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oil pan removal

13K views 14 replies 6 participants last post by  azcowboymt 
#1 ·
I recently installed a new engine in the van. Specs are in sig. It looks like I have an oil pan leak. Don't know how, but I do.

Anyways, has anybody successfully removed the oil pan without removing the engine? Remove trans, flexplate, turbo, motor mounts, and I should be able to raise it about 4" which would give me about 6" from the bottom of the pan to the crossmember in the front. Do you think that is enough to clear the pu tube?

Let me know, the leaks are bad enough I won't drive it.
 
#2 ·
I don't know if its possible, but I was wondering if you could drill out the cross member then reinstall it with hi shear bolts. I've heard the engine needs to dry upside down. I don't know how important this is.
 
#3 ·
That's what I've heard to and it's so the RTV can set up properly and if the engine is right side up you might get a small amount of oil in the seal area and will develop a leak probably at the most inopportune time. I think it takes sometime for the RTV to cure and get a good bond.

Larry
 
#4 ·
I just recently read on the other site PowerstrokeN###### about a two piece oil pan. I saw a pic of it and it was sweet. It was listed on Craigslist in Chicago. The listing has since expired. The price was $335. I had it saved but now it is gone. So there is a pan out there, just have to find it.
Dann
 
#5 ·
I just recently read on the other site PowerstrokeN###### about a two piece oil pan. I saw a pic of it and it was sweet. It was listed on Craigslist in Chicago. The listing has since expired. The price was $335. I had it saved but now it is gone. So there is a pan out there, just have to find it.
Dann
Yep-saw that. Here is an active link.
Did Salt Get Ya....7.3 PowerStroke Oil Pan

I talked to him several times, and had a pan ordered to be here tomorrow. To make a long story short, I didn't think it would get here in time, and I need to get this van back on the road.

I am going to try to get the pan out in one piece, clean everything up real good, and use permatex "the right stuff" to seal it back up.
 
#8 ·
Oh dang, just looked and the price went up? Or did I just read wrong the first time
Dann
I thought the first time I read the ad it was less than 450 as well....

My last correspondence with mike from quickpans was if I couldn't get the pan by Friday, I would have to cancel. I never did send him any money. So at this point I don't think the pan is even coming. Mike seems like a good guy, it is nothing against him. He told me they are redesigning the pan, and I told him I couldn't wait. I wish him luck, he seems to have a neat product.
 
#10 ·
It wasn't easy, but a friend and I got the pan removed and resinstalled and appears to the be drip free.
 
#11 ·
I was hoping you would post an update. What did you have to go through to get it out?
 
#12 ·
Remove the fan, rad, turbo, collector, trans, motor mount nuts. Jack the engine up as high as you can get it. Place 3" of blocking or more if you can get it between the frame and motor mounts. Unbolt the pan and try to get it loose without bending the pan. From the front unbolt the pick up tube from the front cover and from the rear unbolt the nut.
Let the pickup tube sit in the pan and slide it out towards the rear.

Clean the pan, block, front cover, and rear plate really good. Wipe clean with acetone. Set the pick up back in the pan, apply a nice bead of sealant (i used permatex the right stuff) on the pan, with a thicker bead on the front and back. Carefully slide the pan back under the engine and have the guy in the back reach in the pan and lift up the pick up tube. Make sure the o ring is still in place and bolt it up, making sure not to disturb the sealant bead. (i didn't bother torqueing to spec because the extensions and swivels would throw it way off anyways.)

Once the front of the tube is bolted, the front guy holds the pan steady while the back guy replaces the nut holding the rear of the tube. Then, together, push the pan into place and reinstall the pan bolts.

We tried a long time to get the pan off without removing the pu tube. I still believe it may be possible, but we were tired of jacking the engine all over so we just decided to remove the tube.

A couple dry runs, and then one when i dropped a bolt into the pan, and then another when i smashed the sealant bead with my hand trying to get the bolts in.

Another thing to note is that my van was sitting for a week and we pulled it into the shop with a 4 wheeler so as not to splash oil all over the place inside the engine.

So far so good, although only about 125 miles on it. Any more questions, just ask.
 
#13 ·
That's a great write-up! I like keeping knowledge like this stored in the back of my mind just in case I need it later. Its great seeing the impossible made possible.
 
#14 ·
I do in chassis 7.3 oil pans all the time on vans and trucks... a little different than the previous...
Remove the oil filter, transmission and starter, unbolt both engine mounts and lift the engine by both exhaust manifolds until the turbo just touches the firewall. Separate the pan, reach in and unbolt the pick-up and pull the whole thing out the back. Clean everything, use the proper sealant (Ford 7.3L oil pan silicone from your local dealer), drop the pick-up into the pan, apply sealant only to the sides of the oil pan first, place the pan in the cross-member, install the pick-up, then apply sealant to the ends (so you don't wear it when putting the pick-up back in)... bolt it all up, fill it up and out the door.
BTW... this does not work with aftermarket pans (in or out) as they seem to not be quite the same shape.
 
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