changed oil-stripped nut, now what

[strupgolf]

On my 86 911, I decided to change the oil, first time. The oil tank nut came off just fine. Then I tried, and tried, and tried, but the nut on the case would not budge. I tried heat, hammer, breaker bar, and the nut would not budge. The head is now stripped, so what do you guys suggest I do now. I changed the filter, and added 8 quarts of oil, so for the time being, most of it is changed. But now what to do for the next time. Thanks

[randywebb]

The plug, right? It resembles a bolt. Is that what you are talking about?

If it is the oil drain plug in the engine case, then don't do anything right now. Just let it sit there. It won't hurt anything to leave a mix of clean and dirty oil in the system - that happens anyway.

Do a search and you'll find many ways to remove stripped drain plugs - often in the trans.

It sounds like you might be a bit new to doing mechanical work. If so, be careful what you try. You might also post a pic of what it looks like now. You'll want to order a new drain plug and seal from Pelican. You can use the time it takes to arrive to think about how you'll get the rounded off plug out. Also, go buy some Kroil or pbBlaster penetrant.

You may wind up buying a propane torch too, but wait on that for now.

[Sumotang]

Had a similar problem recently. I have only had the car a couple of months and i noticed the drain plug on the oil tank was rounded off. Some people said to weld another nut to the rounded one and then use that to remove it.

Well, I didn't have access to a welder and the heat under the tank full of oil worried me a bit so I passed on this option. May be ok for you as the nut is the on the sump cover (i assume).

Anyway, the non genuine external oil cooler failed so I got my mechanic to replace it with a Carrerra one. While he was doing this I got him to change the oil and told him about the rounded nut. He ended up chiselling off the nut. This is one option.

Why some people tighten these nuts up so much is a mystery and PITA.

Hope this helps

[vash]

if it is effed up already. who cares, get tuff with it. break out the pipe wrench.... could be worse, like the allen tranny plug.

edit: your 3.2 has a little nut right? then go get one of those stripped bolt extractor from sears. $40. i bet it works.

[Paul Crowther]

I vote for the bolt extractor too. That's just what it's designed for. And I wonder if you had the wrong wrench for that drain plug. Check that out before the next time!

Paul

[TerryH]

If a pipe wrench won't get it, then it's time to drill for extractor.

Left is loosey, Right is tighty.

[randywebb]

Drilling is about the last thing to do. Try better grip & penetrant first. Next impact, then heat.

You can create impact by putting good gripping wrench or vice grip on it and hitting the head with a hammer - hit it many times & use a steel hammer.

[juanbenae]

Originally posted by TerryH
Left is loosey, Right is tighty.

beat me to it. also, a cresent wrench is NOT the 1st tool out of the box for most all jobs.

[TerryH]

I figure if the pipe wrench doesn't break it loose, there will be nothing left to grab.

Don't suppose you have a sump plate like the SC. It could be drilled out on the bench.


Just another advantage of owning an SC?

[strupgolf]

The nut on the case is 15mm. which is what I had. I cant believe someone would put the nut on so tight. A cresent wrench was not used. I tried a vise grip, but that just made things worse. I used a heat gun, but maybe Ill have to go out and get a propane gun for some really hot hot. Ill try a pipe wrench next time. I think what Ill do is leave it alone, its not leaking, so what the hey. And, lefty loosey, righty tighty, I know.Thanks for all replys

[kepperly]

Guys theres a reason for the aluminum crush washers to be only
used once and if you have a Bentley manual it lists the torque
values for those two drain plugs and they are differant between the oil tank and the sump plug. When you are heating you are heating the material around the plug, not the plug itself right!
You want the area around the plug to expand not the plug.

Keith Epperly 87 slant nose turbo look carrera cabriolet

[Steve87-911]

Originally posted by vash
.... could be worse, like the allen tranny plug...

Ya, or it could be way worse. Like overtightening/snapping a Type 4 oil screen cover nut. Requires a split of the case to fix.

[FrayAdjacent911]

The drain plug on my engine plate was pretty rounded on the surface, but tapping the allen key in deeper got it to grip just fine.

Of course, it's an old inside hex bolt. Not sure if yours is inside hex, too. If so, try tapping the key in a bit deeper to get past the rounded part.

[strupgolf]

No, its a "outte", not like the hex plug on the transmission. If I get it off, maybe Ill put a "inne" in there, if they make one like that.

[TerryH]

If you can get a bite with a good pipe wrench with clean jaws, I will bet the plug will come out. Vise Grips and channel locks are usually not effective and are good at rounding off squares. Pipe wrench jaws are designed to increase clamping pressure when turning force is increased. Therefore they will not slip if there is enough meat for them to grab onto. They can be a life saver in situations like this.

[cbeers]

Agreed on the pipe wrench, it has come in handy many times already. You can also usually get a cheater pipe on the pipe wrench, I use an old jack handle. Might be a good idea to have a helper there, one to hold the wrench (you, I would assume) on the drain plug and one to turn the wrench. This way, you are less likely to strip it worse or have it come flying off under force....

-Chris

[plymouthcolt]

You can try this rounded nut remover