Can Oil sump be removed whith engine still in van

[Bedford Fever]

Hi all, what was once an oil weep a few drops now and then has become a leak.
The oil leaks from above  the front bolt under the balancer Is it possible to unbolt the
axle and steering and lower it enough to get the sump off without any dramas.
Has anyone done this before if so any info will be greatful . I need to get this done
for my roadworthy..
So close yet so so far again.... Many  thanx  Frank

[Warren]

Frank

from memory the sump gasket comes in sections, 2 cork ones and two rubber ones.  and to replace them you need some room.

Now normally the engin in a beddy sits about 100mm above the cross member, you could gain more space by removing the engine mount bolts and lifting the motor up from inside the cabin

a small gantry could be made out of 2x4 timber and some allthread could be used as a winch.

I will see if I can find some pics of what i mean

Warren

[Bedford Fever]

That will be great Warren,
I tried the old silcone over it quick fix to no avail.

In  hindsight that was no way to treat my Beddy and she let me know.
I do have the gaskets now the hard work will soon begin for just 1 bolt.
Thanx Frank

[John Abbott]

Hi Frank....I have taken my sump out of my beddie with the engine in. I made up a gantry like in the pic but had a bugger of a time to get it out.Had to lift it off the mounts and raise it hard up under the floor.Also had to unbolt the oil pickup from inside to get the sump off. The bottom pic is how much clearance i had to start with. 
 

[JOE RYAN]

Frank

I replaced my sump gasket without raising the motor , I just dropped the sump and pushed it to one side and then the other this gave me access to the bottom of the block that the sump joined to . I removed old gasket with scrapers etc, cleaned all surfaces refitted new gasket with a generous application of ultra grey gasket joint compound and bolted the sump back on.
That was about 4 years ago no leaks since, the most difficult part to reach and clean was at the rear up against gearbox cover plate but not to bad.

Cheers
Joe

[Warren]

Sounds like Joe knows ALL about it

I couldn't find any pictures of the small gantry but it is the same in principal as Johno's one only smaller and fits inside the cabin.

I'd try Joes way first and if thats to hard then look at getting some timber, chain, nuts, washers and all thread to make a mini gantry - sort of like a carpenters tresile.

Warren

[Bedford Fever]

THanks for the info  i will try Joes method first.

Looks like a dirty weekend for me. I will post photos if succesful.
Many thanx  Frank

[ben]

the leak could also be coming from the harmonic balancer.. just thought id throw it out there just in case??

[Bedford Fever]

Are there any tell tale signs it can be the harmonic balancer
Or is just a mystery until its pulled off.
Anyway a little more info
engine is a 186
The oil was weeping from the rubber gasket above the r/h side.
And a little weep would apear around the bolt.
Silicone was placed on the bolt and it stopped any sign of oil for about 3 weeks.
We re siliconed it but this time it had no effect making it worse.
I had a good look around the balancer and could not see any oil.

Does this diagnosis still mean it the harmonic balancer could be at fault.
Thank you Frank

[JOE RYAN]

Frank

Have you checked that all of the bolts that hold the sump on are tight, not too tight as you can easily snap them off.

Cheers

Joe