Oil Drain Plug Torque

I use a socket and tighten it kinda tight.

 

I do mine sorta tight(ie: snug and then a little tug).

 

20lb. ft. per dr. rose's instructions.

 

Whats the NAPA part number for the copper washer for the oil drain plug.
Would Mercedes/BMW et al supply it?

 

Jesus, will you guys stop it already for christ sake???

 

Very simple -- take the old one to NAPA, go to the cabinet where they keep the copper washers, and match it up. Couldn't be easier. And buy a couple of spares while you are at it.

 

I don't use a torque wrench for this application, it's too easy to strip the pan treads.

The copper washer is a crush type, which is why it can't be re-used once removed unless you anneal it again. Anyway, as I tighten the drain plug by hand with a socket/ratchet, I reach a point where I feel and can even slightly hear the copper washer "seat". At that point you're done.

If the torque wrench fails, and they do, you'll pull the plug and treads out of the oil pan.

 

"I reach a point where I feel and can even slightly hear the copper washer "seat". At that point you're done."

Agree - fooling with a torque wrench is not helpful in this application...dry threads? Lubricated threads? If lubricated, with what? These variables all change the torque spec. If the spec is for dry and you lube the threads - almost impossible not to do in an oil pan - you can easily strip something if you tighten to spec.

As noted, tighten snugly so that the copper washer compresses. That's all that's necessary. Also, as noted, though it's easy to obtain a new washer, you can anneal the old copper washer and reuse it many times if you wish to.

If you are really worried about the drain plug coming loose - that's what safety wire is for.

 

If you really worry about a torque wrench failing, why buy them. And if you do buy them, buy good ones.

 

I don't necessarily worry about them failing, but the operator needs to be cognizant when using one.

I helped someone change the water pump on a Jeep years ago. This guy had a really good click type torque wrench. We had to tighten the bolts to maybe 20-25pound/ft if I recall. The first bolt he put back in he snapped it in the front of the block. Talk about a pia drilling that thing out....

The wrench was set correctly, but didn't click at the desired setting. He was a strong guy and just kept wrenching until the bolt sheared in two. He contacted the company (name brand, well known for high end tools) and they essentially said if the wrench was sitting not used for a long period of time, and it was not set back to zero before storing, you can get a false setting when re-using, especially at a lower setting. Something about the internal spring or mechanism not being at rest. They advised that next time after an extended period of not being used, to test the wrench on a wheel bolt/lug nut first.

For non pro's who wrench only on weekends, I'd say this is sound advice. For a 308 oil pan drain plug, it's especially good to be attentive. Many posts on here about other folks needing to have their plug holes welded and re-tapped due to pulling the threads out when reinstalling the drain plug.

 

Click type torque wrenches are convenient but good ones are expensive and don't have ratchet heads. A $39 click-type, ratchet-head torque wrench is worth what you paid for it.

Beam-type wrenches are essentially bulletproof though harder to use. In the engine building shop we never used clickers for engine assembly we used dial type; clickers were for tightening lug nuts!

A good torque wrench will come with a certification paper showing that THAT specific wrench, by serial number, was tested and met the specs. If you buy a torque wrench that does not come with that paper, you basically do not have a torque wrench; you have a wrench that has a scale on it to be used for entertainment purposes.

Thats why a "Cobalt" Torque wrench costs 40 bucks and a Snap-On (for example) costs $200.

 

My Sears clickers are adjusted by me, at home, using weights for calibration before an engine rebuild procedure, and always come about 5% accurate to scale. It is not the clickers that are bad, it is how you use it. People (including me) tend to set a clicker for a torque and very easily go past that torque after the click.

I have since bought 2 electronic ones (expensive and very accurate Danaher) and they teach me how to slow down as I approach the torque set and stop right on the dime. That alone is worth the money.

 

Certainly, you can check the calibration of a torque wrench yourself and then apply whatever correction is necessary thorough its range. If you have something like the Snap-on tool for that purpose, it's pretty easy. You can also do it with weights but, of course, you will need to do it with three or four to get a sense of the accuracy at the low, middle, and high end of the wrench.

Generally, top quality torque wrenches are certified to 4% accuracy from 20% of their max rating to 80% of their max rating. So, for example, if you have a 10-100ft/lb 3/8" drive torque wrench, it will be certified to 4% accuracy between 20 and 80 ft lbs. That's why if you really plan to seriously use torque wrenches for "everything", you need at least two, and more likely 3 to cover everything on a typical engine - a 1/4" drive for the light stuff, a 3/8" drive for most of the typical maintenance, and a 1/2" drive for things like main bearings, harmonic balancer, etc.

 

So, if I have 6 torque wrenches, I am really serious then.

 

I'd say if you have 6 good torque wrenches you are definitely serious! If you have 6 torque wrenches from the home depot or lowes tool section...not so much!