Do I put anything on the oil pan gasket?
- Thread starter gregski
- Start date
A thin layer of grease on both sides of hte cork gasket, a dab of goo (sealer) on the tabs that fit inside the rubber bearing gasket.
TIP: Check around the pans bolt holes for dimpling, use a straight edge. if dimpled lightly tap back to flat. Tighten the pan bolts finger tight with a wrench. People putting the pans and valve covers on for the first time tend to over tighten these bolts dimpling the metal and causing leaks.
First evenly tighten the bolts till the whole pan is seated, then tighten until the cork just starts to perceptibly squash/ just until the lock washers are flattened.
Thing is, if the pan bolts are too loose (provided they are not so loose they fall out) the pan will seep or leak but the bolts can be snugged.
If overtightened the pan gets dimpled and the gaskets shot and you get to do it all over again.
TIP: Check around the pans bolt holes for dimpling, use a straight edge. if dimpled lightly tap back to flat. Tighten the pan bolts finger tight with a wrench. People putting the pans and valve covers on for the first time tend to over tighten these bolts dimpling the metal and causing leaks.
First evenly tighten the bolts till the whole pan is seated, then tighten until the cork just starts to perceptibly squash/ just until the lock washers are flattened.
Thing is, if the pan bolts are too loose (provided they are not so loose they fall out) the pan will seep or leak but the bolts can be snugged.
If overtightened the pan gets dimpled and the gaskets shot and you get to do it all over again.
thank you everyone who read and replied to my post, I ended up using the magical WD-40 to clean my oil pan and a razor blade to scrape up the 20 year old gasket, there was a nice inch or so of sludge but the oil looked good otherwise, no water in it, no metal shavings either
because I was mounting the pan from underneath, on one side of the pan I put some motor oil on my finger and rubbed it on the gasket and the block to get it to stick but it did not, the other side of the pan went on dry (this is going to be an experiment to see if it leaks or not) and like my friend Bob the gear head used to say if it leaks oil that means there's oil in her, or PLS, Pavement Lubrication System
as far as torquing the oil pan bolts, my Haynes manual says 5/16 inch to 12 ft lbs, and 1/4 inch to 8 ft lbs, I don't know what they are smoking as my bolts were 7/16 on the sides, and two 1/2 inch each on front and back, so I torqued all of them to 12 ft lbs, and got a feeling that may have been too tight, so I'm filing this under lessoned learned
found the part number on my oil pan D5ZE-6675-AB it's got the magical "Z" for Mustang in it, so now I feel like I belong here, the engine mounts have "Zs" in them too, here's some pics of the before and after shots
because I was mounting the pan from underneath, on one side of the pan I put some motor oil on my finger and rubbed it on the gasket and the block to get it to stick but it did not, the other side of the pan went on dry (this is going to be an experiment to see if it leaks or not) and like my friend Bob the gear head used to say if it leaks oil that means there's oil in her, or PLS, Pavement Lubrication System
as far as torquing the oil pan bolts, my Haynes manual says 5/16 inch to 12 ft lbs, and 1/4 inch to 8 ft lbs, I don't know what they are smoking as my bolts were 7/16 on the sides, and two 1/2 inch each on front and back, so I torqued all of them to 12 ft lbs, and got a feeling that may have been too tight, so I'm filing this under lessoned learned
found the part number on my oil pan D5ZE-6675-AB it's got the magical "Z" for Mustang in it, so now I feel like I belong here, the engine mounts have "Zs" in them too, here's some pics of the before and after shots
The torque specs refer to the major thread size, not the head (wrench) size. They are 1/4 along the sides, and 5/16 at the corners.
Like wart said, a thin layer of grease works very well for holding the gasket in place for installation, yet allows it to remain free to move as necessary for thermal expansion/contraction.
It's also the preferred way for installing trans pan gaskets....almost any other way will make an auto trans pan leak.
Like wart said, a thin layer of grease works very well for holding the gasket in place for installation, yet allows it to remain free to move as necessary for thermal expansion/contraction.
It's also the preferred way for installing trans pan gaskets....almost any other way will make an auto trans pan leak.
Thats why I use grease. And only enough grease for the gasket to stick.
Like we said about GMC and Detroit diesels, if there is nothing on the ground under the engine don't start it. It's empty.
Bolts are sized by the diameter of the thread, not the size of the head/hex/points.
Then no matter what eventually happens to the engine keep the pan.
I call dibbs!
Another thing about grease, it softens the cork increasing sealing.
Cork thats been on the shelf for extended periods dries out, gets brittle and shrinks. Coat with grease, let them sit,(maybe repeat), brings a little life back into the cork. Dousing with light oil rejuvenates better but can cause a problem with grease sticking the gasket to the pan and goo sealing the tabs into the main seals.
I've had cork valve cover gaskets dry and shrink so much the gaskets didn't want to fit the valve covers (I have no idea how long the set sat on my employers shelf).
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