LT1-LT4 Modifications 1993-97 Gen II Small Block V8

Blue rubber bits in oil pickup?

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Old Jan 5, 2024 | 08:58 PM
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Default Blue rubber bits in oil pickup?

Hello. I pulled the oil pan off my '95 LT-1 to weld a crack in the oil pan and was shocked to see the oil pump pick up screen was full of blue rubbery gasket material that looks like the Felpro gaskets I've used for the valve covers and oil pan gaskets in the past. It is NOT RTV.

Any idea where it came from? The old Felpro oil pan gasket was intact, and it didn't come from that.

Could the valve cover gaskets fall apart and end up in the oil pick up screen? They are only a year or two old.

I did notice the harmonic balancer bolts were loose, and it was wobbling around. Any chance that could have damaged a rubbery gasket behind the timing chain cover? I didn't think there were any of those type gaskets in there though.

This LT1 is in a swapped Porsche 944. The oil pan has been modified to clear the suspension crossmember, which is why I'm welding a damaged area on it rather than just replacing. I had this oil pan off just a few thousand miles ago, and the oil pickup screen was clean then.


Last edited by Rob944; Jan 5, 2024 at 09:06 PM.
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Old Jan 5, 2024 | 09:33 PM
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Old Jan 6, 2024 | 08:04 AM
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Check your valve stem seals.
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Old Jan 6, 2024 | 01:41 PM
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As shbox notes, look very close at valve stem seals and if you have a broken damper spring inside valve spring that took it out

I have seen overuse of RTV do what happened to you but that looks like charcoal pieces
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Old Jan 6, 2024 | 03:52 PM
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Thanks for the replies. Luckily I do know the valve stem seals in these heads are black, not blue, since I've seen them myself.

I'm thinking it must be the valve cover gaskets that got pushed out somehow and rubbed on a rocker arm. I'll have to pull them and check one day.
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Old Jan 6, 2024 | 07:05 PM
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Originally Posted by shbox
Check your valve stem seals.
Thank you shbox for your website! It has been invaluable to me over the past 2 years getting this car sorted out!!
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Old Jan 6, 2024 | 10:02 PM
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Looks like gaskets that seal the ends of the intake manifold. Bet one got squished in and chopped up by the cam.
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Old Jan 7, 2024 | 10:50 AM
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A once very aged and hardened gasket which fell apart and found its way to the bottom of the pan? Has this always been your engine?
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Old Jan 7, 2024 | 11:52 AM
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Originally Posted by JC316
Looks like gaskets that seal the ends of the intake manifold. Bet one got squished in and chopped up by the cam.
Oh, I think we might have a winner here. I installed those and were blue if I recall. Interestingly I don't have any oil leaks from the intake manifold.

I spent so much time making sure the intake manifold went on as perfect as I could.
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Old Jan 8, 2024 | 12:39 PM
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Originally Posted by Rob944
Oh, I think we might have a winner here. I installed those and were blue if I recall. Interestingly I don't have any oil leaks from the intake manifold.

I spent so much time making sure the intake manifold went on as perfect as I could.
The gasket for the china walls? If so, much easier to use either ultra black or right stuff and let it cure for a day before starting.
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Old Jan 8, 2024 | 02:18 PM
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Originally Posted by Rob944
Oh, I think we might have a winner here. I installed those and were blue if I recall. Interestingly I don't have any oil leaks from the intake manifold.

I spent so much time making sure the intake manifold went on as perfect as I could.
They are indeed blue. You may just have a better fitting intake, but my money is still on that. Maybe even an old one that got dropped into the valley by accident.

Originally Posted by SS RRR
The gasket for the china walls? If so, much easier to use either ultra black or right stuff and let it cure for a day before starting.
That's what I do now, because of an LT1, the gasket slipped out and I had myself a lovely oil leak on my 92 Corvette.
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