quattro Digest, Vol 36, Issue 30

[Kurt Deschler]

I have fixed 2 pinholes in my oil pan with solder. Only takes around
1/2hr to do a good job. Simply drain the oil, grind the affected area, a
little flux, and solder up the hole with a large soldering iron. I also
put a small copper small patch over the solder for added strength. You
can blow compressed air into the pinhole to get more of the oil out of
the pan. I have also fixed the gas tank this way and these repairs have
outlasted the epoxy patches that I put elsewhere on the tank.

 	-Kurt

> Message: 3
> Date: Sun, 08 Oct 2006 13:13:55 -0400
> From: SJ <syljay at optonline.net>
> Subject: "Bad Puppy II" Symptoms FIXED - long "How To"
> To: quattro at audifans.com
> Message-ID: <000701c6eafd$22d3f720$b214c444 at dell450>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1
>
> "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