Crossmember mod
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Postmaster
Joined: Apr 2009
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From: Malahat/Cowichan Valley
Crossmember mod
Well i am going to go through with the crossmember modification. The engineering shop here in town does them often and makes them where they bolt in with grade 8 hardware. Not one issue reported and their vehicle that they tried it on three years ago still works perfect. No alignment issues, no wobble, nothing. it is a F450 4x4 and it is their all around truck. plows snow, hauls parts, cars, trucks, etc etc. I am no longer worried about it because i know for a fact that i will never be able to put my truck through that much stress. Total is about 4 hours labor plus parts and comes to right about 400. Ford quoted me 19hrs and the other diesel specialist in town quoted 25 hours. Both are about 100 an hour, ford comes in at 95, and sometimes i can get them to drop it to 75 an hour. I gave them a lot of business so i guess i earned it hahaha. so the diesel specialist, is 2500 for labor alone, and ford at cheapest is about 1500 and normally around 1900. This will enable me to do a oil pan swap or reseal or any work under there in a fraction of the time. aside from oil drain time, the removal and replacement of the crossmember takes them about 30 minutes. Is it worth it, how can i say no?
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Postmaster
Joined: Apr 2009
Posts: 4,086
Likes: 1
From: Malahat/Cowichan Valley
well it seems that they will cut the xmember before the engine mounts, drill holes and drop it out. while out it gets the double sided tabs that mate to the frame side and it all goes together like clockwork. Cant wait for the drop off next week. Ill get the valley pan fixed this weekend, gotta love felpro.
Cargo Master
Joined: Nov 2003
Posts: 2,585
Likes: 1
From: Duluth, Mn.
So Your basically gonna cut the truck in half to remove the oil pan???
Huh... seems to Me, it'd be cheaper, and easier to just remove the engine. DIY!
I've heard of Guys lifting the engine, unbolting the oil pump, and removing the oil pan. Seems to work.
Huh... seems to Me, it'd be cheaper, and easier to just remove the engine. DIY!
I've heard of Guys lifting the engine, unbolting the oil pump, and removing the oil pan. Seems to work.
Junior User
Joined: Sep 2010
Posts: 51
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From: Latrobe, PA
Thats exactly what i did to mine fiddy, bought a brand new oil pan and had it powdercoated black, i live in PA where raod salt loves to munch on metal
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Postmaster
Joined: Apr 2009
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From: Malahat/Cowichan Valley
this fix will be a one time fix. From then on it will cost nothing to remove the oil pan. LEts say i am driving down the road and see my oil pressure drop to zero, oil pump died. With this mod i could do it roadside. If i go buy a decent hoist, again, i am looking at 200 minimum for one i trust, then i have to loosen the engine mount hardware(have to get down there regardless) then i have to worry about barely being able to squeak the oil pan out, possibly jacking up the new seal i have laid on the pan while putting it back in.....yeah i dont see it. Cutting the truck in half, not really. The engine will hold it in place and together if the crossmember gets removed so it isnt as scary as you might think. haha. Either way i am going to do this, a diy project like removing an engine is not something i really ever have time for. This can be done in a few minutes once the engineering shop does their work. The longest part would be waiting for the drip down. Some of our trucks arent even worth what it costs to get the engine pulled and replaced. I paid that labor once when i did the re and re for the new(er) engine. I just dont have an entire weekend to devote to an engine pull.
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Postmaster
Joined: Apr 2009
Posts: 4,086
Likes: 1
From: Malahat/Cowichan Valley
Yep when the oil pan is off i will sand blast the pan to see if there are weak points and if not i will prime and por-15. Dont want to ever deal with this thing again hahaha.
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Postmaster
Joined: Apr 2009
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From: Malahat/Cowichan Valley
grabbing an oil pump this weekend so i wont have to deal with that either, although it isnt a big deal anymore to remove it, i still dont want to "have" to do it again haha. good luck with that swap, when mine dies, i might go the 6bt route but who knows. We may wind up in the UK next so frank cant go.....
Cargo Master
Joined: Nov 2003
Posts: 2,585
Likes: 1
From: Duluth, Mn.
In 10 years of reading these message boards, I've heard of 1 oil pump failing. And that one was iffy. I think the Guy modified the rear header
With most of Our rigs being high mileage,and that kind of failure rate, I doubt there's anything wrong with the OEM pump.
With most of Our rigs being high mileage,and that kind of failure rate, I doubt there's anything wrong with the OEM pump.
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