, do you have any? .If you have noise it's probably shot and you are late on the oil thing.
Go slow and ask questions and read a lot, we all have been where you are, you got to do it to learn some times..... Tedd
Last edited by Tedd Thompson; Dec 13, 2020 at 10:35 PM.
I ran it for a few minutes after refilling it to re-oil everything and it went back to sounding normal, so I think I dodged the bullet. I have to work overtime for the holidays, so I won't be able to get to it until January if I decide to do it.
The engine went from sounding normal when I left to ticking to clattering as loud as a diesel truck engine by the time I got home. It took almost a gallon to refill it. It might not have been completely empty, but it was under a quart. It's leaking from the front where I replaced the timing cover and had to replace the front part of the gasket. Put huge blobs of oil-resistant RTV on the corners, but it still leaks anyways like they always do.
I have an engine hoist to lift the engine but I've never done it before. I'll have to take the hood off, won't I? Last time I had it off, I could never get it back on straight. I might just keep dumping oil into the engine until I get it rebuilt (whenever that is).
Use a #2 lead pencil to mark around the hinges before you loosen the bolts.
You can also drill 2 1/8 inch holes in the front and rear of the hood hinge, and thru into the hood , NOT TO FAR, mark the bit with tape,
and then you can use a small awl into the holes and it will line up like before you removed it
Got everything apart and ready to lift the engine. I'm going to try replacing the pan without removing the engine. Where should I lift it from? I have an aftermarket Edelbrock intake manifold installed. I don't see a loop for a hoist, but there are two bolt holes on the top next to each other. Is there something I screw into there? My old oil pan is pretty banged up and I'd like to replace it. Which replacement should I choose?
There's factory lift points on the intake in a crevice and a loop. I've had below-the-hook lifting devices made for Toyota for my job, and we cheat and use holes drilled in the heads and remove the hooks after we land the engine for reuse. I'd recommend a bolt in an accessory bracket hole on the head on the front corner and a similar hole on the opposite corner.
Please do not work with it suspended. You may wish to consider blocks and longer bolts on the motor mounts or something, but you need the equivalent of jack stands to hold it up. Use the cherry picker to raise and lower it, but not hold it there for work. If it comes down on your hand, it's done.
There are two bolt holes at the bottom front of the block that seem like they would be a sturdy place to lift the engine from. Problem is, the chain would have to pass by everything else.
These are the holes on the top of the intake manifold I was talking about:
If your motor doesn't have the lift loop bracket bolted to the intake, you can also remove your carb and bolt an engine lift plate to the base - lift plate should be easy to obtain from any good auto parts store for maybe $20 or so.
As long as the transmission and xmember are still in the car and attached, lifting the engine at any point will accomplish the same thing. There are many points to attach a chain below the intake on the heads or block.
You can lift from the accessory holes on the front and back of the block or heads. Word to the wise, use grade 8 fasteners. I had 3/8" grade 5 fasteners break, lifting a motor, only minor damage and no injuries. I now use two bolts and grade 8 fasteners, especially if completely removing the motor and swinging it around.
What type of oil pan do I need? I see 4 qt, 5 qt, some with baffles, chromed or annodized. What's the difference? I probably don't need anything better that stock.
i would make sure it is the front seal leaking,the oil sender is in front on top could it be leaking and running down?one other thing if you had the front cover off did you put a new front crank seal in?if so when beating it in you could have knocked the spring off it so it has no tension against the crank.i would check everything over good and make damn sure it is leaking at the corners.
i would make sure it is the front seal leaking,the oil sender is in front on top could it be leaking and running down?one other thing if you had the front cover off did you put a new front crank seal in?if so when beating it in you could have knocked the spring off it so it has no tension against the crank.i would check everything over good and make damn sure it is leaking at the corners.
Wouldn't it have started leaking immediately if that was the case? It took a year or two to get this bad. Wasn't leaking at first. Additionally, it's leaking from most bolt holes at least a little, so it needs to be replaced anyways. It's got 135k+ miles on it and I don't think it's ever been replaced.
I suspect if your engine is anything like the 350 sbo, you should remove the oil pan to replace the timing cover gasket. Yes, you can replace a timing cover gasket without removing the oil pan, but you had better have done it before since it is most often a toss of the dice getting it done correctly without removal of the oil pan to change the timing cover gasket.
not to mention removing the oil pan gives perfect access to clean out the oil pump pickup that’s partially clogged with timing chain nylon.
