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Old 04-07-2018, 06:24 PM   #1
Ralph50
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Join Date: Apr 2008
Location: Mt Clemens, Michigan
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Oil pan drain plug - screw head stripped

Well that was the longest oil change in my life. Dam Chrysler and there cost savings program. The oil drain screw was so soft steel, that the hex stripped, when trying to remove. I tried heating with a heat gun, but did nothing, probably because the oil in the pan was keeping it cool. Ended up using an air hammer, with flat blade, not sharp, and caught the edge of the rounded head, and after about 5 minutes it finally rotated, and came off. The problem with this design, is the rubber seal is in a groove, and compresses, when screw is installed. Except, that means, the screw head bottoms out against the steel oil pan. I replaced with the older type screw and fiber oil ring. This does not have a steel to steel mating surface. Screw is a M14 x 1.5 thread, the new one has a larger Hex at 16mm and old one was 13mm. Being an engineer in auto business, I would assume the 2 pc screw and fiber washer was a problem in assembly, imagine the person forgetting the fiber washer once a week and the cost is thousands of dollars. The worst thing is that I change my own oil, so I was the one that put that screw in the last time, I did not torque it that tight??? My suggestion if you read this before the next oil change replace that screw. I also replaced the oil filter with the taller one, on this 3.8L engine there is plenty of space and mounts up. I used the Motorcraft FL-1A, and the old one was the Fram PH-16.
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