When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
My oil pan damage was much worse. I was out to lunch one Sunday after church to a neighborhood restaurant with my wife and two kids (18 & 14 yrs old, yes sitting in back, and I promised only short trips) and hit the pan hard existing the parking lot onto the street. I took the pan off and took it to work, (design-build mechanical contractor) and had our fabrication shop weld it up on the inside and outside. I don't know the welding details but they did a great job and no charge! Since I had changed the oil recently, I reused the oil and filter. I reused the pan gasket just in case I had to remove the pan again. I have a new gasket I can change out at the next oil change.
While I had the pan off I followed Jake Raby's video and scoped the bores from below. I saw some minor, singular scratches in each of the bores. It matched what I saw from the top, thru the spark plug hole. I showed the videos to Bellevue Porsche and got the the response I expected, no problems. My car is still under CPO warranty. No noises, exhaust soot or other bore scoring signs so I'm driving it as much as I can and enjoying it.
As a mechanical engineer with an undergraduate specialty in metallurgy, this should have been marked NSFW. I'm really uncomfortable looking at that superb overhand weld technique.
I dont know. I'm sort of risk averse, but I would not mess around with my oil pan, I would just get a new one. While your at it grab the skid plate. This is exactly why I did just that. Low car with a huge oil pan just hanging out.
I hope this is one situation that I don't have to face in the future. I would agree with TopKatz's comments above.
Maybe if I had a Camaro or some other such car (rather than a Porsche), I might be inclined to seek out a weld repair like this.
For a Porsche, you'll end up paying the price ultimately when you go to sell it as Porsche buyers tend to look into a new purchase in a much more studied fashion (how many times have we advised or read - Get a PPI...?)
The scrape and weld would stick out to a Porsche PPI tech like a red neon sign at midnight (a sign that says the owner felt the car was not worth it or valuable enough to get it addressed properly.) As a buyer, I might wonder - what else did the owner of this car cut corners on???
I would bite the bullet and purchase a new pan, install it and be done with it.
such a stupid attitude. Why throw out a good chunk of aluminum when all it needs is 5 minutes of welding. It used to be that was the RIGHT way to do the repair. Now its just, go buy a new one and throw the old thing in the trash.
sad.
As for messing with the oil pan...its a totally unstressed member. Welding is actually overkill. For a pin hole, the jbweld would more than cover it.
While the above approach could be fine I just can’t subscribe to it. Not with my 911. Call my stance on it what you will but I don’t treat my Porsche like any other car. I personally would need to fix it right. I also agree with the post that when and if the car is sold this would be a “thing”.
Guys - my suggestion for JB Weld is above already. $5 in JB Weld and 5 minutes and the repair is done. The worst case is - the JB Weld fails at some point - and the oil pan might drip/seep a drop again. This is not severe damage - not a crack and would NEVER result in a low oil level that would cause engine damage.
Next major service, drop the pan and get it welded if you are still concerned.
such a stupid attitude. Why throw out a good chunk of aluminum when all it needs is 5 minutes of welding. It used to be that was the RIGHT way to do the repair. Now its just, go buy a new one and throw the old thing in the trash.
sad.
As for messing with the oil pan...its a totally unstressed member. Welding is actually overkill. For a pin hole, the jbweld would more than cover it.
We clearly have different perspectives and sense of value.
I respect your right to a differing opinion - and although I don't agree with it, I would not refer your view (or the views of any others here) as stupid.
I think the forum is a great way to exchange views on topics. Passing judgement on another member's perspective labelling it as stupid is not something that elevates or advances our experience here.
Interesting- More popcorn!
Alusil is weldable in general but not in the cylinder area of the block due to the high Silicon content in the hypereutectic alloy. I should not have mentioned this as we are looking at an oil sump (pan) . I threw it out there in case someone was familiar with alloy aluminum engine material.
However , the point is the oil pan, sump etc is cast in a different material. From the picture noted, we can see part of the material designation stating the Si, Mg and Mn but not all the values or percentages . Someone post the rest of the information and we can carry on to infinitely
The example picture of the repaired pan shows a good bead with porosity.
As to the original posters question-
Just weld it up.
Or buy a new one
Or buy a new one with a new car attached on top of it. It is your money.
Don't any of you guys do your own welding? (let's also say my metallurgy education is slightly above undergraduate).
cheers!
I'd JB Weld it, then purchase a new pan later to install if/when I decided to sell the car. I think both approaches have merit here. I would not use JB Weld inside the pan though due to concerns over acidity in the oil eroding the epoxy over time.
My 2 cents: If you plan on keeping the car until it blows up JB weld it from the inside or TIG weld it from the inside. If you plan on ever selling it. Replace the pan. Porsche owners are a different breed of OCD people than most car people. If was in the market to buy your car and I saw JB weld on the oil pan my next thought, like many others on here, would be what other corner was cut that I cannot see.
JB weld from the outside may or may not work as there is a crack full of oil that cannot be adequately cleaned to have the JB weld adhere to. Totally your call, but I would call a Porsche salvage yard if you ever think of selling it.
We clearly have different perspectives and sense of value.
I respect your right to a differing opinion - and although I don't agree with it, I would not refer your view (or the views of any others here) as stupid.
I think the forum is a great way to exchange views on topics. Passing judgement on another member's perspective labelling it as stupid is not something that elevates or advances our experience here.
Little sensitive, but fair. Stupid was not the right word...sad, however, I will stand by. Its sad not because people are hyper ****, but rather sad because we've become a disposable culture. I get the damaged oil pan will almost definitely be recycled, but jeez, junking a part due to a pin hole is sad. To repair it seems to me not a short cut, but rather a wise, reasonable repair.
As I said above, way too many posts when I was on S2Ki of welds in oil pans gone wrong. The risk to me would not at all be worth the reward. If it would make you feel better I would put it on the garage wall as decoration and a reminder to be more careful.
New pan is about $600. I would not be afraid of having it TIG welded by a good welder. Weld should be done on the outside with the pan off the car and thoroughly cleaned. Many aftermarket oil pans used all over the world, in racing, are of welded construction so there is no issue with welds on an oil pan. Go to summit racing and you'll find thousands of them - deep sump pans for LS engines for example (https://www.summitracing.com/parts/chp-pro1150ko). Even cylinder heads can be welded - in the ports, spark plug holes, combustion chambers, etc.
If you get it welded, have it done by a trustworthy pro who has welded engine parts before and ensure they are TIG welding it and using the right rod. The weld service would likely cost around $120 - or whatever the charge is for an hour of work. That wouldn't include labor to R&R the pan from the engine or the cost of the new gasket.
Or just drop $600 for a new pan, swap it out, and be done with it.
What kind of roads do you guys drive on to hit the pan that hard???
Or do you guys have the car slammed with 4" of clearance...?
Out here in Colorado, we have lots of roads with huge dips -- sometimes on purpose for storm water runoff -- as well as some poorly designed and placed speed bumps. Driving out here, I'd rather raise the car than lower it.
11-18-2020 | 11:30 AM
