Totally doable not the easiest job to do, but if I can do it you can too. Put aside a good day and a half to do this - unless you are speedier than me, in which case pat yourself on the back - you killed it.
A couple tips to get things rolling for those of you who are thinking about it:
- go buy the Heynes manual.. need it for torque specs - and it never ceases to amaze me how handy it is.
- I removed the starter, to get the top bolt use a wobbler and lots of extensions till your ratchet is by the oil cooler lines at the front of the motor
- unbolt the engine from the mount on the drivers side, best done from the topside of the engine bay looking down on the motor (2 bolts right under the manifold) then for the passenger side unbolt the mount from the frame (one bolt) using an extension and wobbly bit through the hole on the frame on the passenger side - watch that you don't loose your socket or the bolt in the frame - spent a good hour fishing with a magnet on a rope.. got the socket back, but the magnet... she gone.
- unbolt the two transmission mount bolts on the crossmember
- using a strap I went through the exhaust manifold on both sides to create a lifting point, I was lucky enough to have a jib crane in the shop at my work to use but you can rent engine hoists from your local parts shops to lift the motor with. I also put my floor jack under the tranny and tried to lift/lower them both as evenly as possible. Also check to make sure when you lift that your strap isn't putting any pressure on anything important - I removed a couple spark plugs that were in the way.
- undo the transmission cooler line (I think that's what it is, little metal lines that run down the passenger side of the oil pan to the tranny ) the one line goes to the drivers side of the rad and connects near the top side with a brass fitting. the other you'll need to take the shroud off from below the radiator (4 bolts and pull there's a couple plugs holding it up) once removed you'll see where the lines clip to the bottom of the rad unclip the one that runs to the transmission. Then using two ratchet straps around the frame one at the front of the oil pan and one at the rear, gently pull those lines out of the way - trust me it makes life so much easier when trying to get the gasket on!
- next remove the power steering oil cooler its on the front side of the oil pan on the front side of the front differential - if you look at the bolts on the front of the pan you'll see its in the way - its easy two bolts then tuck it off to the side, no need to remove the lines.
- then remove all your pan bolts (once you've drained your oil and removed the filter), and the two bottom bolts holding the transmission to the pan once those are gone tap the pan with a rubber mallet till it pops off. now the fun begins..
manipulate the pan till you can get a hand up inside her and find the gasket, I pulled the gasket to the right at the back of the pan till the non metal part which goes around the shaft popped out, using side cutters I cut that bit and worked the gasket forwards around the oil pump and out the front of the pan when you get it out take note of the orientation and make sure you got the right gasket.
To put the new one in I rocked the pan so the lookers right side was lowest I found that to be the best room wise. I then folded the new gasket and worked it up into the pan towards the front to miss the oil pump, then worked the soft bit which goes around the shaft down underneath the oil pump intake and towards the back of the motor. then I got the front corners lined up and used pan bolts dropped down through the gasket and into the pan to roughly hold the gasket in place (note I didn't put them into the engine block just flipped them around to use as pins to hold the gasket). From there I got the back of the gasket lined up pinned and began putting ultra black RTV sealant on.
Put the RTV on the upper side of the gasket (the part that faces the engine block, you'll want to put a little extra where the timing belt cover meets the block, and around the shafts/ little tabs on the silicone which goes around the shaft. Then lift the pan in place, if you've done it right it should stick to the block, then for good measure I used my finger and spread a thin coat of RTV all around the oil pan flange then put it up in place. Not too sure what the proper procedure to bolt it back in place is but I did the four corners loosely first, then tried to do it up as evenly as possible till hand tight, let it sit for an hour and then torque them all to 80 inch pounds. DO NOT FILL WITH OIL FOR 24 hours - gotta let the black do its magic!
then replace everything you tore apart and hopefully she runs. As for me - Ill find out tomorrow and report back ill try to get some pictures too while I'm at it.
Its not so bad, just start with some irish cream in your coffee, some good tunes and finish with a couple beers - you'll do fine, I know you will.
- Mr Lemonfixer