01 Exursion Oil Pan

[BLittle500]

Hey guys,

 

I know that monday I have an 01 Excursion coming in for an oil pan. Service writer said 15 hours and I had to pull the engine, it's no shocker if I do have to pull the engine, just curious if anyone has done these before? Any tips?

 

Thanks in advance guys,

 

Brandon

[Bruce Amacker]

I think we've covered this before, I'm assuming an Excursion is basically the same as an F-model. My opinion and the general consensus is that it's easier (especially in the rust belt) to pull the motor when doing one of these pans. The pan is siliconed on with no gasket, the rail surface has to be bone-ass dry (brakeclean and air) or the silicone won't stick. Use the good thick gray FMC or IH silicone and make sure it's not outdated (don't ask me why I know that).

 

When I poll students 90% of them pull the motor, but there are a few renegades who prefer to do them in chassis. Most of the guys who have done it in-chassis say they will pull the motor next time.

 

I yank the motor, and either roll it over on the floor or bolt it on a stand and invert it so I can dry off the rails without oil slobbering onto them from the block walls. Let the silicone set up overnight before adding oil.

 

Tip: Yank the motor and burp the pan off BEFORE inverting the engine so gunk from the bottom of the pan isn't dumped into the engine. I had a student with a wicked ICP problem caused by inverting the motor first, then pulling the pan. It turned out to be garbage in the HPOP clogging the edge filter. (high ICP, 4%IPR, DTCs) Cleaning the edge filter fixed it.

 

Tip2: Look for exhaust leaks on the y-pipes and fix them while the motor is out.

 

Good Luck!

 

[Mikill]

Like Bruce said above use the right gray silicone. I learned that the hard way on my first one. I didn't know about the IH silicone at the time.

[mchan68]

Like Bruce said above use the right gray silicone. I learned that the hard way on my first one. I didn't know about the IH silicone at the time.

Guilty.

[Aaron]

ALSO... make sure the fucking date on the silicone isn't expired!

 

9 months later, it still hadn't cured... FUCCCCCK.

 

And 15 hours? I haven't done one in quite some time, but isn't that a little light? The last one I did, was an e-van with a whole lot of extra add-on shit, I don't know if it's good or not.

[Aaron]

And typically, I've been looking after a whole bunch of other shit as well when I have the engine out... up pipes, usually that plate behind the flywheel is all fucking rotten so it gets changed too, etc. etc.

 

My buddy Joe can do a E-van 7.3 pan in 8 hours. Out of chassis, no butchering. He's FAST. The last one him and I tag-teamed, my hand slipped lowering the motor back into the chassis, and the picker lost all hydraulic pressure. The motor fell onto the mounts, the bellhousing, and the flywheel all lined up. He said had he not been standing there, he wouldn't believe it.

[Alex Bruene]

...dodging bullets, but I do them in chassis. I've done dozens of them with no leaks. If time permits, I do prefer to remove the pan just before I go home at night, then let the block drip overnight. When time doesn't permit, they can be done this way in under 4 hours (easily). The most difficult part is getting the pick-up tube bolted in a reasonable amount of time. I'll only silicone the sides of the pan before I put it in place, then silicone the ends after the pick-up tube is in, or you'll be shaving the silicone out of your pit hairs!

[Keith Browning]

I have had some guys working with me over the years that insist on doing them in chassis. With mixed results. I personally have done them in F-series both ways successfully. I always recommend pulling the engine but ultimately every technician is responsible for his decisions. If a tech in my shop decides to do it in chassis I am fine with that but I don't want to hear any complaints if it comes back leaking. Here in NJ where many of the 7.3L trucks are now old and quite rusty you are almost better off not pulling the engine as you might end up having to replace EVERYTHING you touch. Most customers are already looking for a freebie from Ford and don't want to pay for anything more than a new pan. Such is life.

[Jonathan302]

I pulled the engine no matter how much is rusty.

 

Way more easy to seal it right

 

Normally:

 

15-16 for a F-Series and 20 for E-Series.

 

Never had to do one of these twice due to a poor sealing gasket.

 

[Jim Warman]

The few oil pans I've had to change have all been manual trans with PTO... I'm not a good thing to base times on (unless all you want is a guesstimate) because that is the nature of my job.

 

If you want to do it "in frame"... feel free... I know the customer will talk to me if something goes wrong.... and I'm not shy about passing on my impression of what he might have meant.

 

FWIW, I see a lot of these as being work trucks.... if the wheels aren't rollin', the bills aren't gettin' paid. Downtime (as in having a repair done a second time) can have one of these guys jobless real quick. Helping someone claim bankruptcy isn't high on my list of "things to do today"...

[mchan68]

FWIW, I see a lot of these as being work trucks.... if the wheels aren't rollin', the bills aren't gettin' paid. Downtime (as in having a repair done a second time) can have one of these guys jobless real quick. Helping someone claim bankruptcy isn't high on my list of "things to do today"...

I said it once before, and I say it again. Jim, you do have a way with words sometimes that amaze me.

 

That said, it's been a LONG time that I've had the pleasure (or DISpleasure?) of R & R'ing an oil pan on a 7.3L. And I'm not shy about admitting it. I don't feel comfortable about my ability to take this shortcut, on this particular repair. Not when what is at stake, is as mentioned in the first paragraph.

[Jonathan302]

Manual trans is a PITA compare to an auto one.

 

[Jim Warman]

Manual trans with a PTO can be funner....

 

If you work on a 4 post hoist.... lower the trans, PTO and transfer case as a unit onto a couple of pieces of pipe laid across the hoist runways. If the PTO is connected to a direct drive hydraulic pump, it is often unecessary to disconnect the pump, lines or anything else other than the PTO control cable... This way, the hoist can be raised and or lowered as necessary.

 

If you work on a 4 post hoist, I don't need to tell you how much of a PITA an engine R&R can be...

[Aaron]

^^^ I like the pipe trick.

 

The 4 post I used to use was open at the front so you could JUST not squeeze the cherry picker legs between it. You had to drive the truck as far as you could ahead on the hoist, so pretty much the entire fuckin' engine hung over the front of the hoist, then you could pull it ok. A set of chainfalls would have been a godsend though.

[mchan68]

Only one dealer I worked at, had this setup, motorized too.

[blown99]

What is required to do them in chassis? I am assuming pull the trans, but what else?

[BrunoWilimek]

What is required to do them in chassis? I am assuming pull the trans, but what else?

 

If memory serves correctly, after pulling tranny, you need to jack engine up as high as it will go, which involves unbolting shroud from rad to allow it to float with fan. I can't remember if anything else has to be removed topside for clearance. Use your judgement there. When the engine was jacked up, I used custom sized wood blocks wedged in the gap at the motor mounts to hold it up, then removed the jack. Drop the pan(involves prying/hammering to break the seal to the block). Drop the pickup into the pan after unbolting it from the pump, then slide the pan out. There may be other steps required to remove obstructions as necessary, but it has been a long time since I did it this way.

[Alex Bruene]

What is required to do them in chassis? I am assuming pull the trans, but what else?

 

Remove the transmission, starter and oil filter. Remove the starter support (if you want, not necessary). Unbolt the engine mounts and the fan shroud bolts. Unbolt the pan and separate it, be careful not to bend the rear cover when you're separating the pan. Use one big stand on the rear of each exhaust manifold (DON'T unbolt the exhaust because it's what keeps it all lined up). If you're using a twin post in ground hoist, just lower the front post until the engine goes up as far as it will. If you're using an electric hoist, you have to set the truck up on the hoist so it is a bit front heavy, or the engine will not lift properly. Reach in, unbolt the pick up tube, and pull the pan out. Clean everything real nice, silicone only the sides of the pan prior to installing, and silicone a new gasket to the pick-up tube so it doesn't fall off, and lay the tube in the pan. Slide the pan in and install the pick-up (you'll thank yourself for not siliconing the ends of the pan)... Silicone the ends now and bolt it all back together... Now, go have lunch, then fill the engine with oil and drive it out the door!

[Jonathan302]

And you have no problem with oil dripping on the silicone bead ?

 

These sucker seem to drip forever even if i brake clean it

[Alex Bruene]

You have a good 5-10 minutes to get the pan in place before the oil makes it down to the mating surface. Most of the oil that runs down is at the front cover, but I don't silicone that until after the pick-up is bolted in, so it gives me time to wipe it clean one last time.

[fabfoes87]

Did my first oil pan. Took 14 hours. Pulled engine. Installed rtv and new pan. Reassembled truck and had running. Let run at idle for 10 min and in horror found oil steedily dripping from rr of pan to block. I guess I know what I'll be doing again on monday.

[Brad Clayton]

WHAT? the devil you say. See what happens when I go to school for a couple of days?

[Alex Bruene]

Are you sure it's the pan leaking? Earlier this year, my apprentice tried to beat my oil pan record. After he finished, there was a leak from the right rear. I told him he f'd up, and to do it over again, and not try to do it so fast... Turns out he did it again for a second time for no good reason, as the leak was actually from the HPOP. We did the pan again without actually eliminating any possible other leaks first. Lesson learned.

[Keith Browning]

At first I was a little shocked at this statement but then I remember that the 7.3L is an older engine and some guys who are newer to the business may have little experience with it. There is a lot going on at the top of the 7.3L that is oil related and it is mostly all external. Leaks here as mentioned will drain through a hole in the valley at the right rear and appear to be leaking at the back of the engine.

[fabfoes87]

I'm sorry to say that the reason for pan replacement was due to extremly rotted out pan. No other oil leaks present. My only thaught is must have been oil that had driped down onto matting surface of block and not allowing rtv to properly cure. On one good note, customer came to in see how his truck was, and he could't tell the engine was even out. but still major f%@k up on my part.