Zeus

I just got done installing a Canton "LS1 Street/Strip" oil pan. It's the conventional pan, not the dry sump. Anyways, I'm writing a little review (actually it's more like a list of rants) because when I was looking to buy it, I couldn't find any information from people that had one. Hopefully this will help people contemplating a purchase of one of these units.

Anyways, the unit is well CONSTRUCTED, but in my opinion terribly DESIGNED. My first complaint is the design of the unit in the rear, where it is closest to the bellhousing. The stock oil pan serves two functions back here. It provides two mounting points for the bellhousing, and it also serves as a shield to keep stuff off the clutch assembly. You lose both of these functions with the Canton. Because it is a fabbed aluminum piece and basically has no thickness or strength to it, you can't attach any bolts to it, hence you loose two mounting locations. The pan does not sit flush with the bellhousing as well, there is a 3/4" gap between the two. My clutch is now flapping in the breeze so to speak until I can fab up a shield of some sort.

The second big complaint is the mounting situation. The pan has a downward facing lip around the top of the pan. It's like if you took a rain gutter, flipped it upside down, and attached it to the top of the oil pan (where the mounting bolts go). I understand that this give rigidity (or at least I think that's why it's there) to the mounting surface so it doesn't distort, but it's a stupid design. With this lip I can't tighten three of the bolts as I can't get to them with a socket, and the lip prevents the use of a wrench. This is minor but a problem nevertheless. The REALLY aggrivating part of the design comes in the rear again. The stock oil pan uses two very long bolts that bolt the very rear-most edge of the pan to the block, right in front of the bellhousing. These bolts are easy to access as they are long enough so that they are even with the bottom of the oil pan. The design of the Canton pan means long bolts cannot be used. You must go out and buy new bolts. The lip prevents you from tightening the bolts however. The lip is so narrow that a socket cannot slip over the bolt because it hits the lip first. The lip also completely prevents the use of a wrench. I tried the skinniest 1/4" drive sockets I could find with no luck. It really sucks because I have an oil leak from back there due to the screws only being hand tight. To recitfy this I had to take a 10mm wrench, place it inline with the bolt (i.e. the wrench has a lever arm of 0") grab the end of the the wrench with a pair of vice-grips and turn the whole ghetto rigged setup a few degrees at a time. This got one of the bolts moderatly tight before the lip prevented the wrench from even being place on the head anymore. I couldn't even get the other bolt started due to the wonderful lip Canton put there.

My last complaint is the oil filter situation. I knew that you had to remote mount the filter before I bought this, but I didn't know what a PITA it was going to be. First of all I talked to a popular non-sponsor, and Thunder Racing personally about the remote mount adapter, and I did it TWICE. They both said (all four times) that the remote filter adapter was include. I asked if I needed to buy an installation kit (that inlcudes the filter adapter, fittings, and hose) and they both said no. Well it turns out the filter adapter is NOT included in the kit. Neither are all the fittings. I had to go to a local speed shop to get the adapter, and special order the fittings from another store (big $$$). The filter is also very difficult to mount as the hoses (understanably so) are very stiff, and take turns about as well as an aircraft carrier. The hoses come off the oil pan pointing downward, so you must perform at least a 90* bend somewhere. I had trouble finding an open area with enough room for the hose bends, a stable platform to mount the adapter, and still be accessible for oil changes. I'm extremely dissapointed with the spot I settled on, and need to go back and re-do it later.

There are a bunch of other problems I had like the pickup to pan clearance, but they were relatively minor. These were the major ones. Having one or two of them is not bad, but having all of them stacked on top of each other make this a terrible experience. I'm going to have to drop the tranny, and possibly completely drop the k-member (instead of just lowering it like I did) in order to completely tighten the bolts and stop my oil leak. I'm also going to have to order new hose and redo the filter mount, and fab up some shielding for the clutch. Many of these problems would dissapear if the engine was out of the car, but I didn't have that luxury.

In summary if this is an all-out race vehicle where oil starvation is a legitimate issue, get this pan. If it's not, save yourself wads of cash, problems, and sanity, and go with a stocker. There isn't a single noteworthy advantage to this pan outside of the baffles.

Steel Chicken

iTrader: (3)

are these the same guys that make those pressurised oil container things, that build pressure when you got it and release it when you dont?

HavATampa

iTrader: (49)

That sucks to hear. Sounds like a very frustrating install. What was the reason you switched to an aftermarket pan anyway?

John B

iTrader: (10)

Sorry to hear this.

My suggestion....at his point I'd yank the pan and just grind the lip off where the bolt locations are so that you can tighten them with a socket!

Grimes

iTrader: (3)

you can also get allen head bolts. sorry to hear you regret your purchase!

Zeus

Nope. That's another product product canton makes called an accumulator. It looks like an overflow tank, and doesn't have anything to do with the oil tank itself.

Zeus

I put a pineapple sized hole in my stocker in a freak wrenching accident. I wasn't going to weld it, so I figured while I had the pan out, I'd replace it with something better. The price wasn't a whole lot more than a stocker, and to top it off it looks trick.

My traction's not at the point where I can lift the tires enough to worry about starvation during a 1/4 mile pass, but I do go to amateur auto-x events. Going around those corners at high speeds makes me a little nervous about my oiling system so I did this for piece of mind.

Zeus

No offense man but that's the worst suggestion in the world. You couldn't pay me a million dollars to take that thing off and put it back on.

Zeus

Actually I never thought of this. That might just work, assuming the head is smaller than the diameter of the lip. *runs to local hardware store*

SStrokerAce

iTrader: (2)

Yes, it's called a Accusump.

ahowudoin

iTrader: (2)

What about useing studs? Even if you had to use a washer to space it or a washer on the bolt.

Zeus

actually I just ran down to the hardware store and picked up some socket cap bolts and a flexible drive attachment for a screwdriver. It took some finesse but everything worked fine (thanks Grimes).

Now my problem is I went to start it up and there's no oil pressure on the dash gauge, and oil is spewing everywhere. I did the turn the engine over with the coil packs off process before I started it up for real, but I guess it didn't work. I found that the two bolts holding the hose adapter to the block were loose (it also seems to be where the leak was coming from), but I'm REALLY scared to start the engine up now. It was already running for about 5-7 seconds with no oil pressure, and I don't want to keep turning it over hoping I'll get pressure eventually.

Gary Z

This is almost beyond belief. It is well known that the stock pan is an important structural component.

Rebelord

iTrader: (2)

Zues, I have a question that I've been looking for the answer for a bit....
I think my oil pan gasket it leaking..so to change just the gasket, would I have to lower the kmember? or could i get away with unduing the mounting bolts and sliding in a new gasket?

Thanks..Ski

MR NASTY

iTrader: (5)

you couldnt slide in a new gasket cause of the pick up tube inside. Better to just drop the k member a little and jack the engine up a bit. Its not as hard as people think. This is useful information cause i was think about purchasing this pan. I maye have second thoughts

Beast96Z

iTrader: (21)

The stock gasket is also riveted to the pan. The pan needs to be removed so the rivets can be ground off.

Zeus

You guys must have a different stock oil pan then myself then. Mine still had the stock gasket, but it wans't riveted on at all. It slid right off.

Rebelord, to answer your question I'm almost positive you can install a gasket without dropping the k-member. You will have to unbolt the pickup tube from the oil pump (check ls1howto.com's cam installation guide), but that's not hard at all. When I was doing my cam swap I lowered the pan a good 1-2" without even touching the k-member so you should be able to slide a gasket in there no problem.

Zeus

oh, quick note to those who were planning on getting a canton pan. I'm chucking this piece of sh*t in the garbage can and going back to stock. Having oil baffles is not worth putting up with this piece of trash. There goes $650 and a week of my time.

JustAnIlluzion

iTrader: (60)

y didnt u use washers so the bolts stick down more so u could tighten them? if u realized the pan was so awful and the install seemed terrible why did u put it on? u could have returned it and bought another brand.

JustAnIlluzion

iTrader: (60)

um he said arent these the same guys (canton), and they are the same guys (company)