Rakkasan_Jeep

Anyone ever done one of these? I've looked in the mechanics book, looked at service time, and seen a video or two on Youtube. From what I've been told it should take 3.5 hours, but when I looked at this video on you tube, the guy said to pull the pan you had to disconnect the sway bar and strut?

Any truth to any of this or has anyone ever done it?

EightEleven

Just a heads up, I had to pull oil pans off 2 4.7 engines.. the one I took out and the one I put in. I literally had to swing a hammer and a chisel all the way around the pan (good luck doing that under the Jeep) to separate the pan from the windage trey/gasket..
The gasket adheres really well to the pan and comes off the block a lot easier. With that being said, the windage trey is bolted to the lower cradle in the engine. These 3 bolts cannot be removed unless the oil pan is off.
On top of the other stuff that may or may not need to be removed to do this job from underneath, I say have it done by a shop.
Furthermore, I am willing to bet that you will damage the windage trey/gasket. Be prepared to buy one and maybe even a new pan. The 2 pieces bought together will cost $150 from part store.
Good luck

Rakkasan_Jeep

Ohh ouch.. thanks.. appreciate the heads up

dave1123

Just my opinion, but anyone who uses a chisel to remove an aluminum oil pan SHOULD have to buy a new one. Ouch is right!

EightEleven

In the manual it indicates there is a specific spot on each side to remove with said chisel. Because the engine bed is made from a cast graphite/iron mix its very brittle, this is specifically why they molded in these special ramps for a removal tool.
Someone used a crapload of RTV on the pan of the block I pulled out. The pan was rusted anyway. The new engine was smashed because these junkyards only use a old tire to support the engine, so yea had to replace the pan but not because of my removal procedure!
The second pan came off the block very easy but the issue was separating the windage trey gasket from the pan. I would bet that there is a handful of people who might have been able to remove both items undamaged, but since the windage trey is only made out of very thin metal it was not possible to be salvaged as it was stuck on the pan. I tried to slide in a razor blade but no luck. I suppose I could have applied a flame to it to release the rubber mold but if it were RTV sealed as my other, that wouldnt work well either.. Anyway I'm no mechanic and I dont have a $15K tool set with every specific tool, with that being said I did what I had too!

dave1123

Agreed. I was remiss in thinking you were a fool. I apologize for my mistake. A lot of engineers don't plan on taking things apart themselves, do they?

The way I understand it, a lot of the parts in the 4.7 are made of powdered metal. That's why I question the engine's longevity.

I just read a write-up on the 4.7 at allpart.com and they state the windage tray and the oil pan gasket are an integral part. This is probably why you're having trouble getting it off. If this is the case, you'll have to buy a new one anyway.

One thing you have to remember. If the heads warp enough, they can throw the cam bearings out of alignment. This can cause the bearings to wear out of round and effectively destroy the head. I found this on a OHC Honda that a guy asked me to mill flat. A straight-edge laid across the cam bearings showed a .030" gap at one end. He bolted it back together and sold the car to some unsuspecting dude. Not cool!

EightEleven

Thank you, apology accepted..

Yea the engine had a rod knock but it ran so I figured I would rebuild it.
Not Exactly..
The engine oil held all of the missing bearing plus .046 of crank material plus whatever the rods measured.

So all of that missing material got injected into the heads and gouged the hell out of the journals. I stumbled on a 44K engine for $1800 and couldnt pass up but I was going to have the heads line bored for cam bearings.

I believe the lower end of the 4.7 is bulletproof. Of course without oil nothing will survive.lol
Finally my best news is that I traded my old engine for a IRO 3" lift! The guy is local to me and wants to rebuild a spare backup engine!
Score!!

dave1123

Getting someone to pay money for your trash is way too cool!

I find the manufacturing design of the rods interesting. They are forged powdered metal and the rod caps are integrally molded, line bored, then sheared off. The bolts are tapped into the rods and don't use nuts.

Like you say, the bottom end seems strong, as long as there is oil pressure.

What happened to my Chevy 350 will not happen with the 4.7. My wife overheated and seized it. After it cooled off, I started and drove it onto a trailer. It rattled badly and had about 5 psi oil pressure. All I did to rebuild it was replace the crank and one rod, plane the heads, and all bearings including the cam bearings. Down the road!