'88 C3500 srw 454 oil pan R&R

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'88C3500

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Hello All,

Will the pan come off? Does the engine need to be raised to do it?

Thanks.
Dave
p.s. - I did search, no luck.
 

RichLo

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2wd should be easy, the 4wd trucks has complications with the front diff
 

Schurkey

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Good luck. I'd rather pull the engine. By the time you lift it high enough to clear the crank counterweights, you're 1/3 of the way there to just yanking it out.

Getting the pan off is bad enough, but then you've got to try to glue the gaskets in place while everything is dripping and oozing on you. And then slide the pan back in, without screwing up the semi-glued gaskets.

Then, you finally get it all put back together, and the engine won't start. You crushed the distributor cap 'n' rotor against the firewall when you lifted the engine. Ooops.

I'd do that job with the engine flipped-over on an engine stand, thank you very much.
 

stutaeng

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Good luck. I'd rather pull the engine. By the time you lift it high enough to clear the crank counterweights, you're 1/3 of the way there to just yanking it out.

Getting the pan off is bad enough, but then you've got to try to glue the gaskets in place while everything is dripping and oozing on you. And then slide the pan back in, without screwing up the semi-glued gaskets.

Then, you finally get it all put back together, and the engine won't start. You crushed the distributor cap 'n' rotor against the firewall when you lifted the engine. Ooops.

I'd do that job with the engine flipped-over on an engine stand, thank you very much.


I was just under my K3500 changing the starter, directly under the engine oil pan. It's a SBC, but I believe is very similar to BBC. The front differential is in the way on the KXXXX models, but should be easy on the CXXXX models. Are you sure you have to pull the engine?

I saw my mechanic replace oil pan gasket on my GMT 800 2wd truck once, and those have some cross member in the way you have to remove, but that's not on GMT 400s. Even so, it was not that bad of a job.
 

Sam Cooper

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Just last week I did this on my 89 C3500 7.4L to replace rear main bearing, seal and oil pump. I only lifted the driver side of the engine about 2 inches to gain enough clearance. The exhaust crossover and flex plate can be an issue. I replaced the gasket with a one piece felpro rubber or silicone gasket. It really was not a bad job, just messy. By all means pressure wash the undercarriage first. One thing I did was release the oil pump before I finished removing the pan and visa versa on install. During reassembly I rotated crank with a 1/2 drive ratchet while I felt oil pump drive to make sure it was engaged.
 
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