grafx

I need to replace my oil pan gasket. I'm going to be replacing trans in next 3 weeks and want to replace rear main and oil pan seals at same time. How hard is it to replace the oil pan gasket?? I don't have an engine hoist so I'm going to have to replace one at a time. Either the pan gastket first with trans still bolted up or rear main with trans out then oil pan gasket after new trans is bolted up. My main concern is will I have enough clearance to change oil pan gasket by just jacking up the engine and placing wood blocks under motor mounts?? Also will I need a seal installer for rear main or will tapping around outter edge be good enough?

Also should I go with a one piece pan gasket or should I go with the basic gasket set?? I'm guessing that a one piece would make replacement easier plus it sounds like a one piece would be less likley to leak but not sure how well they really work. Was looking at the SCE one piece gasket from Summit $27.95. I don't mind the price if it makes the job easier and less chance for leaks.

ede

you'll need to lift the engine a few inches to change the oil pan gasket, yes a one pice gasket would be smart move, save you little bit of work and make a lot better seal. no special tools required for the main seal

Chris89GTA

iTrader: (2)

Get the motor up a few inches, probably a good 4-6 or so, then drop it down, pull the old one and put the new one in after cleaning the mating surfaces w/ brake cleaner.

Might be a good idea too to throw some RTV at the corners and around the round parts of the timing cover etc...

grafx

Will I be able to get the motor high enough to get the oil pan completely out with it bolted to the trans. Or will I only be able to drop the oil pan enough to slip a new gasket in place. Wondering if I will be able to get it high enough for the pan to clear the pump.

grafx

Will I be able to get the motor high enough to get the oil pan completely out with it bolted to the trans. Or will I only be able to drop the oil pan enough to slip a new gasket in place. Wondering if I will be able to get it high enough for the pan to clear the pump.

Also any recommendations on which I should perform first?? The Rear main, or the pan gasket??

ede

rear main first but really you're doing both at same time. you can leave the trans bolted to engine. you'll need to spin the crank to get the weights in right place to clear pan, or pan to clear weights.

grafx

How can I leave the trans bolted to the engine when I do the rear main?? Isn't it a one piece seal for a 91'Camaro??

86z/92rs

Yes, 91 has 1 rear main seal. Tranny will have to be remove if you plan to remove the seal but if you are just removing the oil pan gasket, then you do not have to remove the tranny. If you do plan to remove the tranny, might as well remove the front and rear seal on it. click here for a picture


Picture should work now.

ede

sorry i lied, i thought you were asking leave it bolted to lift engine. yes trans has to come out. i'd make real sure i needed the rear seal before i dropped the trans.

grafx

guys read my first post!! I'm replacing the transmission with a new rebuilt one! So the front seal does not need to be replaced only the rear main. Should I replace the oil pan gasket first with the trans bolted up or should I replace the rear main first with the trans out?? I do not have an engine hoist so either the engine will have to remain bolted up or the trans....one or the other. I'm just asking what would be the best route to take on which seal to replace first.

86z/92rs

You will still need to lower the oil pan 1/2 to 1 inch in the rear to remove the rear cover which houses the rear main seal. This willneed to be done before the flex plate/flywheel is installed.

Well I fix the link to the picutre so hopefully you get a better pictureof what the 1 piece rear seal looks like

grafx

still not working

Icantthinkofone

How many miles do you have on your engine ? I've got a chevy truck with a 350 it has over 250,000 miles still the same rear main seal .I changed the oil pan and gasket nothing wrong with rear main . If its not broke dont fix it. To answer your question about gaskets the one piece is the way to go.

grafx

Not definit that the rear main is bad but it looks like oil coming from inspection cover of trans so I'm guessing that the rearmain might be bad, however it could just be the rear seal of oil pan too. And even when I get the trans out if it looks like its started to leak slightly I would want to replace it. The oil pan is leaking for sure. Car has 115,000 miles on it plus I use synthetic blend oil which I've been told that synthetic oils tend to find areas to leak more than coventional oils.

jmd

iTrader: (4)

I would just buy from autozone instead of Summit; they carry FelPro and you should never bother with anything but a one piece pan gasket.

Rear intake manifold leaks are far more common than rear main seals on 86+ SBC engines. Diagnose instead of throwing parts at it.

I don't know if you can replace the pan gasket without raising the engine on an 86+ SBC. I had thought about it before but never tried it.

grafx

Yeah I'm not just throwing parts at it. Intake I did myself not too long ago and it is still leak free. I have a lot of oil leakage under my car...oil pan, trans pan, and either front seal or rear main is leaking or both but I'm not going to waste my time with trying to diagnose wether it's the front or rear seal since the trans will be coming out either way and a new one is going in. I don't want to waste time cleaning everything and watching for where the leak is coming from. I figure once the trans is out I can get an up close look at the rear main. I just wanted to get an idea of how hard it is to replace the rear main in case that happens to be an issue once I get the trans out. The oil pan cannot be removed without jacking up engine...too close to cross member. That was another concern of mine. I can do it either way just wanted to know if I would be able to remove the pan completly or if I would only have enough room to drop the pan just enough to slip a new gasket into place?? If I had an engine hoist I wouldn't have any concerns but since all I have is a jack to work with I'm just trying to get an idea of what to expect. I should just go get a cheap hoist from Harbor Freight or somewhere...it's just I don't really have the room to store something like that, even the fold up versions.

86z/92rs

You could always try renting an engine hoist. Should cost less than $40.00 but I'm sure you will have to put down a nice deposit.