Anyone know an easy way to remove oil pan on 1971 cougar without lifting the motor?
I don’t have a 1971 Shop manual set. What does the shop manual say?
Same as a 71 mustang. Welded in crossmember and no room. Engine is coming out…
Engine does not need to come out, but you have to lift the engine.
The typical process is:
Remove two fan shroud bolts, unclip from bottom of radiator, lay back on the engine
Remove motor mount through bolts
Lift engine from below with floor jack and 2x6 on the oil pan, place 2x4 block between mounts and frame brackets
Raise and support the car
Remove sway bar
Drain oil
Remove oil pan bolts, drop pan down
Remove oil pump bolts, drop pump and shaft into pan
Slide pan forward and out
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I took one off a 73 with 351C in a salvage yard. Didn’t have to raise the engine.
Removed the anti-sway bar and brought the pan out the front. The trick to getting the pan out from between the cross member and the crankshaft was to rotate the crank so I could move the counterweights out of the way and slide the pan forward one throw at a time.
That car was a hardtop. Convertibles have different engine mounts and perches than a hardtop, so the clearance between the crossmember and pan likely varies.