Oil Pan Change.

Been there, done that - You can do it in the car, but it is hard to do. The best way is to pull the engine.

Disconnect the battery at the battery ground terminal, remove the fan and fan shroud. Both motor mounts will need to have the large nuts that secure them to the frame removed. The trans mount will also have to be loosened, and it is a good idea to remove the drive shaft.

I also had to disconnect the cat pipes at the headers to get the engine high enough to remove the oil pan. Be prepared to have to drop the steering rack and disconnect the steering shaft. The flex coupling for the steering shaft needs to be disconnected before you can get the rack pulled down. You should disassemble the coupling by removing the 2 bolts that hold it together. Jack up the engine with a wood block under the oil pan and watch for things that bind or hoses/electrical wiring that may need to be disconnected. I put a couple of wood blocks between the headers and the frame to support the engine. You will likely need to jack up the rear of the transmission as well to get the required clearance.

Scrape the pan mating surfaces clean as possible - old gasket stuck to the surfaces are a source of leaks.

There is a one piece oil pan gasket which will help re-assembly if you can find it. If you can't get this gasket, use weather strip adhesive to secure the cork gasket to the pan rails and the rubber strips to the bearing caps. Use lots of Acetone or MEK to clean the gasket surfaces so the weather strip adhesive will stick good. Read the instructions on the adhesive carefully to make sure the gaskets are permanently stuck in place and won't move when you slide the pan in place. Use lots of blue silicone sealer on top of the front and rear rubber seals where they mate with the pan.

Fill with oil, replace the filter. Reconnect the battery, switch the ignition on to enable the gages, but DON'T crank the car. Remove the distributor and use a 1/4" hex socket to turn the pump counter clock wise (same direction as distributor rotation) until you see oil pressure (an external gage is a great help long about now). And keep turning for about 30 sec after you see the pressure come up. A reversible drill is the best tool to use to turn the 1/4" socket. The pressure should come up to about 50-80psi with cold oil. Once you see good pressure, check for obvious leaks, and then and only then, lower everything back into place and bolt down the mounts and anything else you had to take loose.

Re-install the distributor and set the timing with the engine running using timing light (don't forget to disconnect the SPOUT plug and reconnect it when finished) 12-14 degrees BDC is good. Start up and check for leaks, let it warm up and look again for leaks. It took me 2 days plus, but I am old and slow, maybe your granny is faster.

When you put it back together, use a 1pc pan gasket.
So much better...
Also, I'll second the idea of replacing the pump while you are there, assuming it is stock, or hasn't been changed in a while.

If you replace the stock pump, I hope you can also replace the pump drive shaft. The stock ones can end up like Twizzlers then break. Use the chrome Molly HD replacement. It stinks to have the oil pressure drop on a rebuilt motor when the builder cheaps out. In your case, the new pump could stress the old shaft too much.

7991LXnSHO said:

If you replace the stock pump, I hope you can also replace the pump drive shaft. The stock ones can end up like Twizzlers then break. Use the chrome Molly HD replacement. It stinks to have the oil pressure drop on a rebuilt motor when the builder cheaps out. In your case, the new pump could stress the old shaft too much.

Click to expand...

yup and they are CHEAP! think my ford racing shaft was like 20 bucks

ARP shaft also 20 bux. the pan will clear if you drop the rack and pinion and lift the motor. I still vote yank all of it. the felpro 1 pc gasket is a godsend. by all means spend the dough and not worry about a cork gasket failing again. its also reusable in case you have to drop the pan again.

I'd pull the motor. Not worth it to do it on your back.

I'll add that if I remember correctly, there are two different oil pan gasket designs, depending on the year of the car. I used the Felpro blue 1 piece design with the steel reinforcements on each side, installed dry with a little dab of silicone on the edges to fill in the mating surfaces.

Not to add to your work, but you might as well check the rear main seal while you are down there. 90% of these cars have leaky rear main seals. I did mine at the same time as the pan gasket replacement.

Also, many times a faulty PCV system can cause the pan gasket to blow out, so you should also check that the tube and valve work and are not clogged.