Noise after oil pan installation!!??

[Safety Guy]

I just put my oil pan on. I then tightened the drain bolt and rotated the engine on the stand (the whole engine, not the crank). As I did so, I heard a metallic clack that sounded like it came from the oil pan!

Did I leave something on the bottom of the block or MBSP that is now causing this noise? I looked at my last picture, taken last night before I left the garage:



There is nothing I can see. I used the two end gaskets. Maybe something I left under the MBSP? I looked at an older pic and didn't see anything there either. I'm sure I tightened all MBSP bolts and the two oil pickup tube bolts. I torqued them all!

QUESTION: Is there something in the block that would make a noise when the engine is rotated on the stand about 180 degrees (turning from bottom to top)? In other words, could this be a "normal" noise? I turned the engine several times and it sounds like it could be a "regular" thing flopping around. Maybe something on the oil pump that reverberates into the pan?

In the meantime I'll see if I'm "missing" any small tools, sockets, etc.

Thanks, and.............................Arrrrggghhhhh!!!!

Karl

[stdsmt22]

I just did this on my B8 and turned the motor over several times and never heard any sound except compression. IDK doesn't sound like a good thing to me but I am no expert.

[Safety Guy]

Thanks. The sound I hear does not seem to be a loose part, as it sounds "regular." But it could be.

Are the oil pumps the same basic design from B6 to B8? Are some "looser" than others?

The head is still off, BTW. Just block and oil pan, with the old crank seal out.

Karl

[TominMO]

I would take off the oil pan, and look for something loose in there, like a bolt or nut. If you don't find that, then turn it over again and look for something moving.

[Pu241]

Before you take the pan off can you rotate the assembly again and reproduce the sound.
Maybe rotate in the opposite direction just in case the "object", if any, is now in a confined area.

[Safety Guy]

Yep, I played with it for a while and the noise does now sound like a "loose nut" or something. Is it better to take the pan off now or wait a few days? I guess I'll have to clean it all off again no matter.

I take it something at the bottom of the oil pan should definitely be removed, right?

Especially if it's a nut or bolt I need!

Karl

[Pu241]

Before you pull the pan, try and use a magnet through the oil drain hole to snag it, after encouraging it toward that end by tilting it via an engine hoist or having you and another person lift and tilt it that way.
This assumes the object will pass through the drain hole.
If not you haven't much choice but to pull the pan.

[Safety Guy]

Thanks John, I'll try that tomorrow morning, or when my Dad can come over to help. I may be missing my 8mm 3/8" socket, but I haven't really looked.

I'm guessing I'll be redoing the pan in the next couple days. Just when things were going so well. What a pain!

Karl

[TominMO]

Before you pull the pan, try and use a magnet through the oil drain hole to snag it, after encouraging it toward that end by tilting it via an engine hoist or having you and another person lift and tilt it that way.

Good call!

[sc72]

Crank Case Noise

Ya you need to remove the pan it could be a rod bolt, if not, look for scrape marks on the pan,maybe something got bent out of shape while the pan was off and now a rod is coming in contact with the tin of the pan. The engine is on a engine stand so you could rotate the engine upright, then spin it and see if the noise goes away. Then yes it could be a nut or bolt. Good luck

[Safety Guy]

Thanks again for the advice guys. This morning I angled the engine stand so the drain hole was at the bottom and rapped it with a mallet. Using the magnet I snagged the something and got it to the hole.

It was a crank seal! I remember comparing seals at the crank nose and I must have left one on top of the MBSP. Obviously it won't come out of the hole, so tomorrow I take the pan off again and redo the whole thing. I have an extra pan gasket kit if the rubber end gaskets seem too messed up to reuse. Plenty of RTV and "Great Stuff" gasket maker, too.

I did get the head installed today. I chased the head bolt threads with my Craftsman tap set and cleaned it off with scraper and brake cleaner. I used that copper spray on the new Beck Arnley gasket and torqued it in three steps. Using my Chilton's guide for 323/Protege/etc. for torque values and order of tightening.

More pics in my updated build thread this weekend. Maybe I'll get the engine in?

Karl