Hot Rods Mistakes you’ve made…caution oil ahead

Worked at the local Chevron station in high school. One day there's big a commotion, smoke, and a Porsche stalled on the way out from the pumps. Turns out Porsche, in 1972 only, had an external oil filler cap on the 911. One of the other high school attendants apparently didn't see the label, or they were missing. You know the rest...

 

Not motor oil, but trans fluid.
I had to change the radiator out in my truck. The aluminum radiator has the cooler lines located differently then the old radiator that was in the truck (it was not original either). I ended up making new trans cooler lines. After I got every thing together, I really watch for trans leaks for a few weeks. After about a month, I figured I was good to go.
So one late afternoon, I was going across town and took the truck. I backed out of my driveway and took off. About 3 miles from home, going up a hill, the trans slipped just a bit for a few seconds. Before I could get off the main street, the trans quit functioning! I was able to coast into the first parking lot I came to. I'm truing ti figure out what the heck was going on, but as soon as I opened the door, I saw a trail of ATF that followed my truck into the parking lot. A look under the hood reveled a trans cooler line separated between the short hose, and the steel line. The hose clamp was still there. Of course, I had no tools with me., but fortunately, across the street was an auto parts store. I borrowed a screw driver, a funnel, and bought 4 quarts of ATF +4 @ $9 a quart.

Putting the hose back on from under the truck would have been easy, but I don't fit under the truck, it sits pretty low in the front. I had to reach over the fender, and work around everything to get the hose clamp loose, get the hose back on the steel line (I always put a little flair on the lines to keep them from blowing off, which obviously didn't work this time), and then get the clamp tight again, at a connection that was originally done from under the truck. Of course, it was getting dark by the time I got the hose back on.

I added the 4 quarts of ATF, and started the truck to refill the converter. but the fluid level didn't even reach the end of the dipstick yet! Back to the parts store and bought the last 4 quarts of ATF +4 they had in stock (that took all my money anyway). Installing those 4 quarts brought the level up to the add mark, but at least the transmission was working again. As best as I could see, it wasn't leaking, at least at that point. At that point, whatever I was going across town to do, wasn't very important anymore. After I got home I topped off the trans fluid (I had a couple quarts at home), and checked the tightness of all the connections and fittings. As near as I can figure out, that one hose clamp must not have been tightened completely, and it took 6 weeks to work free.

As I was driving the truck home, I could see a trail of trans fluid from about the parking lot I'd stopped at, on the public road going the other direction. I could follow the trail all the way to my driveway! Strange...

Its been about 6 months since that event. There are still some places where you can still see the ATF trail. I feel I was pretty fortunate, that OD trans has lost the OD function, but other wise the trans still fully functions. There are a couple switches inside the trans pan that could be bad, but the odds are the OD part of the torque converter may be toast. Just this month I've gotten to the point I have something else to drive, so I'm going to start with the switches in the pan and hope that works. Pulling the trans to replace the converter will be a pain on this truck.

On the other hand, I sure am happy I didn't have to clean up that mess on the road, cleaning up under the truck was enough of a job. As a side note, it takes about 3 miles at 30 mph to dump 9 quarts of ATF out of a Dodge OD trans through a return cooler line off the radiator, in case your interested. Gene

 

Gm TH350 transmission, have had several, stock pan does not have a drain plug, I installed an aftermarket pan with a drain plug on my cars trans when servicing. The first time I went to drain a trans, I removed bolts except 2 a few threads holding and popped pan lose and what a mess, had my drain pan but much hit me, floor etc. FYI ATF does not taste good IMO, was the biggest mess I ever made. I always change my oil/filter in all my rides, have 4 post lift and love the engines that oil filter is horizontal so when removing it tends to make a mess.

 

Guy at work was going to take his Cat 992 frontend loader to a pit to load coal after a PM. Was backing up, bucket just cleared threshold, when engine made a death squeal and locked up. Forgot to put oil in. Core charge for a 3508 will make you cry.

 

I purchased a new OT ragtop in 1989 and had the oil/filter changed at dealership, on my way home I pulled into my driveway and noticed an oil trail following me, looked at oil pressure gage, had oil pressure. The oil filter was loose/leaking and lucky for me and the dealer it was a short ride. Dealer Sent a flatbed truck, took it back to dealership fixed, cleaned up bottom of car, I still have car, 70K miles, a very nice survivor car.

 

Transmission lines.
That reminds me.
One of my first cars.
Replaced the bad transmission in my 1964 Mercury Comet. Took it for a test drive. Good thing I was out in the country. I was laying down a white cloud of smoke that could have covered a town. And then the transmission started to slip. Ended up selling the car for cheap.

This is what I believe was my mistake... and I didn't realize it until years later.
I remember I had some trouble hooking up the transmission coolant lines. I had to adapt something. Can't quite remember. But I think I very likely switched one of the coolant lines with the line for the vacuum modulator.
I was sucking transmission fluid straight into my intake!

 

http://www.kresscarrier.com/CoalHaulers.html#.YqQKdmROmDY

Was not an individuals fault, but brand new 240 ton coal hauler burned to the ground with less than 100 hours. Hydraulic line burst spraying oil on a battery cable that had just finished chafing off insulation. Fire suppression put it out, but cable still arcing and accumulator tank still had pressure, so it re-ignited. Rebuilt truck, and retro fixes to problems on other new trucks

 

? Is it still a mistake if you were young and didn’t know better ?

 

Be thankful for small mercies and grateful you had oil to lose. When I was much younger I drained the oil out of the primary and gearbox on a HD evo sportster. Went inside, had a couple bongs, then went to the pub. Next day rode 600 miles. About 550 miles into it the noise in the primary was terrible as the chain had stretched badly, it was then I realised my mistake.

At a road side rest area laid the bike on its side, max adjusted the chain and filled the primary with some eng oil some back packers gave me and rode the last 50 miles. Had to leave the bike at my mates and hitch hike home 3 days later. Full gearbox (all bearings) rebuild and timing chain.

 

Good help is hard to get, I worked part time plowing snow for a large gas station/towing operation when a young man in Winter. The man I worked for was one of the best employers I ever had. He told me stories of buying a few engines through time due to employee's mistakes, filter problem, drain plug loose, kid did not refill oil, customer drove till it seized, double dumb there.

 

My 18 yr old son was going to do his girlfriend a favor to save her some money on an oil change so
their went to Walmart and bought a filter and 5 qts. of oil. Everything seemed to go well, lowered
the car off the jack, got in and fired it up in the garage. Wrong filter! It only took about 10 seconds
to pump all 5 quarts onto the garage floor. Good times. And they still got married.

 

Not a car but had that happen to me. Had a Honda VT1100 years ago and every time I changed oil and filter the oring would stick to the engine. Of course it pumped out most of the oil before I could get it shut down. After I did that the 2nd time I learned to ck for a stuck oring.

 

A really funny one I did at work a couple years ago was on a customers skid steer.

it had a plastic fuel tank mounted on the side by the engine , the vented gas cap got plugged and the engine sucked the tank in and cracked it .

well to pull the tank you need to strip the unit right down. Operator compartment removed , engine , hydraulic pumps rad etc etc . Days worth of work.

I looked the unit over and got the brite idea that I could cut the side of the skid steeer out and slide the old tank out snd the new tank in “ I’m fucking brilliant !!!”

so I cut the side of the skid steer out a big 2.5’x3’ section . Old tank comes out ……….. new tank won’t fit by a couple inches !!!!


So off comes the operator compartment, rad , engine , pumps etc etc . And the side got welded back on and painted .


We still joke about it at work “ sometimes we win , sometimes we cut the side out of a skid steer “

 

Reassembly. One of the brackets was bent. Took a few minutes and straightened it out. Did a nice job.

Went to install it and realized...
Crap.

Took another few minutes to bend it back the way it was supposed to be.

 

And myself as well.

 

I was working on my 1965 Chevy C10, something with the dash where I had it removed. I had the oil pressure line removed from oil gauge behind the instrument cluster.

For some reason or the other I went to move the truck over in the driveway or check something, didn't think about the line or forgot about it...

Fired up the engine, it is a good thing it was a cold engine cuz it sprayed oil everywhere under the dash(all over the wires), on the rubber floor mat, on me and my sandals(which still smell like oil)... Oops.

Oh well, self inflicted, what a mess to clean up. I was still finding little pools of oil under the dash, on the wiring, in the wiring connectors... everywhere.

I learned my lesson tho'.

-Woog

 

Back in the early 1980's I decided to install a B&M Transpak in my Torqueflite. Laying on my back in the driveway under an old Dodge and possessing about 80% of the skill needed to complete the task the show begins. After turning the driveway into a hazmat scene trying to drain the trans fluid into a round pan I'm ready to start the mods.

Everything seemed to go smoothly. Restarted the car, filled the trans with fresh trans fluid and we're ready to go racing. Jump in for the test ride and I got Park, and 5 neutrals. Teenage temper tantrum ensues. Talk to the Mopar guru at the Gulf station where I worked pumping gas to diagnose it. I had installed something that moved one of the valves in the trans wrong. Pan back off, another giant mess. At least the second time it worked. Somewhat. I figured if the street-strip setup was good, full race had to be better. The second gear shift hit like a sledge hammer. Multiple broken rear u joints later I learned my lesson and bought a pro build street-strip trans.

 

But being King of the bark was worth it back then.

 

Back in the late 70's in my first year of being an equipment mechanic, I had to remove a hydraulic pump off of a grade roller. Can't remember why this pump had to come off but it just had to come out of the pump drive gearbox not be removed completely. anyway, I took some bolts out and gave the pump a pull. Evidently the bolts I removed were the bolts that held the pump together NOT the bolts that held the pump in place, well, when the pump came apart all of the oil in the tank above came out, about 70 gallons. Being a new guy I wanted to get it all cleaned up as fast as I could so down went bags and bags of stay dry. After shoveling all that and dumping it all in the dumpster I realized my next problem.... All the vanes of the pump, I guess about 10 or 12 of them fell out with the oil and were now all in that dumpster. I spent the rest of the day inside that dumpster sifting through all that stay dry and other trash looking for them. I did find them all and put it back together, but never did that again.

 

My avatar, first car, installed the 3 gauge panel under dash, used small diameter copper tubing from engine to gauge and shortly I'm driving, smell hot oil, pull over to look under hood with engine idling, don't see anything, get back in car, smell oil and by this time I could see the oil on floor mat, had a rubber floor mat, I must have over tighten, line cracked at gauge. Same 3 gauge type panel for my 58 Impala ragtop, ran the voltmeter wire through clutch rod hole in firewall. had this car awhile and sitting at a stoplight, engine runs weird/shuts off with smoke coming from under dash, burned up wire harness under dash. A genuine PIA to fix, went to junkyard and got a wire harness from wreck and spliced it in, everything worked, never F upped water temp gauge install. LOL

 

Later Years my 16 year old son wrecked the clutch in his Camaro, honest Dad I was not beating on car. I agree to help him fix it, we get it up on stands, pull apart him doing it with my guidance, my help as needed, I send him to local NAPA to get pressure plate, clutch disc and throwout bearing, disc alignment tool. I forgot to tell him check new parts against old parts to make sure they look same, size shape, etc., My bad. We get it back together and trans does not fit up tight to bellhousing, small gap ? Hmmmm WTF we should have pulled back apart but my son, good kid, not a patient guy, against my advice, just pulled it in with bolts, finish up, get on ground, take for ride, clutch slips. Now he has to jack it up, get it on the stands, disassemble and take throwout bearing back to NAPA to compare with old as GM makes 2 different bearings, small difference in length. His first learning experience with never Ass U Me anything, figured NAPA would give him the correct parts. and maybe listen a little to Dad's suggestions. At a later time, he did say, Dad How do you know all this stuff, my answer was the same way everybody does, just do it and sometimes It's a learn as you go, more than once when doing something new I did not know but when done I did know. Experience, can't buy it, you have to earn it.

 

A fellow owner operator trucker carried his truck to what back then was Bagget’s 76 truck stop for an oil change. He went inside and took a shower and ate while it was getting serviced. Came out, truck was sitting outside, so he went in and paid the guy and left out. Didn’t make it ten miles down the road, engine locked up. Filter wasn’t on tight and fell off. Bagget had to buy him a engine and get it put in. Those old trucks didn’t have all the warning lights and shutdowns like the new stuff does, he didn’t notice the oil pressure dropping until it was too late.

 

We were teens at the time!!!
The one super screw up,I,, LOL at my self about the most,is working on a buddy's{ Jeff's} VW, putting in new synchronizers in.
He know I had done same too my Ford 3 speed!
Being a VW,after getting it back together for the test drive; It now had only one forward speed an lots of speeds backing up,LOL,,,,,,I flipped the ring gear,going by photo in Motors book< that was also backward in print,I still think that was funny. Jeff didn't seem to think it was as funny as I did.

 

About five years ago, I was changing the oil in my newly rebuilt 327 with original canister filter. I was in a hurry, installed the canister and tightened up. Put oil in the car ans started it. Oil pressure was low and my friend notices oil all over the floor, just like the OP. It turns out I did not have the canister seated and it was cocked on the block....Doh! Seated the canister correctly, added oil and down the road we go!!.

 

In an OT daily. Had to remove dash parts to get to hvac vac switch to replace. On the bottom of the dash is an after market oil pressure gauge. Original bad I guess before my time. Anyway, gauge removed to access beneath dash. All back together, I HAD to test the vac switch. Didn't I?
You know I am going to tell you I failed to hook the oil line to the gauge. Must have been a quart in the floor before I could shut it down. Still need to replace the carpet.

Ben

 

Number 1 Son did his first oil, filter and band tightening in an O/T auto box. No drain plug from the factory. Looked like he had slaughtered a steer under that car before we mopped it up.

Bought Number 2 Daughter a Toyota as her first car. Did 80 or so miles before it crapped out the filter o-ring. Had people honking at us on the freeway due to the oil mist we were trailing. Oil light did not come on until we pulled over and got it back to idle. Limped to the nearest service station, sold a kidney for the topup oil. Only made it round the block before it blew the 6L of pricey oil back out. Stopped at the same service station, put the car on a tilt tray to get home. To add insult to injury, the filter lid needed a fancy tool to get it off.

The deep sump on the avatar's 327 holds more oil than my oil drain pan. Don't ask how I worked that one out.

Cheers,
Harv

 

Fortunate was I, to have my Dad show me the ins and outs of Lube service.
This was under my Uncle's Globe drive-on lift, when I was still too young to be on the payroll.
Years later, before closing up, I had to replace a headlight on my 57.
Instead of hooking that little spring to the ring then forcing the ring into place, I chose to mount the ring. Then I got a thin screwdriver. and tried to pull the spring into place.
Next thing I know, Whoops, I'm trying to shove that driver into my neck. ( like a tracheotomy )

 

My son says that too. Two cylinder heads, two I6 motors, an auto and a manual box, two diffs, a control arm... and that's on top of the stuff he thinks pushes the limits and fixes himself.

There are days when it would be cheaper to run a Top Alcohol team

Cheers,
Harv

 

I was in my 20's, and had rebuilt the 283 that was going into my 58 Yeoman wagon. Got it in, started it up, and oil all over the floor. WTH? Hmmm...rear main leaking (2 piece). Installed a new one, started it up, same thing. What am I doing wrong? Talked with my mentor, a really good mechanic. He told me to use a punch and put a couple dings in the main cap to keep the rope from slipping, plus make sure the ends of the rope aren't in line with the mating surfaces. Damn...still leaked.

Installed a reground crank and new seal...same thing. Screw this! My neighbor had sold me a '79 Chevy 350 for $25, when all I wanted was the carb off it. I rebuilt the 350 and it's still in the Chevy today. I sold the 283 shortblock to someone who bought it even after I told him what it did.

 

I was at the lumber yard loading up my OT El Camino. When I get to the gate to check out I hear the lifters starting to clatter. Shut it off, jumped out and see a trail of oil that followed me from the far reaches of the yard. The oil cannister had blown off the 396. I swear you could've seen the oil spill from outer space.