Hi all,

I jacked up my ls for the first time after buying it about a month and a half ago. I placed the jack under the oil pan (cringing hard from embarrassment) and dented it. There are no signs that anything is wrong (no leaks, noises), but I'd like to replace it for peace of mind. Has any of you replaced your oil pan before? I'm not a super savvy mechanic (refer to dented pan), having only done fluids, brakes, and serpentine belts in the past, but I'd like to attempt this myself. I would appreciate any suggestions/tips/input.

Thanks.

Edit: Searched around online and found a diagram that makes it seem fairly straightforward. Will probably remove all the underbody panels and take a look this weekend.

 

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I recently replaced the transmission oil pan, not the engine oil pan, due to the stripped pan plug thread. I would think that the procedure is similar to the engine oil pan. The key is to have a new seal for the oil pan and clean the surface of the seal contact. Then, evenly torque the bolts to the factory specs (don't over-tighten the pan bolts or the pan won't be sealed properly). You should start tightening up the bolts gradually from the middle of the oil pan towards the outside of the pan.
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Have you started the job?

 

IF it is not dented bad, I'd leave it alone.

 

Not yet, haven't had time and it wasn't high priority. I should be getting around to it by next weekend. I'll try to take pictures along the way but not sure how I'll be able to keep my phone clean.

It's not badly dented, but i recently noticed a barely audible noise isolated at the pan. It might have been there before, and i had just not heard it cus of how quiet it is. Here's to hoping my oil pick up is still functioning!

 

Thanks for the tips! I've been looking at videos of people applying rtv and will practice squeezing the right amount of product on some cardboard.

Is the old sealant hard to clean off? Did you just scrape it off or use a chemical cleaner?

 

If all you did was dent it and not hard enough to start it leaking then consider yourself lucky and proceed to forget about it

a mere dent does not necessitate replacing the entire oil pan

I suspect you think you are being cautious and prudent but in reality just creating something to do for no real reason

ok having said that tell me why you think a dent should be any cause for concern if nothing leaks, unless you really smashed a big dent?

 

Give us a dent picture !

 

Be aware your oil dipstick level will show a noticeably higher reading, depending on where the dent is. Ask me how I know. I did the same thing several years ago (can't believe I did it) and have never had any problems. Have thought of replacing the pan but as said here, not sure it would accomplish anything.

 

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Unlike the oil pan, the transmission pan uses a thick solid rubber seal without the need for liquid silicon seal but it requires a thorough cleaning of the seal contact surface on both the pan and the upper contact surface. For cleaning the old silicon seal on the engine oil pan, a razor blade is a good tool. Make sure to wipe off the debris of the old silicon with a clean shop towel. There must be no oil on the surface of the contacts before applying the silicon seal. Be careful not to damage the surface of the contacts with the razor blade. And once again, it is very important to torque the bolts gradually and evenly to the factory specs.
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I appreciate the suggestion. When it first happened, it was exactly like you said -- doing it just to do something. But a noise developed (or maybe I've only just noticed it) recently that sounds like it's coming from the oil pick up, and I'm no longer driving the car due to fears about oil starvation.

I'll post a picture of it when i get under the car again. My parts should be coming in this weekend.

Aww yeahhhhhh! Good to see I'm not the only clumsy one! Actually, no it's not... this is a level of embarrassment i wouldn't wish upon anybody.

Awesome, these are great tips. I plan to use a plastic putty knife to avoid scoring the contact surface. Only thing I'm concerned about right now is how I'm going to fasten all the bolts before the rtv dries and needs to be reapplied.

 

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Aww yeahhhhhh! Good to see I'm not the only clumsy one! Actually, no it's not... this is a level of embarrassment i wouldn't wish upon anybody. :sad [/QUOTEI

I’m no rookie working on cars but the directions for jacking up these cars per Lexus IS worthless. In the owners manual they show a cross member to place the jack on. The oil pan to me looked like it. I guess u have to remove the plastic covers underneath to find it. Anyway, keep us posted and if it’s not too hard of a job, I may replace the pan.

 

Finally replaced the lower oil pan on Thursday. The metal cover over the oil pick up screen was very slightly dented and i had to pull it back into position. I think the noise i mentioned may have been the pick up vibrating against the oil pan.

I don't have pictures for a DIY, but i have some tips for anyone who might need to do this:

- drain the oil and replace the plug

- to remove the metal underbody cover, there are 4x 10mm and 4x 14mm bolts, and also make sure to lift the car as much as possible so that you can reach a good enough angle to slide the cover out of the hook mechanism.

- i wasn't able to get anywhere with a pry bar when removing the oil pan. Instead, i smacked it repeatedly with a rubber mallet (watch out for debris, gasket, and oil flying off onto your face) and used a plastic putty knife to slide in and break the seal all around.

- carefully remove the oil pan because there will be oil in there. I had no idea how much oil would continue to leak down from the oil pick up and the upper pan so i continued to clean the contacts while wiping off the oil. I finally gave up and just left it alone so that the oil can drain completely, waited about 30 minutes and it was still dripping intermittently.

- i was really worried about getting the contacts clean enough for the new fipg, but it wasn't bad at all. The large chunks came off very easily, then i just used a dish scrubbing pad with brake cleaner for the residue (the smell was freaking horrible).

- i used about 1.5oz of the Lexus recommended aisin ab1207b1. It took just under 15 minutes for me to apply the gasket and bolt on the new oil pan. I waited the 16 hours before adding oil to give the new gasket time to fully cure.

At the end, it took me about 1.5 hours to do everything (except waiting for the gasket to cure). No leaks yet and no more noise!

Pictures of my dented pan is attached.

 

Thanks for the update and nice job. Doesn't seem too bad and I'm surprised you did it so quickly. I guess the pan and its bolts are a clear shot to get to w/o having to remove a bunch of stuff other than the metal panels.

You've given me inspiration to do the job.

BTW, is this the Lexus P/N: Part Number: 1210238021

 

It definitely wasn't bad at all. The part number you shared is the correct oem replacement, but I went with the Dorman 264-567. I found it on Ebay for $74 with free shipping, and it fits with no issues.

Yeah! I'm glad that i stopped driving my ls after hearing that noise.