I may tackle in-car replacement of my oil pan gasket this week to see if I can get rid of the slow leaks. Any tips from the pros? Thin layer or RTV, copper spray, something else?

Pan is straight/flat, will be using a windage tray and two of the black Mopar gaskets, ARP bolts. This is the 440 in my 69 Coronet.

Can I do it by just dropping the center link, or will I also need to lift the engine a little bit from the top?

Thanks Moparts!
Darren

rtv usually will just make the gasket slick and slide around when you tighten the bolts. I like to use the cardboardy type gaskets vs cork as i always overtighten and crush the cork to smithereens. Clean the bolt threads well and use removeable locltite on them so they wont back out. torqure to spec (which is something like 15 ft lbs- look it up). and more and you crush the gasket. any less and they can back out. criss cross as much as you can

Going to do the same thing on my car windage tray install, I think I will just pull the engine

I put a little rtv on the pan.

If they make a one peice rubber oil pan gasket for a big block I would buy it.

not sure about instructions for in the car removal/installation. On my wedge we used cork gaskets and glued them to the windage tray with the 3m yellow weatherstrip adhesive. put small dabs of silicone on the rear seal housing and on the corners of the front cover and then torqued from the center outward and has never leaked a drop

I used a cork gasket with a razor thin coating of red RTV (i spread it on with my finger) on both sides and my pain rail was even a little messed up and I have no leaks!

In my A-body, I was able to get the stock small block pan out just by disconnecting the passenger side tie rod and taking the idler arm bolt out, sliding the whole mess down and forward a bit and it slid right out.

The 3m weatherstrip adhesive is much better to use it sticks and doesnt slide around like rtv when you tigten the bolts, an old guy at napa told me to use it after my first gasket got ruined from using rtv.

that 3M yellow weatherstrip adhesive does work good.

something i have done on my last couple of rebuilds that has helped cut down any leakage is to put some blue lock-tight on the oil pan bolts.

over the years i have seen the bolts back off from vibration which causes leaks and so far this has helped.

No real tips for sealing, I use 3m weatherstrip adhesive & tighten center out & side-to-side. I raised the motor a few inches as it made it easy to get a 1/4' ratchet on the front pan bolts. They're pretty close to the cross member, otherwise. Dropped the center link off the idler/gearbox, left it attached @ tie rods. It's been 20+ years but I seem to remember I had to put the windage tray on first (with gaskets glued to both sides) then the oil pan. Getting the tray & pan together on past the oil pick up, crank throws & crossmember was a little too tricky. Not hard though, took about 2-1/2 hours & a good part of that was cleaning the old gaskets & pan. Lesson learned was, cover the distributor hole when you pull the distributor!

NO major secrets here .... when I have seen a leaker in the past - the reason was that the pan-rail was way warped by over-tightening. Straighten the rail out and just snug-it-down with a 1/4 rachet and you are good-to-go.

last time I made that gasket job, glued the gaskets to windage tray and never got a squizzed/smashed gasket, just leak on rear main seal in a year or so ( who doesn't ?.

went to a shop where supposelly they KNOW what the do. Actually after 2 years I have oil sweat everywhere, gasket are sqeeezed, out of its place. AND drops falling from rear,but still unsure if rear main OR oil running all allong the gaskets up to rear.

NEVERMORE will take my car to a shop to stuff like that!!!!


about tightening... I locate all the bolts in place, tighten with hands and then tightening from center to front/rear bolts... alternating each side