"Bad Puppy II" Symptoms FIXED - long "How To"

[SJ]

"Bad Puppy II" (90 100Q) was piddling in the driveway for 2 + years now.
It started with a couple drops and slowly progressed to a small puddle
whenever the car was parked overnight. The piddling was a combination of
Pentosin and engine oil.

Two weeks ago, the beastie really let go and dribbled out all the Pentosin.
I posted on that problem - replacing the hydraulic pump X-cap O-rings fixed
the 'green gold' dribble.
This week I decided to tackle the oil piddling problem. The car left a
puddle on the driveway when parked overnight. I suspected a perforated oil
pan, and I wanted to see if POR-15 http://www.por15.com  would solve the
leak.

I cleaned the oil pan and surrounding area with Simple Green and with an
engine degreaser-in-a-can. The oil filter and engine oil were removed. Oil
filter was in the way, and I didnt want engine oil leaking out of the
pinholes and messing up the POR-15 application.
After several soak-n-scrub sessions, the oil pan was clean-but rusty.

I scraped off the heavy deposits of rust and rust flakes with a paint
scraper. With the rust gone, I found two pinholes in the upper part of the
oil pan, just below the lip where the mounting bolts are located - -
directly opposite the oil filter..

I cleaned the oil pan again with paint thinner . . good soaking and cleaning
with wire brushes, steel wool, and bristle brushes. And this was followed up
with another two cleanings using Simple Green. Water was blown off using
compressed air.

Now the dry metal was prepped using POR-15 "Metal Ready" - a mixture of
Phosphoric Acid and Zinc Phosphate.
http://www.por15.com/PRODUCTS/CLEANERSDEGREASERS/METALREADY/tabid/80/Default.aspx
This stuff is supposed to eat up the rust, etch the metal, and leave a zinc
phosphate coating on the metal.
I applied the solution with a squirt bottle - rewetting every 15 min or so.
In the area of the pinholes, I used several layers of soaked paper towels
applied to the oil pan. This was covered with plastic shopping bag. A piece
of rubber foam and some wood held the combination against and in contact
with the oil pan.
Total soak time was about 45 minutes or so. I re-wetted the area once or
twice.

By the way, I visited an automobile paint vendor to see if I could get a
cheaper generic version of Metal Ready($30/gal). The shop guys said that
this was one of those EPA banned products. It is not available for
commercial use. POR-15 sells it because its for "personal" use in small
quantities. Dont know if this is a fable or not.

After the "Metal Ready" soak n etch, the metal was allowed to dry
thoroughly. I was now ready to apply POR-15 paint.
http://www.por15.com/PRODUCTS/PRIMERPAINTSCOATINGS/POR15RUSTPREVENTIVEPAINT/POR15/tabid/139/Default.aspx

To fill in the pin holes I thought of using the POR-15 fiberglass mesh
(Power Mesh Reinorcing fabric) that POR-15 sells.
http://www.por15.com/PRODUCTS/COMPLETEKITS/FLOORPANTRUNKREPAIR/tabid/105/Default.aspx
A square yard cost $7. What the hell, might as well try it out.

I applied POR-15 paint to the oil pan, and let it dry for about 30 minutes
until it got tacky.
I had pre-cut a piece of the fiberglass mess to fit the side of the oil pan.
I now applied the mesh to the sticky paint. It kinda worked.
The mesh is a random pattern, long length fiberglass material. I guess its
good for floorpans cause it tends to retain a flat shape. But, this stuff is
useless for the oil pan. Goddamn stuff would not conform to the oil pan
shapes. The fibers came away with the brush. Crap looked like spider webs on
the pan when I finally got done. Damn mess!!
I put another coat of paint after the first coat got almost dry - not
sticky, but finger dont slide either.
I put on a third coat, and let it dry overnight.

The next day, I checked over my work. The fiberglass cloth had pulled away
from the metal in a few spots - the curved spots.
I used scissors to cut away any loose, seperated material and the "spider
webs". I then used a rough sandpaper to smooth out and remove any remaining
fiberglass/paint "strings". The original oil pan pinholes were visible and
still open. Another plan was needed.

I rummaged thru my 30 year collection of odds n ends and found a fiberglass
woven cloth that was meant for car/boat repairs. This stuff was very pliable
and supple. I cut a piece to fit the area in and around the pinholes. I then
soaked the material in POR-15 -- fiberglass cloth on a piece of plastic
shopping bag and paint applied with brush. The pinhole area was sanded to
rough up the paint and then paint was applied. Then the soaked fiberglass
cloth was applied to the pin-hole area. Yeah! that works! The woven
fiberglass cloth conforms nicely to the pan curves and shapes.
When the paint got almost dry,  a second coat was applied, and later a third
coat was applied to the patch and to the rest of oil pan that could be
reached. The paint was left to dry overnight.

Next day, I put in new oil and oil filter. Started up engine and lay on the
ground to observe the oil pan.
No leaks, oil drips, or wet spots - Great!
I've used the car for 4 days now. Oil pan is still dry - - -no oil spots on
driveway. WooooHoooo! "Bad Puppy II" is now a good puppy!

The POR-15 rep said the paint was good up to 800 Deg F, so I expect the fix
to remain permanent for the life of the car. We shall see.

SJ
85 Dodge PU, D-250, 318, auto
85 Audi 4k - - sold but still on the road
88 Audi 5kq
90 Audi 100q




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