Oil Pan Gasket Leak...TURTCEL

[TURTCEL]

So, here is the scenario...I am doing a clutch in TURTCEL right now (day 3...ughhh). After pulling the flywheel I noticed 4 of the 6 bolts were missing that hold the rear main seal housing on. I ended up removing the last 2 bolts and the oil pan bolts that hold the housing on to replace the rear main seal and mounting gasket.

Toyota does not put an oil pan gasket in these cars from the factory, they use gasket sealer for the factory seal. I checked with the Toyota dealer for a gasket yeaterday and that is what they told me. They still only use sealer when doing the job.

My concern is an oil leak now from where the pan meets the rear main housing. I used Ultra Grey sealer to reinstall the cover plate and where it meets to the pan. I did not put sealer on the pan and block corners first as well as the cover. I just put a thin layer on the mating surface of the cover before installing.

I would think the odds of it leaking are pretty good since you have to slide the cover on and it scrapes the sealer off a little when installing.

Should I replace the oil pan gasket to assure a good seal? What would that require if doing in the car? I have searched forum postings but can only find vague little hits on the topic.

Another thought I had would be to remove the rear main housing again and reseal it with gasket sealer better before reinstalling.

Any thoughts were be gretly appreciated. I am getting into this job a lot longer than I wanted to.

Peace

[marlinh]

That is a really tough call. I think that trying to replace the oil pan gasket would be next to impossible to do with the engine in the car. The pickup tube and cross member preventing removal of the pan. It is hard to suggest what to do since the repercussions of it still leaks is disastrous. I think that I would try resealing the housing, making sure the mating surfaces are absolutely clean and maybe adding a bead along the edges of the oil pan and housing and spooging it in with your fingers or some type of tool. Some of those really good sealants perform miracles but the key is cleanliness. That would be my suggestion. Good luck.

[TURTCEL]

Thanks for the advice. That is the route I am going to try first. I did order an oil pan gasket from the parts store just in case.

I have read a couple posts that says it is doable in the car but the cross member either has to be lowered or the engine has to be raised up high. Also, the oil pick up tube must be removed before the pan can come off.

I will keep everyone posted.

Peace

[marlinh]

Yeah, that is what you would have to do. It is difficult to clean all the surfaces too, but putting in a gasket would be the perfect solution.

[TURTCEL]

Oh Boy!

Peace

[larry mcgrath]

To bad you didnt pull the engine to change the clutch (for me its a whole lot easier to pull the engine, than the trany,and one hell of a lot quicker ) plus when its out it's real easy to deal with all the little things that need fixing. Not only that the transaxel is one heavy bitch. But i have axcess to a engine hoist. Larry

[TURTCEL]

Just crawled back under the car and pulled the flywheel back off to inspect the rear main seal housing. It actually looks like it sealed up just fine. I squeezed a little extra sealer between the egde of the housing and the block to fill in the gap as well as another thin layer along the edge of the pan just to make sure. I will give it a go and see what happens. Pretty confident that it will be ok though.

Peace

[Petros]

I recommend just sealing up the seal carrier surfaces as best you can and take your changes, it should not create much of a leak even if it does, but not likely even that.

I have removed the pan several times without removing the engine, It is a big job. The worst part is actually the pan bolts over the front diff. the only way to get to those is with an open end 10mm wrench and you only have about 20 deg of wrench swing on one of them. If the trans is out this is not an issue, all the other bolts are not a problem to reach, even the ones over the cross member. You unbolt the front engine mounts and raise the engine several inches off the front mounts (you have to remove the rad hoses and the distributor to protect it). With the trans out you will have to balance the engine, making a wood saw horse like device to hang the engine from is a good idea, this is what I did (it rests on the fender lip on either side of the engine compartment).

You get the pan unbolted (I used a 1/4" drive socket with an adapter on to my cordless drill to speed the process up), you will need a u-joint for the socket extension for a few of the bolts, but that is not really a problem. With the extra clearance over the cross member you can drop the pan far enough to remove the two bolts on the oil pickup with a 10mm open end wrench from the front. With that unbolted it falls into the pan and you can wiggle the pan out.

you can buy pan gaskets, I have used them, and I have also used all sealant. the problem is you still risk messing up the seal even when you take the pan off this way. After you clean both gasket surfaces, you have to goop up the pan and/or the block, and than wiggle the pan back in place. than you have to wiggle the oil pickup back into place working with your fingers though a 2" gap between the pan and the block, and carefully get the two 10mm nuts back in place with out dropping them into the pan (if you drop them in the pan you have to pull it out and start over). Not a place for butter fingers. Once the oil pickup is back on than you can install the oil pan, you may have to refresh some of the sealant where you rubbed it off the surface. It is not a perfect solution, but it works and it is easier than pulling the engine.

With this kind of a problem I would just work the rear seal carrier as best I could as suggested. Pulling the pan is not really worth it, nor is pulling the whole engine. You are taking your chances either way, and with a good bead of sealant and carefully tightening down all the bolts you will not likely cause a leak.

BTW, this is why I would rather just yank the rear seal out without removing the carrier. the FSM stupidly tells you to remove the carrier, but not only is this not necessary, but you will also risk the seal at the oil pan surface. It if far easier to make a tool out of a junk screw driver, you bend the tip at about a 40 deg angle, sharpen the point a bit, and you can get under the seal and pop it out. That is too late for you now, but that is all I have ever done with either the front or rear main seals.

[TURTCEL]

I didn't actually intend to pop the housing off. I removed the bolts and then decided to against pulling it. But before I reinstalled the bolts I started pulling the seal and it popped the housing free. My mistake for not bolting it back down like I had planned.

Thanks again for the tips. I will take my chances.

Peace

[TURTCEL]

So, while inspecting my rear main seal housing seal job I noticed another issue. I took the car in to get an intake/exhaust gasket done back in the month our son was born because I had no time to do it.

I have taken my car to this shop a couple times and have had to take it right back to refix what they just fixed so I could eventually just take it home and fix it myself. I don't take my car there anymore...I do all my own work, hence the nightmare clutch job right now.

This time I noticed the back two exhaust/intake maniflod bolts were backed out a ways. One at least a 1/2" of exposed threads and the oth about 3/4" of exposed threads. I was pissed. I called the shop and told them about this and that I was fixing it myself again after they worked on it and that I will never go there again or recommend anyone goes there either. His response was that the mechanic had been going through a divorce...shitty, but leave it at home or take some time off. Someone's safety is at stake when someone works on their car so keep your damn head in the game. I told him that was an unaccepatable excuse and that I was still not happy.

Guess that will take care of that mystery vacuum leak that I haven't been able to find. Will prob fix my deceleratrion issue too.

Peace

[Petros]

while you are under the car you should check the intake/exhaust manifold bolt/nuts on the underside of the manifold, the ones that go to the head. these often work loose from the temp cycling and are hard to reach from above. do not over tighten, but I would be surprised if all are tight.