Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums General Troubleshooting Sigh (Oil Pan + Sears = NO)

Took my car to Sears to get an oil change...

THEY told me the oil pan drain plug (oil pan side) had been stripped on the way in. This is not quite the most believable thing to me since the mechanic who had changed my oil my last few times has been good. Now, my questions.

One, if the plug was stripped on the way in, wouldnt the oil leak?

Two, if the plug was stripped on the way in, wouldn't the stripped threads be at the back of the plug instead of at the front?

Three, if only the last half of the pan was stripped, wouldn't that be a strip coming from the outside?

Thanks for any help, avoid Sears!

if you are lucky it might just be the plug.. if so get a new one from the dealer and put it in.. if not then get one of those rubber plugs that expand when you tighten the bolt in it... you can complain all you want about the mechanic doing the job who probably messed it up, but its hard to prove and it would cost you more than just getting it done and the car fixed....

Sadly, the oil pan itself was stripped. Without recourse of recovering money from Sears, I am curious as to how difficult a replacement of the Oil Pan would be?

Link

Only difference is that you'll be throwing out the old pan and putting a new one in its place.

Normal band-aid fix is to switch to a rubber expanding drain plug, probably $5. Similar to an expansion shield used to hold a screw or bolt in concrete or drywall(wallboard).