The last thing I wanted, to drop the oil pan . . .

[tony 63C 14]

I was in the final stage of getting the car out of winter hibernation this weekend and doing the customary oil change when along with the drain plug came the threads from the oil pan. In the process of installing an oversize drain plug the metal piece inside the pan into which the plug threads popped loose. Hooray, next step is pulling the pan.

 

Dropping the pan seems straight forward enough by removing the cross member and detach idler arm. But it’s what happens next is where some questions remain:

 

1) Should I bother repairing the original pan or get a reproduction? The original has some dents, most notably at the low spot just below the drain plug, but those could be knocked out. See picture below.

 

2) New pans are surprisingly inexpensive, but what about the quality and fit? I’ve used enough repo stuff to know that there’s some good stuff mixed in with some absolute crap. If a new pan is recommended has anyone had any problems with them? I have local stock of a Scott Drake product which appears to be a decent looking pan.

 

3) The best gasket for the job? It seems that one piece is the way to go, but I’ve read where there have been problems using them with the original early pans. The area that seals the timing cover of the pan has a raised rib in the center of the sealing surface that supposedly may cause a problem.

 

Can anyone who has walked this road already offer any comments or suggestions? Many thanks in advance!

 

Cheers,

Tony

[SA69mach 39]

can you get a pic of the flange of your current pan. If it is a flat flange all the way around, then it is suitable for a the silicone one piece gasket. This gasket has small anti-crush rings at the bolt holes.

I have had this gasket on a 302. Very good quality. I found that at some point the PO had put on a 'Ford Motorsport' pan. That pan has raised sections all around the flange. I was advised the silicone gasket does not work well with the raised flanges type of pan, so I changed out to plain old cork gaskets.

No leaks, no problems, so I leave sell enough alone.

 

My personal opinion is that since you have stripped out the drain plug, and there are a few dings, then time for a new pan. Get a quality reproduction that is exact, and has a flat flange. Get a new one piece silicone gasket and you are good for another 20 years. It is what I should have done, in hindsight.....

[tony 63C 14]

Many thanks for your reply. I’m not sure which type of pan I have, but regardless am leaning towards a new one to save time and hassle with repairing / repaint, etc. Now to find a decent quality pan that matches OEM and will fit properly.

Does anyone have experience with the Scott Drake pans?

I’ve also found this one made by Trans-Dapt. Powder coating is nice, but not that important to me. My main concern is problem free fit and accuracy OEM.

http://www.jegs.com/i/Trans-Dapt/969/8350/10002/-1?parentProductId=1168760#moreDetails

Many thanks again,

Tony

[Trinitys 134]

the other problem with a one piece is that if you have have to remove the timing cover you can't buy a timing gasket set like you can for a standard felpro cork gasket and you're dropping the pan again.

 

 

Canton has a stock replacement pan but I don't have any experience but they pretty much speacialize in this.... https://www.cantonracingproducts.com/product/15-650/15-650----351W-STOCK-REPLACEMENT-FRONT-SUMP/

Edited April 8, 2014 by Trinitys

[tony 63C 14]

Good point re the 1-piece gasket. Thanks for the link to the Canton site and for your helpful input.

Cheers,

Tony

[Max Power 74]

I have a Milodon. It's wonderful and a perfect fit.

[tony 63C 14]

Thanks MP. Good tip! I did not know Milodon produced these. I like that their pans are U.S. made. That seals the deal for me, and this is the pan I’ll go with. The specs say the pan is baffled which almost reads as though it’s an upgraded mod. I’m guessing it’s a safe bet that my existing oil pump will be OK to use - ? Was that your experience?

 

Cheers,

Tony

P.S. the Champagne Gold on your 69GT looks fantastic.

 

 

Edited April 9, 2014 by tony 63C

[tony 63C 14]

Is there a preferred method of jacking up the car for pulling the cross member? It may sound like a dumb question but I’ve heard that body flex might make it difficult to line up the cross member when the time comes to reinstall. I was considering using ramps to elevate the front of the car. Or are jack stands under the frame at the torque boxes better? Or is there no difference at all?

Regards,

Tony

[Trinitys 134]

You'll probably have to disconnect the idler arm too. but to answer your question....I just fit the frame rail and put jack stands at the same location on each side. once the car is back on its suspension weight, it wont matter. Done it different way 100 times on different cars.

[tony 63C 14]

Many thanks for your reply. Yes, idler arm will be detached from its frame mount location. I don’t quite understand what you mean by “I just fit the frame rail . . .” - ? Do you mean setting the jack stand up carefully under the rail? Regardless, it’s clear from your reply that it won’t make any difference whether I use car ramps or jack stands. There shouldn’t be any shifting and the cross member will line right up.

Many thanks again for your assistance!

T.

[Max Power 74]

Thanks MP. Good tip! I did not know Milodon produced these. I like that their pans are U.S. made. That seals the deal for me, and this is the pan I’ll go with. The specs say the pan is baffled which almost reads as though it’s an upgraded mod. I’m guessing it’s a safe bet that my existing oil pump will be OK to use - ? Was that your experience?

 

Cheers,

Tony

 

P.S. the Champagne Gold on your 69GT looks fantastic.

 

 

 

If I remember correctly, you can use your existing pump but you will need a new pickup. It's been a while.

[tony 63C 14]

Thanks again M.P. Ordered the pan and one piece gasket last week. Re-reading the blurb on Milodon site, their stock pans are "replacements for factory oil pans - for engines that...just need a new stock style pan", and presumably of same depth, etc. Other than possible issues with the baffling, which I somehow doubt, I'm puzzled as to why a different pickup would be needed. I'll need to make a call to Milodon to confirm.

 

Cheers,

Tony

[Rsanter 152]

Interference with the baffles

The boss 302 pan requires a different pickup because of its baffles.

Likly that is the same thing with the aftermarket pan

Ask the manufacturer

 

Bob

[tony 63C 14]

Thanks Bob. I called Milodon and did not get any confirmation that the Milodon #30730 351W stock pan could use the stock pick up. The fellow I was speaking with said different pickups are required for the different passenger car pans that came with the 351W in 1969, which made sense at the time. But I checked afterwards and found that all 351W passenger car pans were the unchanged to 1975, so this guy was evidently shooting from the hip and missing the mark. I hope I'm more impressed with the pan than Milodon's customer service.

 

Better safe than sorry I've purchased another pickup.

 

Cheers,

Tony

[m3x1c0 10]

Im going to be doing this exact thing very soon. Please let us know how the install goes.

[stangme428 33]

fwiw - went with a canton 680S baffled pan which required a different pickup which came with the kit.

[tony 63C 14]

Im going to be doing this exact thing very soon. Please let us know how the install goes.

 

The install’s done and finally got the ol’ girl back on the road this weekend.The original pan gasket was glued on both sides, so dropping the pan was a nuisance, as was the gasket scraping.But otherwise no other hang ups.

 

Thanks again to the members that chimed in with a helping hand.It's what makes this forum great.And to pay it forward, if you’re still facing the same job here are some tips.Unless you're blessed with a hoist or pit, jack up the car as high as you safely can to give yourself plenty of work clearance.Needless to say, properly place jack stands if not using wheel ramps, block rear wheels, etc.Safety first - no short cuts here.

 

Make sure the gasket surfaces are hospital clean, and go the extra step and use a tap to clean out all 22 bolt holes to allow for proper torqueing to spec (15 ft.lbs).Use a criss-cross pattern from the middle outward, and do it incrementally. I tightened the bolts up to spec over four separate runs around the pan.

 

I purchased a Made in USA Milodon pan recommended by Max Power (thanks again Max).This statement on the Milodon website echoes many of the negative reports on the web about aftermarket pans and poor fit, leaks, etc: “overseas factories don’t know if they are making oil pans, bed pans, or flower pots. And it really does not matter to them, they just stamp them outâ€.With the Milodon you’re getting a product that looks a piece manufactured with care and attention to detail.Well worth the additional $70.It needed only to be painted Ford Blue to maintain as stock a look as possible, although my wife wanted me to leave the trademark gold iridite finish. Sorry honey.

 

It turned out that the stock oil pump pickup cleared the baffle that Milodon installs in their Stock Replacement pans.And being the same depth as the stock pan meant that the clearance to the bottom of the pan would fall between the required ¼ and ½ inch.Be sure to double check that you do have the proper clearance.Ultimately there was no need to change the pickup.

 

I used a Milodon one piece gasket, but because these are so ‘floppy’ some Permatex High Tack was necessary to keep it in place on the pan rail as the pan was lifted into position.Although the Milodon's a good quality gasket, the Fel-Pro one piece is reinforced and does not flop around, so you may want to consider one of those instead (see below).I did not apply the High Tack sealant to the front and rear main seal portions as I wanted to manually push these up into their respective grooves to ensure that they were properly seated before bolting up the pan.Two 2-inch long temporary studs were installed to hold the pan up while this was done.One word of caution: if you do use a Milodon one piece gasket you'll notice it has ‘tabs’ that are designed straddle the block's gasket surface and position the gasket (see pic below). You need to be extra careful that these do in fact get into place or otherwise they can be pinched and cause a leak.This almost happened to me.

 

There you go. Take it slow and easy and you’ll also have a leak free installation.

 

Cheers,

Tony

Edited May 13, 2014 by tony 63C
add one more pic

[SA69mach 39]

Nice job. You are meticulous. The key to a good result.

 

I like the Felpro blue gaskets with the steel rib. Unfortunately they do not fit pans with the thin rib depressions between the holes, and most of the aftermarket replacement pans have that rib, for stiffening. I had to take my fancy felpro gasket off and use cork.

 

Your choice of Milodon looks great and top quality.

[tony 63C 14]

Hi SA69mach, thanks for your positive feedback. I didn’t want to do the job twice, so did not rush anything. And the spring weather here has been lousy so there was no hurry to get the car road ready. Sorry to hear that your gasket swap didn’t go as well as you had hoped. The Milodon pan gasket surface is identical to the stock Ford pan, so I’m sure the Fel-Pro will work. But the Milodon gasket will also work well providing it gets a little extra attention.

 

Cheers,

Tony