MG Car Repair: 1972 mg midget oil pan gasket, crankcase pressure, pan gasket

Question
Hello Howard,
After spending a considerable amount of time under the car and looking for the source, I've come to the conclusion that the oil pan gasket is leaking a lot of oil. Although it may be leaking from elsewhere, I hope replacing the oil pan gasket will help.
My question is whether the gasket can be replaced without moving, taking apart or removing the engine? Basically, can I replace the gasket as the engine is in the car right now? I'm not a very skilled mechanic and thus am affraid of getting in over my head.
Thanks alot

Answer
Hi Rico,

I worked mainly in dealerships and we rarely tried to replace a pan gasket on an engine in the car but I do remember doing that a few times and all I remember is you had to work at getting the front pan bolts out and in.

The trouble with doing that is the fact that most of the time it is crankcase pressure that causes the pan to leak and that is either a stopped up crankcase vent system or excess blow-by of the rings. So you should check both and do a dry and wet compression test or a leak-down test if you have the tester.

Howard