S2000 Oil Pan Baffle Install

Well I had a great opportunity to install an oil pan baffle for another S2ki member today. People often ask, "Is welding aluminum hard?". The honest answer is Yes, and no. Aluminum is very picky about how it likes to be welded. Any small amount of oil, dirt, grease, or other contamination can spell disaster when welding aluminum. I were welding intake manifolds that were put together with CNC milled pieces that were perfectly new and clean, I would say, "welding aluminum is easy!". But if I were welding cracked oil pans all day, I would say, "Welding aluminum SUCKS!" Oil can bake it's way into the aluminum, and that is why great care needs to be taken when welding an oil pan like this. All the surfaces have to be methodically scrubbed and cleaned. First, the entire pan is scrubbed with degreaser and scotch bright pads. This pan wasn't too bad, so that was enough to pull out most of the oil.

Acetone is used for the final cleaning. The pan looked clean before, but you can see all the black material that came up after scrubbing it with acetone.

All edges of the baffle must also be sanded and cleaned with acetone.

To ensure a nice weld, even the filler rod must be cleaned. Even tho this rod came out of a sealed container, scrubbing it with acetone reveals all the junk that was on it.

Almost ready to weld. Cold aluminum is difficult to weld before it comes up to a certain temperature. I use a heat gun to gently warm the material to make the welds go smoother.

As I weld a bead and then stop, I be sure and clip the ends of the filler rod so that the oxidized material on the tip does not contaminate the next weld.

And so it goes...

Done! Another pan ready for the track!