Oil Pump Removal 1986 3.8L

[fasthauler]

Has anyone taken the oil pump out of one of these engines? I know that it comes out from behind the oil filter but the ford factory manual is a little vague about removing it. Do you have to remove the intermediate shaft to get the pump drive gear out? If so then wouldn't the front cover have to be removed from the engine to get at the retainer clip on the intermediate shaft?
My engine has developed the dry pump syndrome and takes about five seconds to bring up oil pressure upon initial startup. I have always ran Mobil 1 and good Wix filters. I have tried a couple of different types of filters and the problem still exists. This engine just developed this problem almost overnight so I have a hard time believing that the bearings have all of a sudden went bad. The pump rebuild kits are cheap so I would like to try that option first before believing that there is a major problem with the engine.

[rhandwor]

I always loosened the mounts and watched closely as I picked up the engine.
Then put 4x4's under the mounts. I then dropped the oil pan. The strainer then sits in the lowest part of the pan. I remove the strainer and clean it. You may need to boil it in an old pan. If you have a parts cleaner use this. Any pump I removed I unbolted from this area. I usually purchased a short or long block and they came with new pumps. Prime the pump before installing. I installed the pump with the motor on an engine stand I filled up the strainer with oil and installed the oil pan. You can install a pump fron the bottom. Just be careful as the distributor drives the pump and it has to be hooked up properly.

[fasthauler]

I appreciate your response rhandwor, but the oil pump on the 3.8L V6 is not in the pan. It is in the timing case cover and is accessed by taking the oil filter mounting plate off and the pump is behind that plate. I was hoping that someone on here had removed the pump and could warn me of any traps to avoid.

[rhandwor]

I checked in my manual and this one is different. But the pickup tube is still in the pan. From my experience these strainers are 90% of the problems with the pump not picking up. Coat the pump gears with vasoline after your done.
If you want me to scan a picture and e-mail it to you send me a private e-mail with an email address and I will send you a picture of the pump disassembled.