Maintaining proper oil levels in a vehicle is necessary if you plan on a long engine life. A common issue with maintaining proper oil levels is a leaking oil pan gasket. The Nissan 300ZX is no exception to this. When the oil pan gasket starts to leak, replacing the gasket is necessary. However, due to the placement of the cross member, the engine must be lifted upward to create enough room to remove the oil pan. Due to this, the job of changing the gasket on the Nissan 300ZX is a bit tricky.
Place the Nissan 300ZX onto four jack stands to allow room under the vehicle.
Connect the engine of the Nissan 300ZX to an engine hoist and apply slight pressure to the hoist chains so the engine does not drop when the cross member is removed.
Unbolt the cross member from the vehicle frame. The frame is directly below the oil pan. Four bolts secure the cross member to the frame. The cross member must be removed to gain clearance to remove the oil pan.
Pull the engine slightly upward with the engine hoist. You only need enough upward lift to slide the cross member off the engine frame. Lifting too much could cause damage to the motor mounts.
Drain the oil from the oil pan into a drain pan. Place the oil pan drain plug back into the pan once drained.
Remove the bolts that secure the oil pan to the bottom of the engine. There are 18 bolts holding the oil pan into place.
Wedge a flat scraper between the oil pan and the engine block to break the RTV gasket seal. Continue this until the oil pan is free from the engine block. Slide the oil pan backward to remove it from the vehicle. The pickup tube is located in the back of the pan. Be cautious not to damage the pickup tube as you remove the oil pan.
Scrape the old gasket off the oil pan with a flat scraper. Scrape the engine block to remove any gasket residue left behind by the oil pan. Both mating surfaces must be clean of old gasket and oil to ensure a proper seal.
Place a bead of RTV gasket sealer on the mating surface of the oil pan and allow it to skin for 15 minutes.
Place the oil pan gasket on top of the RTV gasket sealer. Ensure the bolt-holes in the gasket line up with the bolt holes in the oil pan. Place a bead of RTV gasket sealer on top of the gasket and allow it to skin for 15 minutes. Nissan recommends using the OEM Felpro gasket.
Place the oil pan against the engine block. Be cautious not to hit the gasket on the pickup tube or engine block while positioning it under the vehicle.
Bolt the oil pan into place using an alternating pattern from one side of the oil pan to the other. Thumb-tighten the bolts at first. Allow the RTV gasket sealer 15 minutes to adhere to the engine block and then tighten the bolts in alternating fashion with a wrench until fully tightened.
Place the cross member between the oil pan and the frame and secure it into place with the bolts.
Release the pressure on the engine hoist slowly. This drops the engine back onto the cross member.
Fill the engine with four quarts of 10W30 motor oil and remove the Nissan from the jack stands.
