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Pan gasket

jaybird

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Can we change the pan gasket without pulling the engine?
 
WHAT on EARTH are you DOIN' out there in St Louie?!?! Suddenly it sounds like "Marathon MGB Wrenching" has become a SPORT!
 
We're trying out for the 2008 Olympics.
 
Like we said on the other BBS, yes you can do it, but it isn't fun.
 
Evidently.

The only way to really insure a good seal on the pan is R&R the unit... that said, you can sorta-kinda do it with ramps, an engine crane and LOTS 'N LOTS of patience. A filthy time consuming task to be absolutely avoided by simply using the R&R method.

TRUST me on this one... BTDT. How badly is she leaking, anyhow? The effort is hardly worth a few quarts of oil every 4K miles... cardboard boxes were INVENTED for putting under LBC's and Norton bikes... Many ways to justify avoiding that job until something IMPORTANT needs doing, like a new clutch or tranny rebuild.
 
You don't need an engine crane. You can usually do it with a very small wobble-head 7/16ths 1/4 inch drive socket.
 
All I know is that dahubby asked. We can take it to John's shop, put it up on a lift if thatmakes it easier to work on.

I don't think she's leaking *that* much oil.

SO, when we put the OD in, that would be the time to do it, right?
 
...and fiddle the crank to allow the pan to slide ~just right~ past the journals on reinstall so's not to misalign the new gasket bits 'n pieces... or unbolt the mounts, jack up the engine a few inches, shove pieces of 2x4 between 'em and chassis... then struggle to get the mounts aligned on lowering... All ~CAN~ be done. Just NOT the best way to do this job. Especially with limited tools and wrenching experience on LBC's.

You can also change out the waterpump in a Lotus Europa T/C without removing the engine, and cut the "book time" by HALF... BTDT too. And the clutch in an E-type... but if anyone on this forum asked if it were POSSIBLE I'd tell 'em the same as I've stated here for Janel. First go, do it right, THEN you can learn the various bodges.
 
Doc, I gotta disagree. On a RB, the motor mounts are a huge PITA. The engine crane idea or the 2/4 between the engine and the mounts works fine on a CB car, like yours and mine, but a RB has totally different motor mounts. So, while it'll work on them, it's just more involved than on a CB car.

And I don't think using a wobble-head socket is a "bodge".
 
Janel - what's happening out there? How much oil is she leaking? I've changed pan gasket on rubber bumper car with engine in but its no fun....
 
She's not leaking any more (or any less) than she's ever leaked. Maybe just a teensy bit more. Not puddles, mind you, but she leaks. But then she's a British car. If she didn't leak, she'd be empty, right?
 
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And I don't think using a wobble-head socket is a "bodge".

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DrE Wrote: "... but if anyone on this forum asked if it were POSSIBLE I'd tell 'em the same as I've stated here for Janel. First go, do it right, THEN you can learn the various bodges."

Th' socket wasn't the issue, James. They're invaluable tools. The pan gasket job with the engine in the car was what I refer to as the bodge. I know it can be done, as stated in the prior post. I'd just never set it as a goal for one who's yet to turn a wrench for more than maintenance/oil changes on an LBC. You or I would likely "just DO it" on our own cars, I've even done it on (cheap) customers' cars. but I can't see sending Janel and/or Chuck down that path. The car would have to be pushing out more than a quart in 1K miles before I'd say they should even fuss with it anyhow. Then it'd be: "Yank it out, reseal it..." ALL of it: Rear crank seal, front, pan, sidecovers... th' lot. Tranny seals at the same time. Much better return on the time & work invested. There'd be a new clutch assembly recommended as well.
 
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...SO, when we put the OD in, that would be the time to do it, right?

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100% CORRECT, jaybird! And that's when to do the rest of the seals as well. Give the clutch, P.P & T/O bearing a good look-see, too.
 
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