Can you jack a car up by the oil pan

I want to change out the passenger side motor mount. I can rent an engine hoist locally, but I'm not sure I can fit it in any of my vehicles. Anyways, is it safe to jack the engine up by the oil pan like the manual says? If so, what part of the pan should I jack it up by(the pan is not symmetrical)?

The manual says you can jack it up on the oil pan? I'm sure it's smarter than I am (and I know nothing about your model of car) but I can't imagine doing that.

The manual says you can jack it up on the oil pan? I'm sure it's smarter than I am (and I know nothing about your model of car) but I can't imagine doing that.

Woul it be better by the transmission ?

The manual says you can jack it up on the oil pan? I'm sure it's smarter than I am (and I know nothing about your model of car) but I can't imagine doing that.

It says you can jack the engine up by the pan while the car is on jack stands. I always figured the pan is made out of aluminum but with the manual saying that it must be steel.

It probably is a steel pan. I worked on cars as a much younger man and they were steel but they were also much heavier engines. So you can probably get away with it but it would scare the heck out of me! Engine and tranny pans are usually pretty thin compared to the block even if they are steel. Now, I have seen wood blocks set on the bolt heads holding the pan(s) on and the jack lifting the board (like a 2x4 on edge). I'm not telling you how to do it, I was just surprised to hear they would recommend that. I'll bow out because as I said, I don't know. Hope someone who does can give you a real answer. Good luck!

Just get some jackstands. Or, if you must, use the cross brace under the oilpan as a jacking point.

You can take the load off the engine mount by jacking the engine up at the oil pan, but make sure you place a block of wood on the jack and don't lift it higher than necessary. A piece of 2 x 10 about 10 inches long would work great.

N.E.O.

It says you can jack the engine up by the pan while the car is on jack stands. I always figured the pan is made out of aluminum but with the manual saying that it must be steel.

U can jack under the oil pan once the car is on jackstands but as already stated, u need to place a block of wood between the jack head and the oil pan and go slowly when u do this. there was a good thread about this recently and I believe Piloter was able to change his transmission mounts by placing a long, thick wood board (about as long as the trans pan itself) under the transmission pan and then jacking it up slowly to take the weight off the trans mounts. I copied all the text in that thread so i will look today and post it all over the weekend here. u can also go to the edge of the trans right where the torque converter housing is and jack it under there, (where the engine and transmission connect to each other), there is a small spot there u can jack under with a block of wood. hope that helps. i will post again on the weeknd

I've done it, you better use a 2x4 or a very thick piece of wood or you will damage the oil pan. With a piece of wood and a jack you should have that done in less than 20 min.

I want to change out the passenger side motor mount. I can rent an engine hoist locally, but I'm not sure I can fit it in any of my vehicles. Anyways, is it safe to jack the engine up by the oil pan like the manual says? If so, what part of the pan should I jack it up by(the pan is not symmetrical)?

Benchmark check out this thread, I found it very helpful. Procedures for changing out the mounts were explained really well by many of our members.

//www.toyotanation.com/forum/showthread.php?t=270957&highlight=corolla+motor+mounts

I appreciate the help. I managed to get the mount off earlier today but, I wasn't able to get the through bolt lose. The rubber just kept twisting everytime I tried to loosen it. I even tried taking the mount off and attaching it to a saw horse with a c clamp but I still couldn't get it off. I'll go at it again tomorrow.

After soaking the through bolt with liquid wrench and pb blaster all last night and this morning I was able to get the nut off of it. Its amazing how much smoother the car is now. For those of you thinking of doing this the first thing you want to do is remove your windshield wiper fluid reservoir. It gives you a large clearance to work in. I jacked the engine up by the oil pan with a bottle jack and a 2x4 with no damage.

Great to hear you got it work out!

N.E.O.