Anybody here change out an oil pan on a 3VZFE V6?

[ricamryman]

The last time I had my oil changed at FireStone they had advised me that my oil pan had a leak, they showed me while on the lift, & I saw a minute trickle of oil from the side of the oil pan that faces the dash board, not the front end. Today speaking with my Independent Mechanic who used to be a Toyota Tech told me that my 1993 V6 oil pan uses a silicone oil seal & is next to imposible to leak. I told him that I already did the valve covers & distributor O-ring so its not those items. He seems to think its the oil pump gasket leaking onto the pan, what do you guys think?......

[ricamryman]

Originally Posted by ricamryman

The last time I had my oil changed at FireStone they had advised me that my oil pan had a leak, they showed me while on the lift, & I saw a minute trickle of oil from the side of the oil pan that faces the dash board, not the front end. Today speaking with my Independent Mechanic who used to be a Toyota Tech told me that my 1993 V6 oil pan uses a silicone oil seal & is next to imposible to leak. I told him that I already did the valve covers & distributor O-ring so its not those items. He seems to think its the oil pump gasket leaking onto the pan, what do you guys think?......

Also if it is indeed the pan, if I use a gasket instead of a silicone sealer, do I actually have to remove the exhaust pipe from under the pan, or is there enough wiggle room to get it out & in?.....

[LynchburgCSI]

Where's Eengineer, 2wickedtoys and rapeacivic when you need them?

[71Corolla]

You will need to remove the Y-pipe to remove the oil pan. Which means removing it from both manifolds, and from the catalytic. I just pulled one off at the wreckers because mine has a dent in it. It's not a hard job if the manifold and CAT bolts/nuts come off relatively easily. Otherwise you could be in a world of hurt trying to get them out. Whatever you do, don't strip the nuts on the manifold, they will be very hard to remove if you do.

Once you get the exhaust out of the way, you remove the rear engine brace and the oil pan bolts/nuts and carefully pry it off. Going by what I saw at the wreckers, the sealant can indeed degrade over time, the pan came off pretty easily. When applying the RTV, get yourself the version in a caulking tube, doing by hand from a squeeze tube will be messy and not yield good results.

But make sure it is actually leaking from the pan before you go through all the trouble.

[Bdub215]

Yea FIPG rarely ever leaks and by that I mean design flaw or previous tampering. Op just make sure you don't have an oil leak running down onto the pan. That ypipe is a PITA.

[ricamryman]

Originally Posted by Bdub215

Yea FIPG rarely ever leaks and by that I mean design flaw or previous tampering. Op just make sure you don't have an oil leak running down onto the pan. That ypipe is a PITA.

You are right! Thanks because I am not adding a drop of oil between 3K mile OCI! The level on the dipstick is always at proper range! But however I have been adding power steering fluid, ie. Dextron 3 to the resevoir on occasion. ........