239 V8 Oil Pan Leak

N

New2modelA

Junior Member
Hello All!

I found a puddle of oil at the front of my recently installed oil pan.

Took me FOREVER to find the culprit!

It is coming from the strange slot ( see the attachment) , at the front right of the pan. I could seal it up BUT. I would rather be safe then sorry....Am I missing some component OR can I use Permatex & cork material to seal it up?

Thank you in advance!

Chris
 

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Your strange slot is your crankcase breather. Sealing it up would cause results similar to sealing up the nose on your face.
 
That slot is just part of the breather system on a flathead. Have you made any changes to the oil filler lately? It has to be able to let air into the engine so it can get out of the slot. If you don't understand how the system works, check out this diagram.
 

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There is a tube in the lifter valley under the intake manifold that is in line with the vent in the pan. If for some reason it is not in there. you'll have that leak.
 
Also, the gasket on the oil pan should have a "triangle" cut out that covers that area of the pan above the breather. If the gasket is not correctly sealed on the pan in that area, then oil can easily splash/flow into the breather. My guess is that you're missing the upper breather tube like 'FlatJack9' mentioned. Is this a new engine . . . what is the history on it?
 
Many oil leaks are due to improper installation of the rope seals when they have been cut to fit the groove in the pan. The seals must rise above the pan so that are forced into place when the pan is installed. This causes the seal to expand.
 
drain the sump and refill measure what you put back could be its overfull and engines will get rid of to much oil any way they can dipsticks are notorious for being incorrect
 
As I recall, not all of the flat head engines had the crank case breather in the pan rail.
An additional thought, If a PCV system is added to a flat head engine, the crack case breather would need to be eliminated. The PCV would draw air through the vented breather cap on the oil fill stand pipe and into the combustion/intake system to be burnt off.
 
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