Am I Paranoid? Honda J35 Stripped Drain Bolt

A friend would like to know do you do all your oil changes or do you let the Stealership and oil house do some of them?
I do all my own changes since my budget is tight, but I've only had this van for the past 2 years and 30k miles or so. Before that, I'm not totally sure. From the receipts that came with the van, it looks like it was mostly changed at an independent shop, with the occasion visit to a quick change place.
 
Have you been quoted on a price to R&R the pan?
I have not. If I have to change the pan, I would probably try and do it at home first instead of dropping a few hundred bucks on a shop. I have some knowledge, some tools and the internet has a lot of good resources for this kind of thing. It seems doable to me.
 
Funny we were discussing fumoto drain valves and then this post comes up.

Sounds like a candidate for one IMO once you get the threads cleaned up.
In the drain valve thread, I was the guy asking how often to oil pan drain threads really strip out? Well, now I'm eating my words.

@OdysseyTypeR I would suggest tapping the pan slightly larger for a helicoil of the original size, then put a fumoto or similar drain valve in. This way, you never have to mess with the threads again. Best of luck with the Oddy!
 
In the drain valve thread, I was the guy asking how often to oil pan drain threads really strip out? Well, now I'm eating my words.

@OdysseyTypeR I would suggest tapping the pan slightly larger for a helicoil of the original size, then put a fumoto or similar drain valve in. This way, you never have to mess with the threads again. Best of luck with the Oddy!
Appreciate the thoughts, MacManus. I thought about trying to rent or borrow tools to tap new threads, but got kind of hung up on not having enough experience or skills. My understanding is that if you don't tap it perfectly straight, then you're really sunk. In that situation I'd also be tempted to just replace it with a brand new pan since they're a lot cheaper than I thought.

Edit: the other thing to note is that I've already bored the drain larger than stock by fitting an oversized plug.
 
I've replaced two of the pans for friends, one stripped at Walmart (and then subsequently "fixed" by them somehow incorporating RTV), the other one stripped by unknown persons. Both times it would have been cheaper on paper to properly repair the threads with an insert, but as you note the kits with the tools are expensive. So both times we just got a new pan and I installed it. This is one instance where I think using a torque wrench on the drain plug is a good idea.
 
I thought about trying to rent or borrow tools to tap new threads
If it didn't leak right from the start, I don't think it's just going to start leaking later.
I've already bored the drain larger than stock by fitting an oversized plug.
That really shouldn't affect using a Fumoto valve, you just won't be able to use their selector tool. Just pick the appropriate (I presume 16mm x XX) from here.
 
I've replaced two of the pans for friends, one stripped at Walmart (and then subsequently "fixed" by them), the other stripped by unknown persons. Both times it would have been cheaper on paper to properly repair the threads with an insert, but as you note the kits with the tools are expensive. So both times we just got a new pan and I installed it. This is one instance where I think using a torque wrench on the drain plug is a good idea.
Kschachn,

Good point, and that's pretty much where my head is as well. I could get the tools to try and tap it, but with my (lack of) skills, there's a chance I could ruin the pan anyways. If a new one is under $100, I could probably set some money aside to get one. And in my opinion, nothing will match the peace of mind that comes from fresh OEM threads which I know haven't been abused by a shop, a previous owner, etc. Just my $0.02.
 
If it didn't leak right from the start, I don't think it's just going to start leaking later.

That really shouldn't affect using a Fumoto valve, you just won't be able to use their selector tool. Just pick the appropriate (I presume 16mm x XX) from here.
Thanks for the link, Hall. The next time I have the pan empty, I'll be able to look at the (new, larger) threads and make a choice about whether I want to stick with the Autozone plug that seems to be holding, install a Fumoto, replace the pan if the threads are really trashed, etc.
 
If there is still some thread i would go for the Fumoto and some JBWeld. At drain time cleanup well with solvent and inspect the threads closely. If a few threads are still left slather on some jbweld and snug it in good. That stuff will harden and hold really well. Other choice id do if threads are shot before swapping the pan would be Heli-Coil.
 
If there is still some thread i would go for the Fumoto and some JBWeld. At drain time cleanup well with solvent and inspect the threads closely. If a few threads are still left slather on some jbweld and snug it in good. That stuff will harden and hold really well. Other choice id do if threads are shot before swapping the pan would be Heli-Coil.
Sounds like a good plan, Kawi. Thanks for the help
 
This is pretty common on the all aluminum Honda oil pans as they age. It is not necessarily the fault of the last person who did the oil change. The threads wear out over time.

Your solution is to either Timesert the oil pan or replace it.

Usually by the time this happens, the oil pump is also leaking profusely (which requires oil pan removal to fix) so I usually just recommend the full fix.

Edit: This is a good video on the Timesert process:

 
I purchased all my vehicles new so each had virgin drain plug threads. The Volvo was acquired used but got a reman engine with new drain pan shortly thereafter so in a sense it was 'revirginized'. All the nuts and bolts tightened to factory or my specs. Nobody but me knows them intimately so I can appreciate what it is to fret all the time about how some ham fisted tyro might have cavalierly torqued your precious vehicle before she became yours. 😷
 
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I wonder how durable that time- sert is? Watched the video, seems straightforward enough. He said the kit was pricey, guess it's a trade off based on prices of new pan and bolt as opposed to a time sert.
 
This is pretty common on the all aluminum Honda oil pans as they age. It is not necessarily the fault of the last person who did the oil change. The threads wear out over time.

Your solution is to either Timesert the oil pan or replace it.

Usually by the time this happens, the oil pump is also leaking profusely (which requires oil pan removal to fix) so I usually just recommend the full fix.

Edit: This is a good video on the Timesert process:


Good point, I didn't think about the oil pump - as far as I know this one is still the original. No problems as of now but nothing lasts forever, right?
 
Good point, I didn't think about the oil pump - as far as I know this one is still the original. No problems as of now but nothing lasts forever, right?
The oil pump itself doesn't fail, it is the gasket that does. If the area below the crank pulley is wet, most likely you need to reseal the oil pump.

I wonder how durable that time- sert is? Watched the video, seems straightforward enough. He said the kit was pricey, guess it's a trade off based on prices of new pan and bolt as opposed to a time sert.
Should be extremely durable as long as it is installed properly. But the kit costs more than a new pan:

 
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I purchased all my vehicles new so each had virgin drain plug threads. The Volvo was acquired used but got a reman engine with new drain pan shortly thereafter so in a sense it was 'revirginized'. All the nuts and bolts tightened to factory or my specs. Nobody but me knows them intimately so I can appreciate what it is to fret all the time about how some ham fisted tyro might have cavalierly torqued your precious vehicle before she became yours. 😷
This exactly. It's my vehicle, and only I will touch it because that's the only way to know for sure that a job was done right. And if something breaks or there's a problem, I know it was my fault and I can own it. It doesn't help that my area has a severe shortage of good shops.
 
The oil pump itself doesn't fail, it is the gasket that does. If the area below the crank pulley is wet, most likely you need to reseal the oil pump.


Should be extremely durable as long as it is installed properly. But the kit costs more than a new pan:

Gotcha. I'll have to get under it this weekend and take a look. I've been smelling a little bit of oil lately, but it never seems to use any. I wonder if I have a problem down there.

Edit: Also, further up in the thread you said something about needing to raise the engine to drop the pan? I hadn't seen that in any of the information I could find online, how much do you need to raise it by?
 
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