Oil Pan

I have a '95 Civic with low mileage but the car is not garaged and is
exposed to Northeast winters. The oil pan appears to be rusted at the bottom
and I've been told it needs replacement.

Is it recommended to buy from the dealer, a new pan and gasket? Or is it ok
to save some money and get a good after market replacement pan and gasket?

Also, is it tough to replace the pan on the 95 civic? I have been quoted a
couple hours to do the job.

 

Take that quote as a clear indication that the mechanic is out to rip you
off. Go elsewhere or do the job yourself. It is the kind of job that
takes a home mechanic with little experience maybe two hours. A professional
with a fullbody lift and air tools would need about 35 minutes.

See if you can get the part at a junk yard. Aftermarket is fine also if you
can find the part.

It is also possible that the only thing that is wrong is that it is missing a
little paint. It's pretty rare for an oil pan to rust through.

 

1. please learn to cross post so all answers are read by all groups.
2. "rusted" as in rusted through so it's leaking, or "rusted" so that
it's just got surface rust on it? if the latter, just smear some grease
on it and forget about it.

 

The mechanic claims its rusted and said he was afraid to open the cap to
drain it. Since two different shops said this was a problem I am concerned.
Is it normal for rust to appear on the oil pan?

 

did you ask a leading question or did they both come out with this
recommendation spontaneously and independently?

not unless you scrape it when you park or your mechanic is in the habit
of jacking the vehicle up by it.

bottom line, if it /is/ rusted badly enough, sure, it needs to be
replaced. however, the probability is low. and frankly, if the oil
pan's rusted through, i doubt there's much else of the car left given
that the pan is so thick and the body is so thin.

post a pic [say tinypic.com] if you want further opinion.

 

If you have a tendency to park on grass, dirt or a gravel driveway, you'll
get a lot more corrosion, especially if the car isn't driven much and the
oil pan was scratched already.

Why don't you look under the car with a mirror and strong light, and have a
peek for yourself? You don't even need to jack the car up.

Can you take a picture of the rust?

 

You can also get under the car and tap it with something to see if it
sounds thinner at some spots and not others.
Bg

 

Posting the same question as multiple posts to multiple newsgroups
is fucking obnoxious.