Oil pump drive installation

Ariana,

Great to hear from you. LOL I can only imagine how frustrated you are. LOL

Okay, two things have to happen. There is an intermediate shaft that fits into the bottom of your first pic. See pics 1 and 2 below. If possible, with a mirror and light, look inside and determine if that is straight on to the drive you have. If it is, the next possibility is getting the teeth on pic 2 below to align (oil pump drive shaft).

Next, I doubt the intermediate shaft is the issue. Instead, I suspect the teeth are not aligning. Do this. Install the drive shaft as you have until it stops. If it doesn't seat fully, move the crankshaft slightly back and forth until it does.

Make sure to put engine oil on the new o-ring before you install it.

Pic 3 below shows how it works inside. The circled part is the intermediate shaft. The arrow is pointing to where the gear has to align.

Let me know if this helps.

Take care,

Joe

See pics below.

I tried moving the crank back and forth yesterday, but I will try again tomorrow in the daylight. It’s just hard to keep the flat side against the crank because it moves easily, and I drop it a lot because my hand barely fits back there as it is but especially because my wrists are swollen. I ate it on my skateboard the other day pretty bad, so my hands/wrists aren’t in the best shape. Rocks truly are a skater's enemy, lol. but not even a swollen wrist will stop me from finally getting this thing going! Lol. I’ll try again tomorrow and let you know. Thanks.

Hi,

It sounds like a plan. Let me know what you find and take it easy on the wrists.

Joe

I can’t move my car and pushing isn’t working out. So, I just wasted money I didn’t have in the first place because I couldn’t get my car into the tow and the place, I was going to take it closes in an hour. Without a repair estimate from a mechanic shop AAA won’t further my claim. That guy ruined everything I worked so hard on and there’s nothing I can do about it. So, thanks for all your help. I really appreciate it. It’s been a really long process, but I think it’s over.

Ariana,

It's never over until you want it to be. What do you mean by not being able to get it into the tow? Can't someone help you push it?

Let me know.

Joe

I’ll upload a picture of what I’m talking about. And no, I don’t have anyone to help me. That’s why I did the engine by myself too. I don’t know why I didn’t think about how i would get it onto the u-haul before I rented it.

If you have something to pull the trailer with, hook up the trailer. Next, if you have a come-along great; otherwise, see if you can get someone to lend one to you or find a really cheap one that is still good. LOL

Locate a support on the trailer that is very strong at the front and connect the come-along to it. On the opposite end attach it to a tow hook or the frame so you can pull it (slowly) onto the trailer.

On a flatbed tow truck, they use a winch that is much stronger and faster but does the same thing. I do, however, recommend having someone in the vehicle in the event of the tool breaking. You will need them to hit the brakes.

I attached a pic below of what I'm talking about. I feel really bad. I wish I had been there to help you. Please let me know if there is anything I can do to help or if you have any questions.

Let me know if this helps.

Joe

PS: You are human. That's why you didn't think before renting the U-Haul. We all do it.

Thank you for the kind words. I didn’t have anything to pull my car. No chain or anything. And I tried to have someone help me, but it resulted in my driver's door being dented and almost coming off the car. I only had a 3-hour window to get it to the shop. I already returned the U-Haul. Thank you though. Maybe I’ll save up for a mobile mechanic or something.

Ariana,

You are very welcome. I wish I could be there to help you. You have done so much; I hate to see it end this way.

Regardless, if there is anything I can help with, let me know. Also, if you determine what the problem is, let me know.

I do have one last question. Why did AAA put a time limit on you? That's crazy. And did you ever get the oil pump back together?

Take good care of yourself!!!

Joe

The shop I was going to take it to was only available from 2 to 5. It wasn’t AAA. And no I still haven’t been able to get the pump in there all the way.

Hi,

Well, take care and let me know how things turn out. Let me know if I can help.

Joe

I still can’t get the oil pump drive in. I even took my intake manifold off and still can’t get it to go in all the way. I think I'm going to have to take the upper oil pan off and take the oil pump and shaft out. That way I can put the drive in first and then install the pump and shaft back in.

Hi,

I'm glad to hear you didn't give up, but I'm sorry to hear you are still having issues. When you say the shaft, are you referring to the intermediate shaft?

Let me know.

Joe

Yes. I don’t know what else to do but I really don’t want to take the cradle off again. That means a whole lot of work. I just can’t get it in. It is almost in but not all the way. It’s lining up with the gears and everything it just won’t go all the way in.

Hi,

Are you able to get a short screwdriver in to turn the shaft?

Joe

Screwdriver in from where? Here’s a pic of what I’m looking at. A lot of oil leaked from the pump drive. You can see it all over, lol.

From everything I’ve read, it seems I need to bump the starter.

Hi,

|f you look down where it mounts, it should look like the attached pic. Is that what you are seeing? If so. Try to get a small set of needle nose pliers on the shaft and see if they will gently move.

Let me know.

Joe

See pic below.

Yes I can move it.

Try adjusting it in different positions to see if it allows things to seat fully.

Also, my hat is off to you. Your patience is commendable. That is not easy to find anymore and I'm glad to have you here.

Let me know.

Joe

Thank you but I’m for sure running out, lol. I tried adjusting it but still can’t get it. I’m just going to bump the starter. The only problem now is that when I went to charge my battery, the cables got warm, so I took them off. My multimeter reads 11.63. Is that enough to bump the starter?

Ariana,

Which cables got hot? Was it the ones on the charger or the vehicle? And yes, that voltage should allow you to bump it. However, moving the crankshaft pulley should do the same thing.

Regardless, let me know what you find or if I can help.

Take care,

Joe

Also, I wrote up how to test if there is an excessive electrical draw on the battery. The warm cables (if on the vehicle) have me concerned. The directions are in a rough draft format and need pics and other things added before they get to the vehicle repair guides page, but they will get you through it. Let me know if you do it and what you find. See pic 1. Also, when you recharge the battery, disconnect the negative cable. That way nothing will drain it when charging.

The battery wasn’t in my car when i was charging it. It was the cables on the charger.

And I don’t know what to do about the oil pump drive because nothing is working.

Hi,

If it was the charger cables, they may have been warm just from charging. That makes me feel a little better.

We are missing something simple with the pump. Nothing moved on the pump gear, correct? How far won't it seat for you? For example, 1/4th inch, more or less?

When you moved the intermediate shaft, did it feel excessively loose like it may not be attached on the opposite side?

Let me know.

Joe

Should it have play at all? I mean it moves and it looked just like your picture. I will take a picture of how far I can get it in. The o ring is in so it’s almost there

It's close. Try putting the retainer on it and see if it pulls in that last bit. Don't force it, but it may just seat.

Let me know.

Joe

Should I move the crank back and forth while I tighten the retainer?

It would be a good idea. Hopefully, it will bump into place. When you tighten the retainer, don't overdo it. If it feels like it doesn't want to go, don't force it.

Let me know.

Joe

Nothing is working. I may just have to take the upper oil pan off again and do it that way.

Hi,

It sounds like that will be what is needed. I thought for sure it would eventually drop in place. I can't understand why it won't.

Do you need the directions, or do you still have them from the last time?

Let me know. Also, let me know what I can do to help.

Joe

Maybe it’s the wrong o ring?

Hi,

Is this the same o-ring you removed with it, or have you installed a new one? Also, when you install it, are you lubricating the o-ring?

Joe

I thought it was the same one because it seems like it fits but maybe not. It’s green and pretty thick and yeah, I put clean oil on it.

Hi,

If it's the same one, it should be fine. However, if it isn't the original, it can be causing a problem for you.

If possible, send me a pic of the o-ring. Also, do you have any laying around that may have been mixed up with the one you are using?

Joe

I have a lot lol. I ordered individual parts before I realized I needed to rebuild the engine, so I bought an entire engine gasket set so now I have backups for pretty much every gasket. Maybe I’ll go into the local auto parts store and ask to see an oil pump drive for my car and make sure it looks the same. If it does, then I’ll just take the upper oil pan off and do it from underneath.

Sounds like a good plan. Let me know what you find, and as always, let me know if there is anything I can do to help.

Take care,

Joe

By the way, here is the o ring:

Hi,

That doesn't look too far off. Were you able to compare it to a new unit to confirm if it is correct?

Let me know.

Joe

New one comes on Tuesday. But I had an idea. Instead of taking the upper pan off and adjusting the shaft, I removed the o ring to see if the drive would fit because if it did then the problem is the o ring not the shaft and sure enough it fits perfectly. So, when I get the new one it should go right in.