Monday, July 26, 2010

Cant Remove Oil drain plug?

I recently got a car and i wanted to change the oil before I'm about to make a long trip. I have changed oil before, but I'm having trouble this time. The plug to drain the oil out of is stripped. I tried for about an hour to remove the bolt and it was on so tight and already stripped a bit, that i stripped it a bit more. How can i fix this so I can change my oil. ThanksCant Remove Oil drain plug?
I assume what you mean is the oil plug is rounded off. If that's the case go to the tool section of Sears and in the section that have socket wrenches, you will find a stripped bolt head socket set. It's about $30 dollars but makes a good addition to a tool box.


Look closely at the end of the socket that goes on the bolt head and you will see a tapered spiral inside and the harder you turn the socket, the tighter it grips the bolt head. I've used them on several occasions and they work great.Cant Remove Oil drain plug?
Vise grips.


Righty-tighty.....lefty loosy.





Turn it counter clockwise.
go order a new drain plug first, when you get it, use vice-grips to get the old one off.. or take a grinder, cut down either side of the bolt a little bit so its flat on 2 sides.. then vice grips will definately work. otherwise try to tap on a size smaller, but you have to be careful not to damage the oilpan because they arent the strongest.
First, you gotta get the old one out. Vise Grips are your best bet. Try not to enlarge the hole on the oil pan by twisting it out.


Most automotive stores sell an ';oversized'; plug, which are self tapping, and will cut new threads and prevent future leakage.


Be careful when installing them. It takes some time and a lot of patience.





Hope this helps.
Stripped meaning the head is starting to round off I assume. The problem is the metal washer is rusted on. I use plastic ones because of this problem. Get a good pair of vice grips, tighten it so much you have to strain to close them, then put a pipe on the end of the vise grips, I use an old piece of conduit and that should give you the leverage to pull it off. New drain plugs are about 2 bucks.
for the cost of an oil change, it might not hurt to go to a shop. they will have no problem removing the drain plug, and will be able to get a replacement for you.plus if you are going on a trip they can check the vehicle over while it is in the air
Get yourself a pair of Vise-Grips to remove it. Be sure to buy a new drain plug for it, BEFORE you remove it though.
I have found that you can take a socket 1mm smaller then the head and tap it on.this will hole the plug head while you turn.word to the wise thoughif it won't thread out it would be best to take it to your dealer.they can retap the plug hole and replace the plug.hope this helps

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