Engine Pans

Henrietta

Henrietta

Junior Member
Another question from a newbie...while the old man put my new tires on the 1928, I got the job of sorting out the boxes of parts that we got when we bought her. In the box was a set of engine pans, which I had to search the interwebs to figure out what they are (I modeled them as shin guards). Does anyone have any strong feelings about installing engine pans? From what I've read so far, they seem to disappear from Model A's. I'm having a hard time finding any information on installation (all I have found is between the engine and the chassis, but where?!). Anybody have any ideas?

Thanks!
 
Yes install them they provide a ground path to engine and frame and also aid in cooling. They mount on the frame and engine oil pan bolts from underneath the car and fill the space between the frame and engine sides
 
The reason so many disappeared off Model A's in the old days was because mechanics did not want to go to the trouble to reinstall them. Model A folklore has it that they are a source of electrical ground and they add to engine cooling. They do help keep mud from splashing up on the engine, but the best reason for installing them back on a Model A is because they belong there and a Model A looks odd when they are missing.

Tom Endy
 
I read, probably here on the barn, that a way to make installing engine pans easier is to drill and thread the holes in the frame and use bolts instead of nuts to attach the pans. I just tried it , on a car that's not a show car, and it works great.
 
Each mount using 2 oil pan bolts and three bolts and nuts on the frame.

They may have been removed if the front engine mount was changed from rigid to spring which requires the nose of the pans to be modified by bending the front edge up.

I was checking for leaks and had my pans off and I could tell the difference in operating temp.
They are functional, look good and only take 2 minutes to take off or put on.
 
We went for a long ride on dirt roads and found that the cars without pans had a dust trail right up to the carburetor, and the ones with the pans blocked the dust.
We figured this might be how they got away with no air filter when new.
 
I put the pans back on my coupe....when your working on the car put a rag in the pan,it will catch wrenches, screws,nuts when you drop them.
 
TodooR31, twist a piece of safety wire around the screw holding your air cleaner to the carburetor and twist the other end around the intake manifold. This will prevent your air cleaner from "departing" on the road.......
 
Marshall57 said:
We went for a long ride on dirt roads and found that the cars without pans had a dust trail right up to the carburetor, and the ones with the pans blocked the dust.
We figured this might be how they got away with no air filter when new.
Click to expand...


+1 Lots of dirt roads in my neighborhood and tons of sand everywhere.
 
I run engine pans on my roadster and 31 tudor ,they run cooler and cleaner under the hood. When I installed float-A-motor motor mounts on the coupe back in 1980, the instructions said to remove engine pans. That may be the reason that many don't use engine pans. I prefer original motor mounts and feel that engine pans are important and should be used.

There are three holes on the bottom of the frame rails where the engine pans mount . To make engine pan installation an easy one person job , tap these holes to 5/16 -18 threads per inch and you won't need to use nuts or need help.
 
Purdy Swoft said:
There are three holes on the bottom of the frame rails where the engine pans mount . To make engine pan installation an easy one person job , tap these holes to 5/16 -18 threads per inch and you won't need to use nuts or need help.
Click to expand...

I like that idea. But I think I'd do both - tap the holes to make installation easier, and then put nuts on the protruding end of the bolts. Belt & suspenders, yep, but would also keep the bolts from working out due to vibration.
 
Imo, use the pans. Insofar as the 5/6"-18 tapping of the frame holes to make engine pan removal/reinstallation easier, I did this several years ago, would strongly recommend it and - despite the beat-to-heck roads around here - have had no problems with the bolts loosening (i.e., the belts-and-suspenders "...nuts on the protruding end..." may be overkill and defeat the one-person advantage of the tapped bolt holes). I did use lock washers with the 5/6"-18 bolts.
 
Good idea!!! actually best of both worlds. You get ease of installation without risk of bolts eventually backing out from vibration.
 
Napa Skip said:
"...nuts on the protruding end..." may be overkill and defeat the one-person advantage of the tapped bolt holes). I did use lock washers with the 5/6"-18 bolts.
Click to expand...

No, put the bolts on from the bottom, tightly; then tighten nuts from the top.

I was actually able to install the bolts & nuts solo; the head of the bolts (on top) seemed to grab sufficiently to snug up the nuts (on the bottom) and compress the lock washers. But I still like the idea of threading the holes better.
 
Sorry to say that I failed to give credit where credit is due in post # 13 . I think that tapping the frame holes was Napa Skips brain child, in the first place . I was just passing on what i consider to be good info that I learned from reading this forum.
 
I find the pan tabs tend to crack and break over time. I just make little rubber spacers especially for the engine side to lower the pans just a bit and allow them to flex a little.
 
Sacre bleu! "...Napa Skips brain child.."? I should be so lucky (or smart). I forget where I ran across this idea (I think probably it was a Tiny Tip in The Restorer if not here on FordBarn).

In the event, thanks for the nod. Although the idea of tapped engine pan bolt holes in the frame is a good idea (imo) it certainly didn't originate with me.

I did have an original idea a couple of years ago. Wish I could remember what it was...
 
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