Engine & Transmission Removal No.2 (Part 2)

After letting the sealant cure for 24 hours, I refilled the engine with oil. It still leaked! Although this time I could see that it was seeping out in an area where I knew I had not put any sealant close to the outside of the sump, as the bolt holes tracked further in. 


Before I stripped it back down, I compared the photos I had taken the previous day of the freshly disassembled parts and compared these to the manual, and to the factory sump I still had. This showed me that the Raceline sump and the factory sump were very different in there structure, specifically in the area where it was leaking. By following the Ford manual for applying the sealant I had unwittingly put the sealant in a spot where it would never be sealed. I dug around for the Raceline sump instructions, and sure enough there is a small photo showing where to apply the sealant (you need to look hard!). This was different to what I had done. 


So I drained the oil and popped the sump off expecting to see some sealant still sitting in a bead because it hasn't been sealed (photo on the left), and a clean part of the flange on the sump where it didn't get sealed at all. (photo on the right)

Lets call this a tada moment because it was exactly as I expected!! 


So an hour was spent cleaning off the old (yesterday's) sealant and I was ready to reapply correctly as per the Raceline instructions. I also made the nozzle hole larger on the sealant tube and improved the flow of sealant to make it easier as I was still using the previous tube of sealant. 


Something still had to go wrong, so as I refitted the sump with the new sealant, the thimble seal for the oil pickup dropped out twice, firstly jamming the sump from fitting, and secondly by dropping into the bowels of the up turned engine! Once I refitted the thimble seal, I got the sump on cleanly, and torqued the bolts up. I also replaced the troublesome bolt with one 5mm shorter (which i had previously tested) to make sure I was getting torque on the mating face and not on the the end of the bolt bottoming out in the thread. The end result was that I had a nice even ripple of sealant right around the join.


So maybe this time I have got it? Again I will let the sealant cure for 24 hours before refilling the engine with oil and testing for leaks. So while frustrating, its far better understanding why it happened. Lesson learnt....read ALL the manuals for the job you are doing!


Hopefully part 3 of this will be how it tested dry and I could refit the engine, and not a for sale notice!