blkZ28spt

As some of you know I'm in the middle of a cam swap. Today I made zero progress. First off, the LS1howto.com cam swap instructions totally suck at expaining this. I removed what I believe to be TEN regular oil pan bolts and loosened the rearmost two (the long ones) enough to get the bolt head at least 1/4" below the pan lip. The pan won't come off!! I stuck a screwdriver in between the pan/gasket and block on the left side and it pries it open a little and bends the screwdriver. I also set a section of 2x4 against the front lip of hte pan and wailed on it with a regular hammer (all I have) and I put hammer head marks in the wood nicely but the oil pan remains in place. I'm about this close to saying F the GD oil pan and forgetting about the double timing chain and oil pump that I don't need......at least until I get money together for an ASP pullley and have to strip it down again anyway

What do you recommend? I did a search for oil pan in titles of this forum and looked at every hit but I see nothing that I have not already done. I just want to get this thing back together and I'm sick of laying on my back under the car contorting my hands painfully in our 25* garage.

jrp

iTrader: (16)

your just trying to lower the pan enough to get access to the oil pick up tube bolt, not pry the whole pan off. also if you dont have one pick up a adj. angle 10mm geared wrench. makes the whole thing easier.

chupr0kabra

iTrader: (10)

Mine came loose as soon as I loosened the back two bolts, so you're missing some bolts somewhere.

There are two at the very front (timing cover).
There are 5 along each side. I had to remove the closeouts (the plastic shields covering the back of the flywheel) to get to the back ones. The ones between the k-member and the pan can be evil, but a gearwrench helps.
Then there are two big (13mm, I think) bolts running parallel to the ground that go thru the transmission bell housing into the back of the oil pan. These were the two I was missing. As I started to loosen them, everything started lowering nicely.

Please leave the oil pan bolts threaded in. You don't want to cross-thread one of those little boogers. Hope this helps!


-Mike

blkZ28spt

THANKS.

I didn't know about the two bigger (13mm) ones parallel to the ground. The GD ls1howto.com says "...8 or 10 bolts around the perimeter..."

So much for following the guide and getting it done. Geeeeez

Anyway I took out all five along each side all the say as that is what a few people had said in threads I got while searching after I orignally only loosened them. I already quit for the night but I guess I'll restart the threads on the ten that go along the sides and loosen those last two.

Once again.......

GTS346

iTrader: (1)

Buddy sometimes instructions aren't 100% clear, so if something doesnt feel right just look around

blkZ28spt

That's true, but when you are taking somebody that has never done squat to a car before they got an LS1 and now they are attempting their first cam swap you can't count on them to just know when something doesn't feel right, look around, and figure it out. I didn't think to look for bolts going parallel to the ground, and that was after I had already undone 2-4 more bolts than the instructions called for after looking around.

I guess that when everybody said to just follow the install guide and if you can follow directions, get all the little details right, use tools, etc etc you'll be fine I wasn't counting on having to look around and figure things out because the directions had a half *** explanation.

rant off

pkincy

iTrader: (1)

Don't forget the 2 13 (or is it 15) mm bolts that hold the pan by coming in from the bellhousing.

Perry

pkincy

iTrader: (1)

Patience is a big help. No flame here, it took me years to learn it. Now when I run into a problem (and I just finished my first motor pull alone since my 60 Austin Healey 3000) I will go inside and catch some football for a while or clean up and try again the next day. It is totally amazing how a fresh look at a problem will provide the solution. And in my motor dissassembly and pull that probably happened 7 or 8 times. But each time my "insoluble problem" became simple after a break and all is good with a car sitting in the garage with an empty engine bay awaiting my new long block.

And I apologize for the obvious post above as I answered it after I read the first post in the thread, since it has only been 2 days since I pulled my oil pan.

Perry

blkZ28spt

My dad, who is helping me part of the time, had a reasonably good idea I hadn't heard before. He used some aluminum foil, folded over a couple times and into the right shape, in the oil pan to try and catch any bolts (oil pump pickup tube bolt) if it should fall. Turns out he dropped the pickup tube bolt aobut four times and it caught it every time. Scared me though. The timing chain and oil pump are now on. Next chance I get (monday night maybe) I will torque everything down and possibly take teh front cover off the oil pump to check what little bit of the O-ring you can see that way.

I was rather frustrated as yesterday I made NO progress. Today went okay though I am back "on schedule" to have it running, I hope, on wed/thur. (gone tonight and then sunday-monday)

jrp

iTrader: (16)

i just tie a strind around the bolt on one and and tie the other to the sway bar. then when the bolt is threaded in far enough i cut the string off and thread the rest of the way.

looks like your making more progress them me. im too lazy to get off my *** and go install my flywheel/clutch and tranny :o

blkZ28spt

jrp, shame on you! You have new parts and they aren't going on your car yet?! lol

I just need a day for the springs and one for reassembly now, I hope. My girlfriend is coming down from thur-sun (home from purdue on break right now) and I want it finished when she gets here thur. Both because she said awhile ago she wants to hear it and have it finished when she gets here and because I won't really be doing any work while she is here and I'd hate to leave it sit while unfinished.

Thanks for the help guys.

jrp, I dont know how you internal engine section regulars can stand people (like me at least once) who insist on asking for cam recommendations all the time. Especially when there very little info given, like the "almost totally stock" guy who wants throttle response and lope. Maybe you should just start recommending the good all around cam from your guide (TR224/114) to everybody who doesn't know at ALL what they are asking.

jrp

iTrader: (16)

what spring tool are you using and is the MS3 already in? with a decent spring tool all springs can be done in no time. then its just buttoning everything back up. i helped a dude install a HC a few weeks ago and that ******* sucked, it was outside in the rain. you have any trouble working with all the tranny cooler lines in the way? i hated that ****. also, what are you going to do about tuning?

who says i can stand people like that .

"i want 500rwhp, stock heads, a stock sound, i have no other mods, and i have 500 bucks to spend.

p.s i dont want to have to tune..."




anyway, good luck with it. im gonna go start working on my car

blkZ28spt

Actually I don't have a spring compressor yet I was going to borrow one from my neighbor but he had already lent it out. I might just buy one from Sears for $20 when I get back on mon-tue?? I am still unsure what to do I don't have a lot of money or time to get a spring tool but at the same time I want a good one.


Yes. The MS3, oil pump, and double roller are in. oil pump!


I orignally forgot about the trans fluid line going from the radiator to the cooler and wondered why the radiator didn't come out. The two lines most in the way are the battery lead and A/C line that go across in front of the engine, though the hard trans fluid lines are in the way when working with the oil pan, etc.


I have yet to call, but I plan to take it back up to Speed Inc. Won't be too $$ because I already got a "basic tune" from them with the converter.


Thanks. Good for you, good luck with that as well.

Inspector12

iTrader: (29)

if you didn't remove the plastic covers that are on each side of the motor to keep dust out of the TC area I think there is one bolt behind there on the passenger side. Just don't for get to install a new o-ring on the oil pump pick up even if it looks good it is a lot of work to go through to change it when you are already there etc. To many people have screwed themselves by not doing it. Also to give you a little help with the double roller. The silicone the spacers on the block without the pump on there and let it dry while you are swapping out the cam it will make lighning up the pickup tube and drive gears a lot easier with out also fighting the spacers and bolts all at once. Also it keeps you from putting the spacer on upside down witch blocks about 2/3 of the opening will cause low oil presure etc.. Good luck sounds like you are getting it if you need some guidence over the phone just call (713) 302-0737. I can usually help if you get lost or stuck.
Jeff

tomaSS

iTrader: (1)

I am in the middle of my cam swap and I used needle nose pliers to hold the pick up tube bolt and a gear wrench to tighten it. Went it on the first try! I also stuck a sock in the oil pan just in case I dropped it.

I too had a problem getting the oil pan to drop down since I did not remove the 13 mm and 17 mm bolts going through the tranny into the pan. I was so close to breaking something until my Dad pointed those two bolts out after reading the Haynes manual! Good luck on your install!

BLASTER

iTrader: (4)

Will oil come out of any of these bolts?

Yes! How do you remove these plastics? I am having trouble getting to that bolt and don't know if I can get a open end on it once the filter is removed.

Thanks

blkZ28spt

To get a tool of some kind onto the oil pan bolts or even th start bolt you may very well need to remove those plastic pieces that keep debris out of the tranny area. There will be one bolt to remove and once the plastic is out of the way you should be able to get to the bolts. Did not have to remove the oil filter.