Relaxcraft

Hi

Does anybody know the average running temp at the oil sump/pan on an 89 2L sport (non turbo)? I recently noticed a leak and tracked it down to around the weld where the sensor holding pipe joins the sump and had lost most of the oil but no warning light. I've looked into it and can't really afford to replace it at the moment with pending insurance, mot and tax. I've decided to try and fix it with a "hard as metal" epoxy rather than have the engine jacked out!!!! I was guessing about 80-90 degrees C so I bought the best looking epoxy I could find " plastic padding - leak fix" which was advertised as oil,petrol and solvent resistant, general temp up to 120*c max 150*... the instructions say however not recommended for sustained +100*c max 160*c. Any idea if that would do, if not do you know a better repair apart from a weld to avoid the engine tilting...

P600wrx

iTrader: (1)

i would recommend you get it repaired properly, but if you have brought it try it see what happens, but on a car 21 years old who knows

Relaxcraft

I was more after the average temp to be honest but it also should have read 98 not 89... The main problem is cost, from what i've been told you need to unbolt the engine mounts and other things and jack the engine to an angle in the engine bay to get access to 4 poxy 10mm bolts that hold the sump on. That sounds like a hefty garage bill to me, plus I can't see the corrosions gone right through the sump just the edge of the weld and the sumps £70+ on it's own.. Average Running Temp ANYBODY..????//

Splitpin

By "sensor" do you mean dipstick? If your sump pan has any other form of sensor (eg temperature) in it, it's been added after manufacture by a previous owner.

To be honest I wouldn't recommend any sort of epoxy to try and fix this. It's unlikely you'll be able to clean and abrade the area adequately enough to get the repair compound to adhere properly, and even if you do, the sump isn't just exposed to internal oil temperature, there's also a lot of local air heating from the exhaust manifold running in front and to either side. It's a very hostile environment and a fix of this sort is likely to fail at just the worst moment.

You can pick up used sump pans for not very much - although as you say changing one in situ is an annoying job.

Relaxcraft

Hi

Thanx for the reply, The car is bog standard 2L sport 98 and the sensor I referred to is located on the passenger side of the sump about 2/3 of the way up. I presume this is the level warning. Also with the engine being a horizontal opposite 4 as far as I remember the exhaust exits the engine from the rear behind sump or maybe like you said 2 a side above so should not affect the temp to a great degree unless possibly when stood still, but im not a mechanic. I plan on filing down the corrosion around the weld and sanding the paint off about 2-2 1/2" around the area to get the adhesion. Also the epoxy is designed to repair petrol tanks, car radiators and "the ebay add" said sumps??? im just concerned about the temp as it's not quite what the add stated. Cheapest sumps I've seen were £50 used and £70 aftermarket plus the oil and filter which I've already got, the shockers the labor involved if it needs to go to the vets!.... lol

Relaxcraft

Thanx for the reply's and it seems your maybe right on the epoxy, I tried once and had an almost immediate fail on the leak then retried the next day, did about 20 miles of blasting it about A roads to be sure and it was fine for several days. but after leaving it stood still for 4 days and starting it the sump had gone from bone dry to weeping oil again. I don't know why when it was only parked in the mean time??? Has anybody replaced one before, If so the dipstick splitpin refered to how does it connect or seal to the sump and is there any other work to be done besides the gasket seal and bolts??? p.s SPLITPIN how does the oil warning light work on the dash if theres no sensors? The leak was about 3/4 of the way up the sump which made the stick read the oil leval as just on min but no light on the dash just oil on the road??? pps ANYBODY got a sump cheaper than £70 for sale....???? Im gonna tri to do it on axel stands with a 1/4 inch socket for the back 4 bolts

Splitpin

I've never been close enough to a normally aspirated Impreza to know about extra sensors and stuff Relaxcraft, but I've never been aware of them having an onboard oil level sensor - only cars I've seen with those have been Renaults, so this one you've got is news to me. Any chance you could post a pic of this thing on the side of yours? Might also be worth a surf of a couple of the Impreza Sport-specific forums to see if this is an OE item or not.

There are any number of reasons why that epoxy repair might have gone. As above it's always difficult to do that kind of repair properly with the sump in situ (and oil inside it to seep into the joint).

The end of the dipstick tube just pushes ino the coupling on the sump and is sealed by an o-ring (or two) so should be easy to remove.

The oil pressure light on the dash is (or should be) triggered by the pressure switch on the top of the engine, nothing to do with anything on the sump. However is there actually a separate oil level light on the dash?

Relaxcraft

Hiya splitpin
You were right about the dipstick, I only had a quick look and assumed that the bendy tube going in would have been a level warning sensor but I've seen it in day light and up on stands now so 10 out of 10 for that mate ;-). There is as always an oil light on the dash but that must be the pressure sensor you mentioned in the engine, would low oil level not trip that if it was low or would that only be for high oil pressure? I thought it should have shown on that or the engine check light?? I thought about the oil so I jacked the front end after draining as much as possible and put it on stands, used a wire sheel on a drill to get to bare metal and applyed the epoxy. Tricky stuff thou, you had to mix and apply it in 5 mins before it went all grainey. New filter and sump plug washer and 4L of magnatec later and it came straight out the bottom but there was 3 holes from about 1.5mm to 2-2.5mm right through the sump although the rest of it looks fine. Same again and it's just weeping abit but thanx for the dipstick thing I can get a sump off of ebay for £70 unless you know of anywhere cheaper?

Splitpin

QED! Still, at least you know.

That eBay price, is that for new or used? Secondhand should be a hell of a lot cheaper than that as they're only just over £70 new genuine parts. Therefore worth another scan through eBay or else a call to a Subaru-specialist breaker. Also don't forget that you'll need ThreeBond 1215 (or equivalent) sealant on hand when fitting the new sump pan.

The pressure light on the dash illuminates at low pressure only, and it's set at such a low level that it's basically an "engine broke light", as in practice, that's usually what it means if it comes on while driving. The ECU doesn't know anything about the oil, so you'll never get the CEL for this kind of problem.

Relaxcraft

I'll have another look but £69 quid on ebay for a new one that's not actually a genuine part but comes with free post and sealant seemed to be the best I could find besides £45 for a second hand one, no sealant and extra for postage i think. It did say it's made to the same spec or some sumps by the same manufacturer as genuine parts with a lifetime no quibble guarantee. I was also hoping to get an actual gasket too as im going to do it with the engine still on it's mounts maybe be easier if the sealant sets quick? do you know how long it takes if thats the case?? They seemed to be quite dear tho, about £30! Also if you could recommend any cheap parts places I'd appreciate it ;-)

thanx
sean