'08 Astra Oil Pan Resealed!

You've probably heard me talk about it before (on my YouTube channel), but in case not . . . the oil pan (a.k.a., "sump") on my 2008 Saturn Astra was leaking. It was to the point that I was giving my car a good oil undercoating and I could smell it burning on the exhaust pipe whenever I would stop at a stop sign. So, today (July 1, 2023 [Canada Day, incidentally]), I pulled the pan off, resealed it, and reinstalled it.
It sounds easy enough, but it's actually somewhat steppy, since you have to move a number of things out of the way to gain access. Thankfully, I have a Haynes manual, which included good instructions.
Sorry there is no video. I didn't film it for two reasons:
  1. I work on the ground in my driveway with a jack and jack stands. Getting a camera under there, finding the correct angles, and getting the best lighting is quite an ordeal that I didn't want to mess with because . . .
  2. I was working against the weather. The morning was bright and beautiful (although it got warm and muggy), but as I was finishing up, a severe thunderstorm watch had been announced. Based on the forecasts I read in this morning, rain was coming, and the last thing I wanted to leave to chance was to have my oil pan off and bottom of my engine wide open with crankshaft exposed and then have it rain torrentially. Of course the rain has not come yet (I'm okay with that)--it'll probably rain when I'm supposed to be grilling bratwursts (I am not okay with that).
So, I just did the job sans video camera.
I did, however, get a couple of photos for you. In the first, the pan is off, so you can see the crankshaft. The second is the resealed and reinstalled pan.


After pan reinstallation and refilling the oil (and changing the filter it was time]), I started it up and ran it briefly. No check engine light and not major or noticeable leaks, so that's good. Tomorrow, after the RTV has time to fully cure, I will take it for a solid test drive and check for leaks again. I'll let you know if anything weird happens!
What's next? Well, I noticed that the right (passenger) side axle boot must be loose right by the transmission. It's not torn (I checked), but it's starting to fling a little grease. So I will need to keep an eye on that joint. I also need to replace the front control arms at some point. Maybe late summer or early Fall.
You gotta love old cars!🙂