Putting oil pan back on, does the back fit weird? 2006 TJ

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NitroViper

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I was going to change my rear main seal becuase it leaked so much oil out of that area. I got the opil pan off and it was clearly a pinch oil pan gasket, it was actually split at the rear where the main seal is. I decided to just change the pan gasket and not mess with the rear main seal for now.

Replacing the gasket and putting the oil pan back up in the rear seemed like it needed to be forced up in there.like the gasket wasnt sitting in that grove but I checked and it was. So I got one side bolt started and forced the other side up to get another bolt started.

I havent filled it with oil yet as it was 2am when I was done. Just wondered if they fit like that or something is wrong. I hope it isnt pinched even tho I tried to check.

Guess ill find out soon if it leaks. Pic below is the old gasket I took out, it was actually split.

Capture.JPG
 
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I changed my pan gasket several years ago on my ‘06 but I don’t recall having to force it up to get the bolts started.

Are you sure it wasn’t hitting something like the oil pickup tube?

I used a Felpro gasket and it came with these little plastic pin things that screwed into some of the hole, then you slide tha pan over those pins and they would hold the pan up for you while you start the other bolts. Then you take the plastic pins out and install the other bolts.

I had my pan off for the same reason. Thought I had a RMS leak but once I seen the condition of the pan gasket I figured that was the cause. No leaks in that area since.
 
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NitroViper said:
I was going to change my rear main seal becuase it leaked so much oil out of that area. I got the opil pan off and it was clearly a pinch oil pan gasket, it was actually split at the rear where the main seal is. I decided to just change the pan gasket and not mess with the rear main seal for now.

Replacing the gasket and putting the oil pan back up in the rear seemed like it needed to be forced up in there.like the gasket wasnt sitting in that grove but I checked and it was. So I got one side bolt started and forced the other side up to get another bolt started.

I havent filled it with oil yet as it was 2am when I was done. Just wondered if they fit like that or something is wrong. I hope it isnt pinched even tho I tried to check.

Guess ill find out soon if it leaks. Pic below is the old gasket I took out, it was actually split.

View attachment 547072
Click to expand...

I used the Fel-Pro gasket too. It wasn’t particularly difficult, though the most difficult area on the pan was the two bolts on either side of the RMS.

Did you use RTV on the places indicated in the FSM? Mainly the four corners and the two arched areas at the front and rear.
 
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Thanks for the replies, the pan looked new as well as the bolts. It was only the furthest back near the RMS where the curve of the pan goes against the gasket. Like the part in the gasket that loops down didn't fit in that groove just right when pushing the pan up. That makes me think thats what happened to the last guy and thats why the last one is broke there.

I did use RTV ultra black on the corners. I just let it ran for 5 mins hopefully there isnt a puddle on the floor when I go check.
 
NitroViper said:
Thanks for the replies, the pan looked new as well as the bolts. It was only the furthest back near the RMS where the curve of the pan goes against the gasket. Like the part in the gasket that loops down didn't fit in that groove just right when pushing the pan up. That makes me think thats what happened to the last guy and thats why the last one is broke there.

I did use RTV ultra black on the corners. I just let it ran for 5 mins hopefully there isnt a puddle on the floor when I go check.
Click to expand...

I hope you have it solved. There are several locations that can leak and it show up right at the dust shield on the transmission; PCV Valve, CCV Valve, Valve Cover, RMS, Oil Pan. I'm in the process of crossing out each one. I've already done the RMS, Oil Pan and the gaskets on the PCV and CCV valves. It's been a week. I'm going to take a look today and see where I am. Hopefully I'm dry. Otherwise, valve cover. Then if that doesn't fix it I'll be back to the RMS.

When all else fails: AT-205
 
I've found that some pans scrape against the auto transmission lower cover.
 
When I did my valve cover, RMS, and oil pan gasket back in May 2023, I got very discouraged because when I was done, it leaked profusely, and when I started it was a very minor leak. I was afraid I'd have to re-do the RMS again. As I started to re-play in my mind what I did, I realized that I did not put RTV in the corners where the oil pan gasket goes from flat to semi-circular at the rear crank journal/RMS. I knew about the importance of that RTV, but in my disheveled way of doing projects, I "saw a squirrel" while putting the RTV on it, and had missed it at the rear. So I ended up putting the oil pan gasket on twice. The second time, there was so much residual oil that made it onto the back side of the aluminum plate between my NSG370 and the engine, that I still had drips and was again worried that it was the RMS. However, I determined it was residual, sprayed acetone up there liberally, and I've had no more drips since. However, I really don't know if all is well because I haven't driven it even one mile since (in the middle of my build currently).

To answer your question about needing to "force" the gasket up there, I would say both times were the same for me - it was a little bit of a tight fit, but not nearly enough that I felt I was "forcing" things up there.
 
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