Sump Chop

admin

Im in the process of putting a 3.3L Subaru into a volkswagen vanagon. bit of an interesting combination if you ask me, but i was really wanting to do an engine swap.  so today i made my final engine modification and chopped the oil pan. took 1.5" off of the oil pan and replaced it with a piece of 1/4" diamond plate. also had to relocate the oil plugi was slightly hesitant about doing this because i would have to tig weld it and ive only done some aluminum. doesnt look pretty but good welds. well i practiced on a coupon of .125" and within 5 minutes my fears were gone, again does look great but its a good weld.tomorrow comes the dia-penetrant test. my hopes are high but i wouldnt be surprised with 1 leak seeing as its my first time with steel, and two different thicknesses. i did learn to not let my torch sit, had 2 small holes get away from me as i was trying to feed more rod and let my torch sit.i filled up our autolab sink with water (flat bottom sink) up to 1.5" and set the pan in. i put a little bit of detergent in the water the first time, but i didnt get a good outcome so the second time i just used water. dont know if it made a difference or not.i took the mark from the water and used it as a reference line. then put a level on top and measured down 1.5" and made my marks. the pan was dented (i think a previous owner or mechanic might have hoisted the motor from the oil pan) so one side was a little low. then taped it off and got the old sawzall out. i secured it to a piece of plywood made it level, then cut a 11x8 piece of wood and used it as a flat surface, marked off with permanent marker and proceeded to grind away.and finally the finished product. i think im going to paint it purple for our school color, but i havnt decided yet. i cut out the drain plug off the piece that was removed and placed it as low as i could go, and facing the rear for easy access. the only task that can be done with the motor in the van is fluid change. anything else it has to be dropped and worked on.sorry if the pics are too big, im having problems with photo bucket at the momentI break things for a living...
Reply:Pics look fine sd but I still don't think you'll be able to jack on the pan even with that TP bottom.I assume you'll be shortening the pick up screen tube as well?  Interesting project.MM200 w/Spoolmatic 1Syncrowave 180SDBobcat 225G Plus - LP/NGMUTT Suitcase WirefeederWC-1S/Spoolmatic 1HF-251D-1PakMaster 100XL '68 Red Face Code #6633 projectStar Jet 21-110Save Second Base!
Reply:Is the pan gasket flange still flat, all the way around; after all that commotion?Blackbird
Reply:Nice job.  Because the oil pan volume is reduced, will you have to supplement the oil capacity with an external tank?  Interesting project.  Please keep posting.
Reply:Just run a larger oil cooler to regain the lost oil, I run a small oil cooler and a diesel filter on my 8v and gained over a quart of capacity.
Reply:Originally Posted by duaneb55Pics look fine sd but I still don't think you'll be able to jack on the pan even with that TP bottom.I assume you'll be shortening the pick up screen tube as well?  Interesting project.