Oil pan..

[24OZ]

Has anyone taken there oil pan off and looked inside?

I had too as I was changing the gasket so I also decided to clean it up and paint the outside.. What I found inside was a thin layer of black paint that's coming off in places.

Should I remove this paint or leave alone? If it's coming off in places, leaving the smooth steel exposed, does this mean that it is slowly cloggig the filter. Or is this effect so marginal I can jsut ignore it and bolt it back on?

Thanks.

[Ed]

Don't ignore it. Not only will it clog your filter it could clog your pump. The small chips of paint will work there way into the pump and accumulate. seizing the pump and breaking the drive. Clean that pan!

[Bambikiller240]

George:

I think that you'll find as you start cleaning the sump (pan) that the "paint" really isn't paint, but rather is cooked oil residue which over the years has built up on the otherwise clean metal surfaces. Using mineral spirits, a stainless-steel wire brush (or two) and lot's of elbow grease I was able to remove 99% of that stuff from the inside of the pan.

Of course it's possible that some previous owner was dumb enough to paint your sump, but hopefully not.

Carl

[24OZ]

Thank you guys..

Carl, I think you are right and it is baked oil.. I was all set to hook the pan up tonight but from Ed's and your post I'm thinking I'd better clean it. I did try to do a little and it wasnt easy so I gave up and thought I'd post and see what you guys thought.. now I guess I'd better clean it...

Does having backed oil on the oil pan give you any tell tale signs as to how the engine is performing? I was told that a possible reason why my pan was leaking oil from the gasket was possibly because the breather on the rocker as well as the PCV could be blocked... Thus creating pressure in the engine which has to go somewhere - Could this happen??

I havent done the check yet on the PCV as presribed in the Haynes Manual but I will hopefully have the found this weekend... I did find the bolts on the oil pan very loose, they hardly required any pressure in removing them which could mean this was the reason the pan was leaking in the first place!

Thanks for listening to my ramblings :stupid:

[Bambikiller240]

Originally posted by 24OZ

Does having backed oil on the oil pan give you any tell tale signs as to how the engine is performing? I was told that a possible reason why my pan was leaking oil from the gasket was possibly because the breather on the rocker as well as the PCV could be blocked... Thus creating pressure in the engine which has to go somewhere - Could this happen??

I havent done the check yet on the PCV as presribed in the Haynes Manual but I will hopefully have the found this weekend... I did find the bolts on the oil pan very loose, they hardly required any pressure in removing them which could mean this was the reason the pan was leaking in the first place!

Hello again George:

I don't think the coating on the pan is indicative of engine condition. My belief is that it is a normal result of the heating and cooling of the oil which I suspect allows contaminants and the additives normally present in oil to "settle out" and over the years a layer of that stuff accumulates.

The oil sump/pan bolts do not require much tightening. I don't have my manuals with me, but AIR it is somewhere in the range of 15 to 25 ft/lbs. You don't want to tighten the bolts so much that the sump gasket gets deformed and starts to be squeezed outward. Many people use a sealant when installing the oil sump gasket and there are many to choose from. I will probably use some form of RTV Silicone sealant in this area when assembling my rebuilt engine this summer.

Carl

[beandip]

Before you reinstall the pan check to see that the mating surface , the bolt holes do not protrude from being tightened too much. If not flat you can fix with a hammer to straighten . :classic:

[SoCalZ]

Just change the gasket myself. Found the same residue and that I have had to tighten and retighten and once again retighten the pan bolts. Havent checked it in awhile, but someone suggested to check it again. I guess it is a pain to get it to stay tight? anyone with any suggestions?

[2ManyZs]

A lot depends on which type of gasket you used.... if you used a cork and rubber gasket, you will find it will continue to compress and the bolts can loosen. That's why I would always suggest using a plain rubber gasket. You have to be very careful when using a cork and rubber as they will always try to squeeze out under the flange and cause a leak. Most gasket kits have plain rubber oil pan gaskets, but every once in a while you still come across the cork and rubber... same thing applies to the cam cover.

You could always use some of the low strength Lock-Tite on the bolts, I think it's the blue... can't remember which color is which. That way, if you do have to re-tighten or torque, they will not be difficult to break loose so you can re-tighten them.

[24OZ]

I used a cork only gasket, the one that was on there previously was an all rubber one... anyway It's all on now.. have yet to fill it with oil ..I'm feeling tired and I'm having a bit of a break before I do that... and Mperdue thought HE needed motivation ..

Thanks guys for the great help as ever..

[Zedrally]

Was this operation done with engine in car or out?

[Bambikiller240]

I believe that George was doing this with the engine installed in the car. Right George?

[24OZ]

Thats correct, the engine was on the car...

It is a pretty straight forward job to do.

BTW - i did clean the baked oil off, took sometime but now the inside of the pan is clean.