[updated:LAST EDITED ON 10-Feb-02 AT 06:44 PM (EST)]94 f150, 302, 4x4.
The oil pan has lots of blister spots on the paint and rust under the blisters. I have to replace the pan gasket because it has deteriorated and leaks. I am considering pulling the pan completely out to repaint it, but that is a major task. I would rather just drop the pan and replace the gasket. Does anyone know if there is a risk the pan may rust all the way through? If this is true that is pitiful. I have seen 60 year old cars in junk heaps that are still holding oil in the pans. Why would these new fords rust out in less than 10 years?

 

Mine had blisters when I got it 3 years ago on my 92 5.0 F150.I sanded them all & used Rustoleums anti rust stuff called "Reformer". So far no more rust. You could sand them & if none leak coat them with antirust.

 

I have a 91 F150 with a 4.9 and blister spots all over the oil pan. There is even one that seems to be seeping oil. I am in the process of fixing/replacing my transmission so I am replacing the oil pan and oil pump while I have the trans out.

Marty

 

Mine was like that and one spot felt like it would bow in if you pressed on it. We replaced the pan and from the inside I could see that the old pan was very solid and really didn't need to be replaced. However, we did find the oil pickup screen half clogged with sludge (first 58,000 mile history unknown), so that alone made it worth while pulling the pan (and it was easier since the tranny and clutch were out anyway at the time).

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Dropped my oil pan today and mine was just like TallPaul said. On the outside I would have sworn that the thing was about to pop leaks all over the place, but it was solid on the inside. The seeping oil may have been due to the chipping paint trapping oil from the drain (which was nearby) and the exterior rust on the pan. At 140,000 everything else was ok. I replaced my oil pan anyway and the oil pump.

Marty

 

The very bottom of the oil pan on my 94 F-150 300 I6 is missing paint and rusty. I am getting ready to change the pan gasket and I was considering replacing the pan. I also considered having the oil pan powder coated. Is it safe to powder coat the inside of the pan or should I just have the outside coated? Should I skip the powder and just strip and repaint the pan? Does anyone have a good pan for one of these?

 

The early '90s V-8s were the subject of an oil pan recall by Ford...my dad got a new pan put on about three years ago. I'm not sure if that recall applied to the six-bangers though.

Pat

 

I realized the same problem on my 93 F150 with the I6 about 2 years ago, I used a rust converter, rustoleum I think, after i sanded down the loose stuff an d painted obver that and I ahve had no problems at all. I live in New england so if the road salt didn't eat by now i am still good. it all depends whenn you catch it, my cousin had to pull the one off of his 90 F250 cause it basically fell apart on one oil change.

 

There is no magic about powder coating. It is just paint without the liquid solvents. Before I would go through the expense of powder coating, I would buy a replacement pan that has a good coat of paint. It probably won't cost any more and you get a new pan instead of one that is already rusted. Unless you completely grind all the rust away there is always a risk that the rust will come back in the future, no matter what coating process you use.

 

My 95 F-150 351 was only a small pebble away from losing all of it's oil. The owners before me had a service station always change the oil, and they noticed the pan was bad. They took it into a shop and they replaced the pan. Looking at it after the fact all I had to do was gently push on the teflon like coating on the inside and it broke right through. Very scary. The mechanic mentioned something about this year and engine combo being bad. Better to be safe than very sorry.

Joey

 

I had to replace the pan on my '93 302 also. The rust is there because they used re-claimed steel that wasn't recycled properly, so that the rust was already there when the truck rolled out of the factory. Changing the pan was a real pain (Mines 4x4), so I would recommend the rust reformer paint route if you just have a small leak.

Chris

 

my 89' 302 oil pan had the same bubbles and rust spots...i spent about 12-15 hours trying to sand the old paint off of the pan and went through a can of aircraft paint remover before i finally got it all off...tough paint but not touch enough for rust...:-X23