Oil Pan 98 SOHC (rusted THROUGH!!)

[gijoecam]

Just thought I'd share my tale with all of you in the hopes it may help someone in the future. It's a 98 Sport with the 4.0 SOHC. The motor is actually a 2000 model year.

For my last few oil changes, I've noticed that my oil pan was rusty and oily. At first I thought it may have been a leak elsewhere, but upon further inspection, the oil droplets on my garage floor were coming from the oil pan itself; specifically the rust bubbles on it.

Time for a new oil pan.

Here's what the original looked like.

You can see the oily area around the bottom of the sump where the oil pickup sits.

Removal was simple. 14 bolts (which surprisingly weren't corroded in place!!) and the pan dropped off.

WARNING!!!! EVEN AFTER 'DRAINING' THE OIL, THERE WILL STILL BE ABOUT A HALF QUART IN THE PAN. TAKE CARE NOT TO DUMP IT ON THE CATALYTIC CONVERTER, THE GARAGE FLOOR, OR YOURSELF!!! (I managed to hit all three!!)

Here's what you'll see:

There are some differences if you have an older 2nd gen.

The one on the left is the original, the one on the right is the *new* replacement. Obviously the newer one looks and feels cheaper than the original. Notice the stress ripples in the new one from the stamping process.

Notice that the new pan has two significant changes. The channel that leads from the sump to the drain plug is farther forward on the pan. Additionally, the drain plug is angled downwards. I believe they did this purposely. On the original pan, at every oil change, when I removed the plug, the oil shot straight out to the side, hit the head of the rear lower control arm bolt, and fanned out in a pattern somewhat resembling Old Faithful in black crude. There isn't an oil pan big enough to catch it all!! I've been making a mess with my oil changes on this thing for the last 8 years. I believe this slight change should now allow the oil stream to pass forward of and below the level of that bolt, and should make oil changes a much less-loathed affair.

Installation was just the reverse. Simply hold the pan in place, no sealant needed, and evenly tighten the bolts. Refill and viola. (Don't gorget to check the level... Mine took an extra 1/2 quart this time around)

Hope it helps someone sometime!

-Joe

 

[section525]

Nice job. It's nice that you can drop the pan without having to remove the axle! Anything you can do to prevent this one from rusting through as well? Move West?

 

[gijoecam]

I thought about it.... I don't think it's a very common problem. The coating on the inside of the pan appears to be a plastic-typy material of some sort. You can't really see it in the picture, but there was one little rust bubble on the inside of the pan that I believe was a part of the large bubble on the outside of the reservoir area. I believe that the rust expansion eventually perforated that plastic/rubbery lining. (it resembled body panels that rust through from the inside-out) In theory, I would think that the pan could completely rot away, but you should be left with the liner... Apparently that theory doesn't hold oil.

-Joe

 

[Green98XLT]

Good to know they figured out the damn oil bath every time you change the oil! I hate changing the oil in my 99, it shoots out and hits the A arm and torsion bar and of course soaks everything in the process. I've actually made a sheet metal "splash" shield just for changing the oil in my Ex...

 

[Brian_B]

Interesting. I have never seen a pan rust like that (lived in the south all my life), but chaging it seems a while lot easier than jacking up an engine. I see the oil pump pickup, but is the oil pump there where you could replace it easily as well?

...........Apparently that theory doesn't hold oil.

-Joe

I hope that was a bad pun spoken intentionally.

 

[gijoecam]

Interesting. I have never seen a pan rust like that (lived in the south all my life), but chaging it seems a while lot easier than jacking up an engine. I see the oil pump pickup, but is the oil pump there where you could replace it easily as well?




I hope that was a bad pun spoken intentionally.

Yes, it was a bad pun.

I don't think that the oil pump can be replaced that way. IIRC, you need to remove the lower block reinforcement, which means either dropping the cross member, or pulling the engine. The pan, however, is simple.

-Joe

 

[aldive]

Good to know they figured out the damn oil bath every time you change the oil! I hate changing the oil in my 99, it shoots out and hits the A arm and torsion bar and of course soaks everything in the process. I've actually made a sheet metal "splash" shield just for changing the oil in my Ex...

The Fumoto oil drain solved the problem completely on mine.

http://www.fumotovalve.com/

 

[Hartman]

95s must have different oil pans...mine is a greyish metal color with ridges on the outside and the drain plug faces straight down.

 

[NightRock]

Nice Job.. how much your new OIL PAN??

 

[gijoecam]

I can't find the receipt, but it came from Ford Employee Parts.... I believe it was around $34 IIRC.... not expensive at all.

-Joe

 

[Hartman]

I can't find the receipt, but it came from Ford Employee Parts.... I believe it was around $34 IIRC.... not expensive at all.

-Joe

wow, a reasonable price for an OEM part. amazing.

 

[explorred]

Thanks for the post! It's exactly what I needed and exactly why I am replacing my pan. My truck can from Ohio and there is way more rust EVERYWHERE than I would have liked but it seems like a good truck. I mean every common problem that I try to fix is rusted solid. I was glad to hear that I won't get a bath in oil at my next oil chnage too. One point that I'm glad you mentioned.... I thought for sure that you'd have to put sealer on the exposed metal edge of the gasket. You didn't have any leaks? You did this a year ago , right?
Thanks,
Rob

 

[foxy]

People if your interested that is, there is a pan for sale on Ebay at the moment for 21.something US item no280120790353

 

[gijoecam]

Yup... did it last summer and haven't had an issue since! Oil changes are MUCH less messy than they ever were!

Save the old drain plug from the old pan as a spare... in case the old one rolls under the workbench or something. Y' never know!

-Joe

 

[Paraphoe]

Bump. Little help here please, Joe.

My pan is getting ****ty, and I had to JB Weld it last night because I was having that rust seep-through issue you had when I went to change my oil. I looked at the pan and it seemed simple to replace so I figured no big deal. I came on here to double check the ease of replacement, and then I read JT Smith's (Turdle) recent thread with removing the oil pan and how it's supposedly a 48 step nightmare.

My 97 SOHC should be as easy as this was for you, right Joe? I'm fairly certain it's the exact same setup as you posted in the pictures - looks identical. Are the Mountaineers set up completely different? Why was his a trainwreck and yours so easy?

Let me know...The JB Weld is fine for now, my last JB patch lasted 2 years, but I'd like to just get the new pan in when I have a chance.

Thanks..

 

[gijoecam]

I would expect it to be similar.... I've not heard of any major cross-member issues or anything like that on the 97 that would interfere (but admittedly, can neither confirm nor deny any knowledge of the 97's undercarriage).

It's not worth the effort to JB-Weld it. A couple dozen screws, drop it, clean up the mess, and bolt the new one on and you're good for another 100k miles. For once, it really is that simple.

 

[Paraphoe]

That's what I figured. I hadda JB it last night - no choice in a pinch. I did it back in 2007 and it held great for 2 years, but last night when I was draining it I saw new flaking and had to peel some metal off and just ended up pulling off the whole old patch, cleaning it, sanding it, and re-applying to seal it up. I'm sure it'd be good for at LEAST another year, but I'd like to pick up a pan cheap and replace it before the summer ends.

Thanks for the quick response. You rock.

 

[jlsparky7]

Looks fairly simple. That thing was ruuuuuuuuuusty.

 

[Paraphoe]

I know it was a while back, but where'd you get this pan, Joe? I'm digging around and I can't find one on Ford's site, FastPartsNetwork, or Autozone. Was it from the dealer at an employee discount?

 

[GRNMACHINE]

WoW never seen a pan rust like that before. It seems a number of parts for early 2nd gens are becoming obsolete. Glad to know it is that simple to replace if the need arises though (assuming a pan is available......)