Hi: Noticed that my oil pan has some dents and was thinking of pulling it to knock them out - also, kind of curious to see what, if any, kind of debris might be in there. Is that something that can be done without pulling off a bunch of other parts, or no? The amount of effort and hassle involved may dictate whether I decide to mess with it or not. Any insight is appreciated. Thanks,
I have pulled my stk pan on a 72, I had to raise the motor some, I did a bearing swap, the gasket was pain in the butt
The gasket is the biggest pain. I have had the best luck using spray tack on the gasket and letting dry to the block. Need to raise the motor as high as you can to do it.
I know that it is a few hours to prepare to remove the engine but I say it is well worth the effort. Been there, done that 4 times.
Probably about even on effort. Getting the engine out and on the stand allows you to actually work on it standing up and looking down. After working both under a car, on my back with my hands over my head and very limited room for elbows and seeing what I was doing, I will pull it out every time. You're sure to get the gasket back in place properly, you can see everything you need to reach and everything is easily accessible. Pull it, fix it and clean everything before you put it back together. Believe me, you're going to be glad you did.
I did a rear main seal from the bottom and I thought it was pretty easy. Heck of a lot easier than taking all of that stuff apart and dealing with an engine hoist, coolant, taking the hood off etc. etc.. It's quite possible to remove the engine without taking off the hood or removing the radiator either for that matter.
I just bought a 71 GS 350 which sat for maybe 2 yrs but still curious or anxious what is on the pickup screen before I start it. Draining the oil tells me half the story, what goo might remain is the question. Is a 350 any easier to take the pan off or do I need to jack the engine up?
You will have to lift the engine to gain enough space between the frame and the top of the oil pan to slide it out. If you are doing this to see what the pickup screen looks like, borrow, rent or buy an endoscope with a decent screen. Mine is a little 8mm camera with small LED's to light the way. It's on a flexible stalk that can bend in any direction. Just drain the oil, slide3 the camera into the drain plug hole and have a peek around.
IIRC, the pick up is too close to the pan to get a good angle with the camera to see the screen with any accuracy. Take the oil pump cover off and back blow the pick up channel/pipe with compressed air with some kero or fuel oil. Thats gonna back wash the screen and drain into the pan. Youll get to see the oil pump internals then as well. Let it sit for a while to soften up the sludge in the pan and drain. A little continuous air will help agitate the crud too.
No but there is no need. If you want to go overkill then buy “the right stuff sealant” and use a THIN skim on both sides of a fel pro gasket.
