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How fragile are oil pans?

Original Post
Phil Esra · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Apr 2010 · Points: 100

Seems like the most vulnerable part under a car is usually the oil pan, right? Just how easy is it to put a hole in it or tear it open while driving off road in a low-clearance passenger car?

I don't care about beating on an old car on a rough approach--actually, it's fun--but I'd mostly rather not walk home...

wankel7 · · Indiana · Joined Oct 2010 · Points: 10

Depends on the passenger car. Crawl under it and see if the oil pan hangs below the subframe of the car.

Some cars it does. I have VW Jetta and the oil pan is indeed low hanging. I've installed a heavy duty skid plate to help protect it.

I have punctured an oil pan in a Sebring Convertible. I was bombing down a gravel road to go mountain biking. I had no idea there was a hole in the pan.

I got to the TH and threw a leg over the bike. As I was riding away from the car I noticed an oil trail....it was from the car. Opps.

Just slow down and be careful if you are taking a car someplace it shouldn't be. If the terrain ahead looks sketchy don't be afraid to get out and walk it first.

K-Tanz · · Phoenix, AZ · Joined Sep 2010 · Points: 211

My guess is your bigger concern should be getting stuck. I have high centered a few low clearance vehicles and gotten just plain stuck once or twice but never crucified an oil pan.

David Peterson · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Sep 2012 · Points: 130

Cracked the oil pan on my old car last year, didn't feel like I hit too hard either. I had a 02 Passat Wagon. Took the pan off, used that liquid metal stuff, and it held just fine.

gtluke · · Unknown Hometown · Joined May 2012 · Points: 1

I saw a girl crack her oil pan right open on the dirt road leading to beauty mountain on NRG last weekend. She said it was the 3rd one on that car. That road was perfectly fine for driving, must be a terrible design flaw in the jetta.
It was also a wagon, meaning it was built in Germany. And there was a huge "buy local" sticker in the window. I found that entertaining.

Guy Keesee · · Moorpark, CA · Joined Mar 2008 · Points: 349
gtluke wrote:I saw a girl crack her oil pan right open on the dirt road leading to beauty mountain on NRG last weekend. She said it was the 3rd one on that car. That road was perfectly fine for driving, must be a terrible design flaw in the jetta. It was also a wagon, meaning it was built in Germany. And there was a huge "buy local" sticker in the window. I found that entertaining.
its the driver.

lots of folks don't even think about the low hanging pan on street cars...

last summer I was in TM campground... a VW Gulf came rolling through, sort of fast, hit one of the many rocks that are imbedded in the "well maintained pavement"... bam, they didn't even stop. VW made it about 1/2 mile before the motor died.....

made quite a mess, got the hazmat team out from the Valley.

David.... sell the car, before the JB weld unseats. LOL
Morgan Patterson · · NH · Joined Oct 2009 · Points: 8,945
Guy Keesee wrote: David.... sell the car, before the JB weld unseats. LOL
100%... let it be someone else's problem and fast!

And check out some Skid Plates... Subaru only uses plastic these days to "protect" the car with the most vulnerable parts hanging down low, Oil pan, tranny, rear diff.. all of which are heavily protected by these guys' plates. Super easy to install and totally bomber...

writerguy.com/primitive/ski…

And since you're already selling the car you shouldn't have an issue getting a subaru to put these bomber skids on!!
Gunkiemike · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Jul 2009 · Points: 3,492

Plastic "skid plates" e.g. on the Subaru, are there to smooth airflow under the vehicle (and thus improve mpg, which can be HUGELY important to OEMs) rather than to provide any protection.

Trad Princess · · Not That Into Climbing · Joined Jan 2012 · Points: 1,175
Gunkiemike wrote:Plastic "skid plates" e.g. on the Subaru, are there to smooth airflow under the vehicle (and thus improve mpg, which can be HUGELY important to OEMs) rather than to provide any protection.
Don't introduce facts into this!
Phil Esra · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Apr 2010 · Points: 100
gtluke wrote:She said it was the 3rd one on that car. That road was perfectly fine for driving, must be a terrible design flaw in the jetta.
Couldn't decide how tongue-in-cheek you were being. BUT it turns out that there are a lot of VWs out there with weak aluminum oil pans. Terrible design flaw indeed! Shocking. Worst off-road passenger car ever?

Tons of VW owners bitching about it here:

jalopnik.com/5935258/the-su…
vincent L. · · Redwood City · Joined Jan 2005 · Points: 560

...yet another reason why I drive a truck

sonora pass

Phil Esra · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Apr 2010 · Points: 100
johnnyrig wrote: then drive like you bank account depends on it.
Unfortunately that removes 100% of the fun of taking a 2003 Corolla off road.

As someone said upstream, yeah, definitely easier to get it stuck than hole the oil pan. But much more easily remedied!
Phil Esra · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Apr 2010 · Points: 100
caughtinside wrote:It's easy to fling a rock up into and puncture your oil pan. A friend did it to my Jetta a couple years ago. Drive slow.
I guess that's the heart of my question--assume you're moving at crawl speed, and being strategic about the paths all 4 tires and underbody are taking (because the trail is rough enough that you will get stuck or just unable to continue otherwise). I'm wondering--maybe unanswerable--how likely it is that oil pan-to-ground contact will result in a catastrophic leak. (Assuming you're not in an aluminum-panned VW, disaster!) Seems like the most likely scenario to cause damage would be when the suspension is compressing when a front wheel is coming down off a drop-off--not only is the vehicle's path suddenly lower, but the dynamic movement is adding to the problem. (And there's a fair amount of dynamic movement no matter how gently you ease the wheel down, because your crispy 2003 OEM struts are just there to hold the wheels upright at this point.)

I think maybe the best answer to the question is to drive the Corolla until it (_FINALLY_) dies, then replace it with a Subaru and buy a $200 aftermarket skid plate for it. I assume that off-roading the Corolla will help accelerate the process, but getting stranded somewhere remote could be a hardship.
Guy Keesee · · Moorpark, CA · Joined Mar 2008 · Points: 349

German Engineering

Had enuf?

I have a 1967 MGBGT .... a very rare model, aluminum hood, all steel dash and a
CHROME MOLLY oil pan!!! I have owned it for years and it has lots of memories....

Like the time we decided to go south from Josh. There are two roads one is 4x4 to Palm Springs... the other paved to the 10 fwy, by Chirrico Summit (sp).

I got on the dirt one by mistake, if you drive south to north it's clearly marked "4 x 4 only" But from the north nothing, no markers nothing. After a few miles I start hitting these rock crawling spots??!!! I figured it was just some washouts.... I got to far to turn back, dropped that sucker into some pretty rutted, deep rockey shit, got it hi-sided some, used the jack --- I did everything. Finally I made it to smooth dirt.... The oil pan looked like somebody pounded on it with a 20 lb sledge!!!!!!

But no oil leaked out the pan.

I am happy to learn about the VW BS... about 2000 I decided to not buy another VW cause they are now made in Mexico and stuff just looked CHEAP and from my experience they are hard to work on, and the parts are way over priced.

now its HONDA all the way.

Craig Childre · · Lubbock, TX · Joined Aug 2006 · Points: 4,860

Joker in me points out... the tires are the most important part... such that you keep an extra one in the trunk.

Depends on your car... 2000 era VW's used aluminum pans that hang low. Isn't uncommon to see them get perforated. One can get a beefy aftermarket skid plate to compensate.

Years back in a Toyota Rent-a-car driving on a simple gravel road doing 45-50 oil pan took a rock shot, but didn't visibly leak, held oil pressure, till we stopped for refreshments and stopped the engine. Then oil just poured out... lucky to catch most of it in a pan... RTV sealant... replaced the oil... ran fine all the way back to the rental shop.

Craig Childre · · Lubbock, TX · Joined Aug 2006 · Points: 4,860
Phil Esra wrote:I'm wondering--maybe unanswerable--how likely it is that oil pan-to-ground contact will result in a catastrophic leak. (Assuming you're not in an aluminum-panned VW, disaster!)
Knowing the VW well... I'd advise anyone rolling one now to swap in a steel oil pan and the steel or aluminum skid plate. The plastic stock thing is one step above cardboard, and who ever thought a low hanging aluminum pan was a good idea?
Phil Esra · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Apr 2010 · Points: 100
Craig Childre wrote: and who ever thought a low hanging aluminum pan was a good idea?
Unbelievable.
Josh Janes · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Jun 2001 · Points: 9,954

They're fragile.

Here's my old, beloved Saab which made it up some pretty gnarly roads (think in and out of the Needles, California and into the Optimator Wall and many other climbing areas) until one tiny, perfectly located stray rock on the road into Creek Pasture tore a gaping hole in the oil pan. No amount of JB Weld could patch that baby.

Cya Later Oil Pan!

bernard wolfe · · birmingham, al · Joined Jan 2007 · Points: 265

you know......you can also have the pan arc-welded.....instead of JB

wankel7 · · Indiana · Joined Oct 2010 · Points: 10

I didn't buy my 03 VW Jetta for its off road clearance. I bought it for 48.8 mpg and the 800 mile range :)

http://www.dieselgeek.com/MK4_Jetta_Golf_New_Beetle_GTI_R32_skid_plate_p/pp-mk4.htm

These skid plates are a good idea. However they have failed to protect if you take a huge hit.

David Peterson · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Sep 2012 · Points: 130
Guy Keesee wrote: David.... sell the car, before the JB weld unseats. LOL
haha replaced pan after a couple weeks then scrapped it a few months after it happened. I couldn't have sold that car to save my life.
Guideline #1: Don't be a jerk.

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