Looking at dropping an '04 / '05 motor into my '03 6 speed (well - paying to have it done to be truthful).
Mechanic (15 year Nissan mechanic) tells me in order to remove the upper oil pan the timing cover has to come off.
His words,

"The lower oil pan is one thing, super simple. You are thinking of the upper oil pan 2-Dimensionally in how it adheres to the block. What you are not taking into account is the 90 intersection to the inner timing cover where it is also siliconed. Trust me 15 years at Nissan/Infiniti and I couldn't tell you how many I've done.
You may be able to "man-handle" the one off the old block but it's super tight and risk breaking. But the biggest thing is the silicone can't be properly applied to the side against the cover, and with a job that in depth we do it right the first time. No leaks, cover off."

Now - In my searching, nowhere have I heard of anyone here taking off the front timing cover in order to get that pan off.

Am I missing something? He refers to an inner timing cover ... huh?

 

Yikes,

15 years he said? sure it wasn't 15 minutes?

Find a new mechanic asap

Upper oil pan is pretty easy to swap out, no timing covers have to be removed either.

 

I don't think that guy has ever worked on a nissan...



Are there any members near you that can help? It's not a hard job and can be done with rather minimal tools. Even if you don't own any tools, you would save a lot of money and gain tools in the process (most importantly, knowledge).

I would inspect the chain guides before buying the motor. If they're worn at all, then that one has not had the guides/chain replaced. You should be able to tell if it was serviced just from the RTV of the timing covers.

 

I have no problem doing the job myself. Lots of tools . Time and a good place to do it is my issue. I hate the idea of not doing it myself. I do have a local mech I deal with for certain things. He's never done me wrong. Gonna talk to this guy. He builds race cars too.

Did my first motor swap when I was 18. We dumped a carbureted 5L mustang engine & 5 speed into an '85 LTD LX. Mid-size sedan with police package. Total sleeper. Mustang suspension too. Off topic - sorry. Good times though.

The first guy I talked to was performance shop and a recommendation from another member - thought I'd check it out. Didn't add up for me though - that's why I'm here now.

And I hear ya on the chain guides.

 

You don't have to make up a story to find out how to take an oil pan off.
That 15 year nissan vet is crazy, if he's real.


Notice how what he's saying makes no sense from the the pics.
Don't you have to take the pan off FIRST to actually get the chain cover off??
Those wings of the back you stick screw drivers in and just wiggle the pan off.
ez business. You can do it.

 

Approximately how much does it weigh? Is it real heavy? Would you need a jack to set it back up in place?

 

Thanks for the picture! You know I'm seeing a razor blade there too in the photo. I would assume it was used to scrape.


When I clean up a pan like that you know I like to shave down one end of a regular tooth brush and use it as a scraper. I'll apply Goo Gone http://googone.com/Home on the other side and use the bristles to scrub. Always works great.

 

Thanks for those pics. I found quite a few myself. Many angles, various states of disassembly. I see nothing particularly tricky here.

 

You'd have to apply a vacuum to the air conditioning system and carefully remove the compressor though.

 

You can just let it hang out and chill. I'm doing that when I do another swap. Screw recharging, that's just just another 10 dollars down the drain haha

 

You better not be talking **** on driveway swaps

Since you're experienced, I'm sure you could do this in a day (like daylight hours) by yourself. With two people it's a breeze. Use reverse psychology on some friends

 

Not **** talking at all. Situation is different now unfortunately. All that Ford stuff was easy. It was my buddy's car and it wasn't his only car. We had the freedom to Screw **** up. I do clearly remember the transmission emptying itself all over the driveway when we split it from the engine. Guess we should have drained it first That's how you learn. No internet, no forums. Haynes manual was all we had.

 

I removed the upper oil pan on my 02 and my 00 last year to get to the rear main seals. I didn't remove the timing cover or evacuate the AC system on either one. Like Child_uv_KoRn said. Just get the compressor out of the way. I either zip tied it or tucked it up out of the way so it wasn't hanging on the hoses.

 

Sorry about the mix up because I have a product called Goof Off which is a rust remover but I have Goo Gone too so I get the names mixed up sometimes.


In a previous post I mentioned goop off but the product I like to use is Goo Gone http://googone.com/Home.


It's great for not just oil pans but for use around the house too.

 

brake cleaner on a rag works great too.