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Is leaving the tranny pan off for a few days bad?

ay ay ron

NAXJA Forum User
Location
Sacramento
My first attempt at putting the pan back on was a royal failure, with fluid coming out of every orifice. I also stipped out a bolt or two so ive been dealing with that.

Because of that, my pan has been off for 4 days down. Ive heard that this could mess up the pressure internally AKA "loss of prime fault."

Anyone have experience with this?
 
And use some Heli-coils to fix the threads!
 
I leave mine off for a day, spray it down with a can of brake cleaner, let it dry for a few hours. It sure makes the job a lot easier without all the oil dripping in your eyes, your mouth, your hair and in your ears.:)
 
My 2-cents? Slow down. Be easy. Gaskets should be tight, but not over-tight. If you are new at this, run every bolt in with your fingers as far as you can. Use a ratchet to snug them down, then add a 1/2 turn with a wrench. Climb under the next day and look for leaks. Fluid will drip off of the bolts near the leaks. Tighten a LITTLE BIT. 1/4-1/2 turn. Tranny and Oil Pan gaskets are particularly finicky. If you crush the gasket by over tightening it will leak. To strip a bolt you either massively over-tightened or cross-threaded. ALWAYS run bolts in with your fingers so you can feel threads. If the bolt wont go, run an oiled tap in the hole and try again (if possible). Never just run an old bolt into an old hole with a powered wrench. No harm in leaking and tightening up a couple more times. Lots of harm in over-tightening, crushing gaskets and stripping bolt holes. Slow down and go easy.

Good Luck.
 
If the truck is inside, it should be fine. If you left it outside in a driveway or such, clean it as best you can with brake cleaner.

Wind can blow dirt and other contaminants onto the oily surfaces. Like previously stated, oil is a dirt magnet. In the future, its a really good idea to temporarily put the pan back on with a few bolts just to minimize exposure to the elements.
 
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