oil pan replacement

[ketchumthedog]

Wife hit pothole and cracked oil pan. Purchased new pan and received different information regarding gasket/sealant. One auto store said it needs a gasket and should be placed dry. The other said that it needs sealant. Looking at posts it looks like sealant wins over gasket but was surprised that there was even a gasket for sale if it does not need one. Secondly there are two bolts which even with my good wrench set I cannot seem to access because they are at an angle on the left side of the pan blocked by other engine parts. Do I need to remove more parts of the engine to replace this or is there some other tool that I am missing here? Once these bolts are out I am a little worried that the pan is truly frozen in place (probably with sealant). Any suggestions on how to get it unstuck. First time doing work on her car. Have to get this one right or I will never live it down.

[noR]

You need a long shanked ball-end hex wrench socket.

Wow... here's a REALLY big picture right here: Click me

They'll fit at the angle, and have the clearance you need.

Or you could get hand held ones, but that makes it hard to break'em free and hard to torque down: click for image

To get it unstuck, use a hammer. (it's broke already anyway) Just make sure you have all the bolts out. just that line around the edge, sounds like you're on the right track.

Scrape the old sealant off using a razor blade at a VERY accute angle. That'll help keep you from digging/scratching the surface. And follow the directions on the sealant tube.

Yes sealant not gasket, no idea where they got a gasket from.

[FarrisK]

Originally Posted by noR

You need a long shanked ball-end hex wrench socket.

Wow... here's a REALLY big picture right here: Click me

Harbor Freight has a set of those for something like 5 bucks. I bought some for my intake cleaning last weekend.

[vdubbugman53]

you will notice a few small indentions around the top of the oil pan where it meets the block....they are perfect for a big flat head screw driver to hammer and pry with

[beetlebug7]

Hey I had mine replaced with a steel oil pan because I have a low ride. Hopefully you didn't buy an aluminum one? The shields are made of plastic so they don't do much to protect the aluminum pan.

[DZLBUG]

Get a Dieselgeek.com Panzer skid plate!

[Fritznbud]

I punched a hole in my oil pan and went to the marine supply store, bought a gray small kit of marinetex, covered the entire pan and so far, so good. And it's "armour plated" for the next time i scrape.