Pulling Oil Pan With Engine In Car, '90 5.0l

[66Resto91]

I've got a 1990 7-UP convertible that I purchased as a roller back in 2008. Well, a semi-roller: it came with the engine, but it was out of the car. While it was out, we replaced all of the seals and the oil pump before reinstalling it, just for preventative maintenance.

Even since the car's been back together, the engine takes a while to pick up oil pressure. When the engine fires, you can hear the lifters rattling for around 10-15 seconds, and the oil gauge stays on zero. Then, the gauge will start quickly rising, and the tapping goes away, and the car maintains good oil pressure until it the engine is cut off again.

I'm starting to question the oil pump we replaced back in 2008. At our shop, we've had several new oil pumps turn out to be defective out of the box. The engine on the 7-UP doesn't have a ton of miles, it isn't fouling plugs, and it doesn't smoke or have any other problems. I really think it's a defective oil pump, but I don't want to pull the motor back out of the 7-UP if I don't have to. Is it possible (or even realistic) to drop the oil pan and swap out the oil pump with the engine still in the car?

 

[MFE92]

It's possible, but it's a real PITA. You have to jack the engine up, drop the oil pan down, then remove the oil pump pickup before fishing the pan out. That's the easy part. Installing the pickup with the pan in the way is worse IMHO.

 

[88LX5.Oh]

Gearbanger 101 phaggot

You're just trying to piss him off, aren't you? Lmao.

 

[ChuckStyles]

That N8 guy sure made a mess... lol

 

[jrichker]

Been there, done that - You can do it in the car, but it is hard to do. The best way is to pull the engine.

Disconnect the battery at the battery ground terminal, remove the fan and fan shroud. Both motor mounts will need to have the large nuts that secure them to the frame removed. The trans mount will also have to be loosened, and it is a good idea to remove the drive shaft.

I also had to disconnect the cat pipes at the headers to get the engine high enough to remove the oil pan. Be prepared to have to drop the steering rack and disconnect the steering shaft. Jack up the engine with a wood block under the oil pan and watch for things that bind or hoses/electrical wiring that may need to be disconnected. I put a couple of wood blocks between the headers and the frame to support the engine. You will likely need to jack up the rear of the transmission as well to get the required clearance.

Scrape the pan mating surfaces clean as possible - old gasket stuck to the surfaces are a source of leaks.

Get a high volume/heavy duty pump, and a replacement HD pump shaft. FMS makes one, and ARP does too. When you install the pump, the funny looking washer thingy goes on the part of the shaft that fits into the hex socket in the distributor shaft. It keeps the shaft in place when you remove the distributor, which you will have to do to prime the pump. Forget to put it on, and the pump shaft can come loose and fall down in the bottom of the oil pan.

There is a one piece oil pan gasket which will help re-assembly if you can find it. If you can't get this gasket, use weather strip adhesive to secure the cork gasket to the pan rails and the rubber strips to the bearing caps. Use lots of Acetone or MEK to clean the gasket surfaces so the weather strip adhesive will stick good. Read the instructions on the adhesive carefully to make sure the gaskets are permanently stuck in place and won't move when you slide the pan in place. Use lots of blue silicone sealer on top of the front and rear rubber seals where they mate with the pan.

Fill with oil, replace the filter. Reconnect the battery, switch the ignition on to enable the gages, but DON'T crank the car. Remove the distributor and use a 1/4" hex socket to turn the pump counter clock wise (same direction as distributor rotation) until you see oil pressure (an external gage is a great help long about now). And keep turning for about 30 sec after you see the pressure come up. A reversible drill is the best tool to use to turn the 1/4" socket. The pressure should come up to about 50-80psi with cold oil. Once you see good pressure, check for obvious leaks, and then and only then, lower everything back into place and bolt down the mounts and anything else you had to take loose.

Re-install the distributor and set the timing with the engine running using timing light (don't forget to disconnect the SPOUT plug and reconnect it when finished) 12-14 degrees BDC is good. Start up and check for leaks, let it warm up and look again for leaks. It took me 2 days plus, but I am old and slow, maybe your granny is faster.

 

[2000xp8]

My first thought would be what could be wrong with an oil pump that does this? It's a pretty simple piece of mechanical equipment, most either work or don't.
Doing the pump in the car is a nightmare and i've yet to ever see a case where changing out a pump that worked made a difference.

How long does the car sit between starts?
What gauge are you going by, stock or aftermarket?
What type of filter do you use? I know some of the GM guys have complaints about noisy start ups with certain filters that don't have anti drain valves.

Alot of guys like the wix filters.

Just sounds to me like all the oil is draining back into the pan when the car is off, i'd be sure it's an oil pump issue before starting this project.