Oil Pan Gasket Leak How To Replace?

[rhkwon]

I'm pretty sure I've got some slight weeping of the No. 2 oil pan (lower) gasket. Any tips or how to's?

Looks like I would need to remove the engine undercovers and then unbolt the bolts, remove and replace? Do I need to remove any major components? The service manual is not really helpful as it says to do the whole timing belt removal first in order to get to removing the oil pump and No. 1 oil pan. I've heard others say this is not necessary if just wanting to remove and replace the lower oil pan seal.

All I'm wanting to do is remove the lower oil pan and reseal it. Looks a little tight but any pointers would be appreciated.

Thanks

[landar]

Well the first thing you want to do is to verify that where you think it is leaking, it is leaking. In my experience, oil pan leaks are not nearly as common as say, valve cover leaks or an oil pressure sensor. Anything from above can leak down and may cause the appearance of a pan leak. So, just verify first.

Next, if you are pretty sure it is the pan gasket, you may not have to actually replace the gasket. Try snugging up the pan bolts first because sometimes they just work loose.

As far as actually removing the pan, I really do not know w/o doing some further research. You are correct that you need to remove the under engine splash shield and then you can more easily see what else needs removing, if anything.

But verify by making some simple checks first before you go after the pan gasket.

[sha4000]

You just have to remove the engine undercover and remove the all the 10mm bolts on the pan. Take your time because those bolts have a tendency to snap. You will have to use some kind of pry tool to separate the lower pan from the upper pan. The FIPG they use at the factory holds it on the there real good. Make sure when putting the pan back on that you don't over torque the bolts because it's easy to strip the threads in the upper pan.