The_head

Well, my oil pump is leaking pretty good. The TB/WP was done only a year ago, I thought I could get away with not doing the oil pump reseal. I was wrong.

My question is: What else can I do down there while everything is apart for the oil pump reseal?

I am going to have the stock J-pipe replaced, since it sounds like you have to take the exhaust apart to drop the oil pan.
Is there a motor mount that can be replaced easily while that area of the car is apart?

zeta

iTrader: (1)

^
Maybe #12; 14; & 29, on the link below, while you are there?
Oil Pump - 2008 Acura TL 4 Door BASE (NAVIGATION) KA 5AT (acurapartswarehouse.com)

csmeance

get new seals!

They are part # 3 & 12 in the link above! Those tend to leak and cause issues which can be misdiagnosed as oil pump

altair47

All you need is 3, 6, 12

joe.abp

#3 - Oil Pump Gasket - This is whats causing your oil pump leak.
#6 - Oil Pick up Tube O-ring - This would be a good idea as well.
#12 - Oil filter/VTEC solenoid Gasket, I would only recommend replacing when it starts leaking, the oil filter housing can come out seperately with everything else intact. Same goes with #14 and #29.
#26 Front Main Seal - If you're leaking oil, your front main seal is either leaking as well or about to. Definitely change that. Use proper technique when inserting it as it easy to micro-tear during installation.

As for motor mounts, they're done from the top of the engine. For the front one it might be easier unbolting the front cooling fan to remove it out. The transmission mounts are closer to the driver side, I don't believe anything can be accessed from the passenger side.

If you're doing the job yourself be extra cautious when you apply the honda bond on the oil pan and pump. There have been a few horror stories of applying too much, clogging the oil pump and destroying the engine. However if you apply to little the seal goes bad quicker and starts leaking again. You definitely want to drop the exhaust when removing the oil pan.

altair47

In my 8 years as a mechanic in a dealership, a lot of Hondas, Acuras with J engines have passed through me (Mileage were all in the range 100-200k), and not one of them had a #26 Front crankshaft oil seal leaking.

joe.abp

I don't doubt that, however considering the work the guy is putting in, the part is very cheap & gives additional piece of mind.

tasso

I'm currently trying to diagnose an oil leak on my 2008 Base TL with on 92K miles on it. Can't really seem to pinpoint the source. How did you conclude your issue is the oil pump?

altair47

What prevents you from buying a can of brake cleaner, jacking up the car, removing the passenger wheel, taking a mirror and a flashlight, washing everything with brake cleaner, starting the engine and watching where the oil will flow from?

The_head

I did an ATF drain and replace a few weeks ago. There was oil all over in that area.

tasso

I did do that, didn't see anything flowing but a week later i see oil drips on the floor again. Best guess from what I currently see if that it is coming from or close to the harmonic balancer or crank shaft seal.

altair47

If the leak is so big that there are drops on the floor, then do what I told you, be patient and after 5 minutes of idling you will definitely see where the oil is oozing from.

t-rd

I also replaced bank 1 sensor 2 while the exhaust was off since it was wide open. I suggest you drop the entire exhaust and don't touch the nuts interconnecting the J-pipe and the rest of the exhaust, especially if you live in the rust belt.

Rick Rosario Di Prima

Hi there altair47...quick question about the oil pump and pan....how long does a well-maintained oil pump expected to last? I am changing mine out of an abundance of caution for not wanting to do this job again within 3-5 years. the crank seal is solid and not leaking, just the usual suspects (funky o-ring behind pump and the vtec housing o-ring. i am replacing the pan cuz of a stripped-out bolt. here is my q for the pan:

i am at the point of knocking off the pan and pump. My question is: the 3 bolts that are hard to get to, i count 4 when i took them out, does it matter the timing of getting those torqued down when all the others are placed and lightly torqued down? it took a ratcheting box en wrench to get those 3 (4) bolts out. it took significantly longer time to extract them, i am guessing it will take the same amount, if not more, time to get them re-installed? during this process of those 3 bolts, the hondbond is drying. directions on hondabond says you got 1 minute from applying to have part in place. i can't get those 3 bolts torqued down in one minute... here's a simpler way of asking: how did you handle the reinsertion of those 3 bolts while the hondabond is curing? seems like 1 minute is too little of time to get the 3 back in.

thanks for your time

altair47

With properly clean oil, the pump life is from 300-500 thousand miles. Before replacement work, you can check the oil pressure at idle to know exactly the condition of the pump and bearings.
Usually for this job I use PERMATEX ULTRA GREY RTV SILICONE GASKET MAKER.
The manual says.
1. Clean and dry all flange surfaces to be sealed.
2. Remove black cap from top of extension nozzle.
3. Turn nozzle extension one complete turn (360) counterclockwise.
4. Depress finger trigger and apply a continuous 1/16 inch to 1/8 inch PowerBead to one surface.
5. Assemble parts immediately while silicone is still wet.
6. Finger tighten flange only until material begins to seep out the sides of the flange.
7. Allow to set for at least two hours and re-torque at least one quarter to one half turn.
8. For best results, allow to cure overnight.
9. To close, turn extension nozzle clockwise until tight (about one full turn). Wipe off excess material from nozzle and replace black cap.

Rick Rosario Di Prima

thanks for the advice. i got a helper in my son with the seating and getting the bolts in. we will do a few practice runs before applying the gasket material. we cleaned all the bolts to the pump, pan, and engine mount bracket over the WP. all were badly greased up. we even cleaned the threads of old HB or thread locker..i couldn't for the life of me think of why thread locker (white, egg-shell dried stuff) was at either end of the pan but not in the middle bolts of the pan. noticed that the bolts holding the pan near the tranny are discolored more than the other bolts...blackened discolored. no shine whatsoever on the bolt anymore after cleaning, i surmise it must be the added heat from the tranny. I went ahead and replace all 17 bolts on the TB covers...i've done that job 5x now and those bolts are starting to round...don't want to deal with a stripped bolt in that tight of an area in the future.

the older this aluminum setup gets, the weaker the bolts get. i've had to retap numerous stripped-out bolt threads and used one size larger imperial threads.no issues since.

i'm so ready for this job to be over... it started with overheating caused by fan failure caused by ac compressor failure. i redid the entire AC system, new fans, new radiator, new engine mount, new PS pump, and reservoir... then i decided to go after the pan and pump...still need to go after the thrush washer on the camshaft leak and the valve cover leaks. i have ignored her for too long. I did all these repairs as we will be getting the wife a new car in a couple of years when the daughter turns 16, she can have the acura. i want it to be as problem-free as possible. I have also been ordering all the OEM parts that ended up missing over the years, various engine covers, the underside engine cover, plastic rivots missing after each repair...new battery cables.

The AC and fans were still OEM till now, so were the pump and pan. she has done well since buying her in 07

BROlando

Pro tip...buy a tube roller to evenly squeeze out a spaghetti strand thickness of Hondabond without permanent disfigurement if your hands.

Anyone that has used Hondabond before knows exactly what I mean.

I used this bastard right here. Worth its weight in gold.

https://a.co/d/dxY4h2v

BROlando

Use a 1/4" torque wrench, my bro. The M6 fasteners with 10mm heads only take like 8LB-FT of torque. You may have broken them due to over tightening.

Use a 1/4 torque wrench for M6 and oily M8 fasteners. Use a 3/8" torque wrench for dry M8 or M10. Use a 1/2" torque wrench for M12 and bigger.

The stuff on the threads is Hondabond...not thread lock. Don't use thread lock.

Use Hondabond for the sealing surfaces. Don't go aftermarket. And don't over do it. A thick spaghetti strand sized (3.5mm) bead is what you need, along the surfaces described in the factory manual.

Download a copy of the factory service manual. Follow the directions to the letter. Don't wing it. Your life will get a lot easier. I do a *lot* of work on cars. I pre-read and follow the factory manual.

I used a razorblade to clean off the old Hondabond (pull the blade along the surface, don't push!). I used a nylon bush to easily and quickly clean the mating surfaces without any marring. Its a wonderful tool.

Wipe every sealing surface with a rag soaked in brake cleaner before applying hondabond. Again...follow the directions.

https://www.menards.com/main/tools/p...24-c-10154.htm

Rick Rosario Di Prima

thanks for that tip. I do need to look at that aspect for sure. picked one up.

Rick Rosario Di Prima

got a service manual thanks to this wonderful community. the first one i had did not include the A/C and heating section. I have since located 2 other dealer service manuals that have it.

I should've been clear about the stripping of bolts. it has only happened to the 2 motor mounts where the threads were just done and spinning free. I have not touched the pan or pump bolts till now. I have installed a fumoto valve on the pan to avoid future stripping of that bolt. the bolts for pan and pump were very greasy, so we thoroughly cleaned them with threads included. i want easy threading as much as possible on this step. I will stick to hondabond. i went OEM on pan and pump, don't skimp now. I noticed the bolts were different for the pan, so i kept them in there and transferred them to the new pan in their respective holes. i am going to use a piece of cardboard to punch the bolt diagram and then number them for the torque down step. I will stay to the torque wrenches on that job. haven't broken my torque wrenches out in YEARS,

this whole job started with an overheating issue. replaced both fans and radiator. still overheated with a/c on....redid the whole a/c system, compressor, expansion valve, condenser, evap, and new charge. i also threw in the WP and TB job. i had everything wrapped up and was test-driving it. kept getting a CKP error code. found out i put the timing belt guide plate on wrong. the flaring goes outward on it...i placed it inward...it was chewing up on the side of the TB, replaced the belt and tensioner again....what a stupid mistake. i blame having the job open since December and not remembering how it went on. i hate delays in repair jobs.

thanks for chiming in...also to note, i think i want to loosen up the subframe to gain access to those 3 nasty bolts under the pump. or i might loosen up the front engine mount and raise the tranny up and inch or so. i just want clear and unbridled access to all those bolts as i get them in and torqued down

twokexlv6coupe

Loosening the motor mount bolts and lifting the engine is going to be much, much MUCH easier than attempting to drop the sub-frame.

Rick Rosario Di Prima

it was easier to do it like that after reading your comment, i figured i give that a try before tearing at the subframe. got the bastard in and seated. I used the 1x1 to jack up the engine at the a/c mount got the bolts torqued to the point of final torquing...i went and did those 5, yes 5 bolts near the pump...the 3 in the middle and the 2 on the corners were all done by a ratcheting wrench (could not get a damn socket or torque wrench on them). i wrenched those 5 down like a nut (my son was laughing) as i knew the 4 mins of hondabond was timing out.

very stressful for me as crunch time neared. i had to redo the oil pump hondabond 2x as i did not test fit it or align the crank to the pump...3rd try was a charm.

I am very pleased with these two parts replaced and how they both seated correctly. the installs weren't rushed and my son handed me each bolt as i called their respective #'s out. i had used a cardboard template of the pan bolts...i then numbered them and did the same on the pan. i called out each number and my son handed me that bolt...that process was very smooth and precise.

Thank you all for the help and advice.

now i wait for the new TB cover bolts to assemble the rest back together and test. I saw a video on someone, i think it was Eric's Garage, that he drilled 2 small holes at the bottom of the TB cover to let oil and coolant flow if there are leaks. i think i want to do that. I know the WP is solid. i have driven on it for about 2 days and no leaking after i reopened her. I'm not going to be able to see oil leaking from the pump if it's covered up.

At least i know the A/C system is good. The cooling system parts are all under pressure and working fine. just have to worry about the exhaust gaskets and sealing, the pan and pump.

BROlando

Awesome! Glad you were successful

The_head

How many tubes of Honda Bond will be needed for this job?

truonghthe

One.

BROlando

Buy 1 tube.

Don't take that to mean that you should use up the whole tube. You'll have a whole lot left over.

Use the tube roller I linked so you can avoid instantaneous arthritis.

A uniform 3mm bead across the whole applied surface is what you're looking for. So cut the spout thingy to represent 3mm thickness.

Look at the FSM to see what surfaces to apply to.

I find that using a flexible bristle nylon brush on a drill is the best way to prep the surfaces.