Honda Car Forum

TomC <ooo@ooo.com> wrote in rec.autos.makers.honda:

> The wife has a 2000 accord V6 and I recently changed the oil.
> Previously, It was always done at the shop. The drain plug was
> very hard to loosen and it did not have a plastic washer on it.
> All the other vehicles I have owned had some sort of washer on the
> drain plug. Now, I've noticed a slight drip from the drain plug
> even though it's tight. Soo....I'm wandering if there's supposed
> to be a washer on the drain plug that was lost on a previous oil
> change. Can anybody advise? TIA.
> TomC
>
> SoCalMike <mikein562athotmail@hotmail.com> wrote in article
><w8adnQI5MfMb_yLfRVn-rA@comcast.com>...
>> jim beam wrote:
>> > didn't mean to frighten you! if you take the right
>> > precautions, there are many advantages to doing the oil
>> > yourself, the main one being that you make sure it's done
>> > right.
>>
>> not only that, it gives you a chance to inspect the CV boots, oil
>> pan gasket, oil pan, tranny pan, exhaust, check for leaks, etc...
>>
>

My mechanic had a bolt washer welding onto my pan. It cost me $35, but
I have no doubt it's saved me in the long run from having to buy a new
pan because lazy or overzealous oil change monkeys machine or
overtorque. You might consider something similar in the future.

--
Brandy**Alexandre®
http://www.swydm.com/?refer=BrandyAlx
Well, would you?

"Brandy Alexandre" <brandy@kamikaze.orgy> wrote
snip
> My mechanic had a bolt washer welding onto my pan. It cost me $35, but
> I have no doubt it's saved me in the long run from having to buy a new
> pan because lazy or overzealous oil change monkeys machine or
> overtorque. You might consider something similar in the future.

The washers used for the oil drain plug are, by design, "crushable" to give
a good seal when the plug is torqued. Whatever your mechanic welded into
place either doesn't crush, and so a good seal is not obtained, or does
crush for now but won't eventually.

I don't see how this 'design improvement' will prevent overtorquing, and
hence stripping of either the bolt threads or the pan's threads, either.

Unless someone has a better explanation, I would run, not walk, from this
mechanic.

To the OP: Hard plastic ramps ("Rhino ramps") run about $20-$30 at either
Autozone, Pep Boys, or Wal-Mart. Steel ramps run about $10-$15. Jack stands
at Wal-Mart are great, too, for under $10, but of course you with jack
stands you have to do the labor of jacking.

"Elle" <elle_navorski@nospam.earthlink.net> wrote in message
news:U1Ewe.11102$hK3.5385@newsread3.news.pas.earth link.net...
> "Brandy Alexandre" <brandy@kamikaze.orgy> wrote
> snip
>> My mechanic had a bolt washer welding onto my pan.

I translate that as "nut".

It cost me $35, but
>> I have no doubt it's saved me in the long run from having to buy a new
>> pan because lazy or overzealous oil change monkeys machine or
>> overtorque. You might consider something similar in the future.
>
> The washers used for the oil drain plug are, by design, "crushable" to
> give
> a good seal when the plug is torqued. Whatever your mechanic welded into
> place either doesn't crush, and so a good seal is not obtained, or does
> crush for now but won't eventually.
>
> I don't see how this 'design improvement' will prevent overtorquing, and
> hence stripping of either the bolt threads or the pan's threads, either.
>
> Unless someone has a better explanation, I would run, not walk, from this
> mechanic.
>
> To the OP: Hard plastic ramps ("Rhino ramps") run about $20-$30 at either
> Autozone, Pep Boys, or Wal-Mart. Steel ramps run about $10-$15. Jack
> stands
> at Wal-Mart are great, too, for under $10, but of course you with jack
> stands you have to do the labor of jacking.
>
>
>

SoCalMike <mikein562athotmail@hotmail.com> wrote:
> the scion xA is easy! i imagine the xB and toyota echo are the same. oil
> filter is up behind the front bumper, and the drain plug is witin reach,
> too. to change the oil on my moms xA, i lie on my back and stick my arm
> under the car.

On my Mazda RX-2, I could change the oil and filter from the top.
There was enough room on the left side of the engine to put the oil pan
down under the engine. The oil filter was right there, sticking up. The
drain plug was on the side of the pan.

How many times did I change the oil on that car? 60?

---
Clarence A Dold - Hidden Valley (Lake County) CA USA 38.8,-122.5