I don't get this. I pulled the oil pan a couple weeks ago on our 03 SSei to seal it up. I just looked at it, and its leaking again worse than it was.

I used a Felpro gasket and torqued the bolts to 125 inch pounds.

What are the tricks to sealing it correctly with this tiny gasket? Where should I put the black RTV? Do the bolts themselves need any sealant?

Thanks

Are you using the cork or rubber gasket?

This is the aluminum oil pan that uses a rubber thin gasket that sits in a grove of the oil pan. Guess what I am asking for is the proper technique to seal these up.

http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e2...yOilPan006.jpg

I hate aluminum pans. Even if you get the torque sequence perfect, you still end up with a leak. If you can, power clean the seam, run it, look for the leak and either back off on 2 bolts or increase torque on those. It'* a hit or miss game.

Ok, instead of replacing the gasket again, I'll play with the bolt torque some. Wish I had used rtv on the inside of the gasket and around the bolt holes. Thanks

When you get the pan off, you will notice at the front of the block is 2 cracks where a plate mates with the block itself. This is a prone area for leakage. Use RTV to fill in the gaps. And if you have enough, run a thin bead all the way around your oil pan. What'* it going to hurt right?

i always run a good thick bead of permatex ultra black on oil pans, as long as you dont put so much its going to get into the engine, if it squishes out on the outside who cares. just go around the bolts, like you said. you dont want to go crazy with the bolts because that will squish the seal and rtv out, i normally just go slightly tight like hold the wrench at the socket end give it a firm twist that way. that normally takes care of the leak the first time. and you have to let it sit over night for the permatex to dry