oil pan removal
- Thread starter Nicad
- Start date
haven't done it on a coupe, but i did it on a bavaria (25+ years ago) to replace an oil pump. didn't have to raise the engine that much ... as i remember, i unbolted the drivers side motor mount and jacked it up a little. it was tight, but i got the pan off and back on.
Do you remember where you supported the engine once the pan is off?
The pan looks beefy enough to put a jack under.
you can't put a jack under the pan to lift the engine. if you did, how would you get the pan off? it seems like pushing up on the bracket that holds the motor mount.
What I have done on past cars is to run a board ac
I'm sure the experts have a good answer to this. I'll tell you what I did in the past. Create an engine support and run it between the fenders. You can use a 4x4 or even a 2x4 on edge. You need to but it to length and have sturdy supports on the end to raise it up. You jack up the engine, then chain it to the support then lower the jack.
Harbor freight makes one for $70, figure ~$60 with a typical 20% off coupon and taxes. It's not one of those tools that you will use much however. An 8' 2x4 is a few bucks.
https://www.harborfreight.com/autom...000-lb-capacity-engine-support-bar-96524.html
I'm sure the experts have a good answer to this. I'll tell you what I did in the past. Create an engine support and run it between the fenders. You can use a 4x4 or even a 2x4 on edge. You need to but it to length and have sturdy supports on the end to raise it up. You jack up the engine, then chain it to the support then lower the jack.
Harbor freight makes one for $70, figure ~$60 with a typical 20% off coupon and taxes. It's not one of those tools that you will use much however. An 8' 2x4 is a few bucks.
https://www.harborfreight.com/autom...000-lb-capacity-engine-support-bar-96524.html
I did this with the tranny out and it still was a pita. IIRC i unbolted the motor mount nuts and jacked it up by each mount and slid some 1" at least pieces of wood between the block and the mounts. Then lots of twisting and rearranging the pan to get it out. This is after getting the endless number of 10mm screws out.
The baffles in the pan can hang up on the oil pump.
A couple of trick from a pro , I did ton of m30 pan gaskets in the 90's
#1 I used two Stands one under the trans, towards the front and the other on either a engine mount bracket or a AC compressor Bracket
#2 to get an another inch of loosen the bolts that hold the subframe undo them till justa few threads are holding it in ( that way all you got to do is tighten them up
between jacking the engine up and lowering the subframe you will have ample room to sneak the pan out
#3 rotating the crack in different positions will help free it from the baffles
A lot of guys use to just totally let the subframe hang , gave a ton of room to work around but I always thought it was a major pain in the A$$ to manhandle the subframe back into place , so I always compromised and just loosen the bolts so it was easy to reinstall
#1 I used two Stands one under the trans, towards the front and the other on either a engine mount bracket or a AC compressor Bracket
#2 to get an another inch of loosen the bolts that hold the subframe undo them till justa few threads are holding it in ( that way all you got to do is tighten them up
between jacking the engine up and lowering the subframe you will have ample room to sneak the pan out
#3 rotating the crack in different positions will help free it from the baffles
A lot of guys use to just totally let the subframe hang , gave a ton of room to work around but I always thought it was a major pain in the A$$ to manhandle the subframe back into place , so I always compromised and just loosen the bolts so it was easy to reinstall
I just finished using this engine support on a Boxster. It's quite beefy for the price. The advantage of this type of support is that it loads the weight on the fender seams rather than the fender tops like a 4x4 would. For the Boxster, it's the recommended way to support the engine with the transmission out. You'd need to decide if your fenders can support the weight as this is an area that suffers from rust on our cars.
Ian
Thanks for the tip Bdigel. Since my car is already sitting pretty high on stands, would it make sense to put a floor jack under the subframe then let it hang?
Would this give enough clearance vs jacking the engine? It will be hard for me to get a stand under the tranny. Perhaps with a bottle jack on a wooden platform?
Edit, forgot the motor is resting on the subframe DOH!
Would this give enough clearance vs jacking the engine? It will be hard for me to get a stand under the tranny. Perhaps with a bottle jack on a wooden platform?
Edit, forgot the motor is resting on the subframe DOH!
Last edited:
CookeD
Well-Known Member
I think I posted this before.... After I replaced my much deteriorated motor mounts, I was able to remove the pan with the motor in and not lifted. If your motor mounts have settled and/or are deteriorated, you probably cannot do it. The trick is to spin the crank and work around the throws after you have the pan bolts out and the pan is loose, as the crank gets in the way of carefully sliding the pan out. The job is a PITA but I didn't see a good way to lift the motor from the bottom, and figured I'd give removing the pan in place a shot before thinking about the best way to move the motor around.
So, it can be done.
So, it can be done.