Oil pan removal

[480sx]

I posted this in response to someones question and recently someone said they couldnt find it when searching, so iv reposted it as a new thread.

Dropping the pan's so freaken easy, you just cant listen to the damn FSM.

Take off all the bolts on the oil pan. Then get your car as low as you possibly can while still being able to get underneath it with a creeper. Take the wheels off and put it on jack stands if you have to. Take the motor mount nuts off. Jack up on the AC, or AC bracket until the motor comes up about 3-5 inches on the driver side. If you take off your valve cover, it will make it easier to unbolt/bolt the oil pickup back on. It will let you raise the motor higher, giving you atleast 5 inchs from the block to the pan. At this point the only thing holding your oil pan up is the liquid gasket. Take a rubber hammer and beat a few times at a downward angle and bam its off. Do NOT take a screw driver and pry between the block and the oil pan, you will mess up the mating surfaces and possibly cause an oil leak. Next take a 12 mm socket and take off the two bolts that hold the oil pickup on. There is a gasket there, make sure you keep tabs on it cuz you need it when you finish.

Bam, done. Less than 30 min, no headaches.

When putting it back on i would recommend using Permatex Ultra Grey, you can get it at napa or wherever its good stuff. I torqed all the bolts down to 10 when i put it back on. Might be a little to much, im not sure, but you dont want to tighten them anymore than that. The liquid gasket needs a little room to form a good seal.

Hope this helps you out, it beats the crap out of basicaly taking off the front crossmember.

[Dimitri]

One of the pan bolt is hiding hiding behind the right reinforcement bracket where the transmission mates with the engine. Thats the one I just couldn't get to.One more bolt is also really hard to reach because it almost directly above the front axle.

I might give it one more try before I give up.

Dimitri '90 240SX

[tiger]

can u not get to it even with a swivel?

[carlitos26]

wat up dont give up on a project like that the last thing you want to do is give up... i just did mine and belive me taking out the screws from the oil pan was peace of cake but taking out the pan , now that was no cake... jus use the smallest rachet with and extension and the 10mm socket and yeha you have to take those two peace of metal atached to the transmission and the engine in order to get to those bolts...

[Dimitri]

Thanks for the encouregement:) It good to know the stuff has to come off. I finaly looked at the right diagram and the two pieces I called bracket the FSM calls them gussets. and sure enough they need to come off. How did you end up taking the pan off ? By raising the engine as described above ?

[CleanSfourteen]

I was under my car last weekend planning on re-sealing my oil pan, and for sure this is no easy task.

I don't see any way to drop the pan without lifting the motor, the FSM suggests that you loosen the front crossmember and hoist the motor. If there is some easier way than that, I would say it has to be above.

I would love for someone to argue and say it's not so, because I gotta get on it and change that seal before too long, and it doesn't sound like fun.

[Dimitri]

Ok..the pan is hanging down...all I have to do I lift the motor a little higher and hopefully it wilslide out.Taking the 2 12mm bolts off was a pain too !!The whole thing is a pain But you get to keep $300 in your pocket

[Afliction523]

Its really easy. I undid two of the center bolts holding my transmission mount to the transmission crossmember. I had to remove my oil pan twice in the last week for my ka-t oil return setup. You can jack the motor up at the transmission right at the bellhousing. It can be done really easily that way. The pan will slide right out. Just be carful when you lower the motor back on. I ended up hitting the jack with my foot when I was under the car, and had trouble getting it to go back on the motor mounts. After messing with it for about a hour, I realized that i could loosen one of the mounts while the motor was jacked up and recenter the motor onto the mounts that way. Good luck with the pan.

[Dimitri]

Aha! It's out!!!!!!It does help to lift the engine as much as you can. Once it's out, it's seems a lot easier to do.