Differential Allen Drain Bolt Buggered

[Gebo]

Originally Posted by Char Baby
Originally Posted by Char Baby
I usually tap the plug with a chisel straight on to cut in a groove. Then with said chisel, tap the plug in the direction(CCW) to unscrew it.

Originally Posted by Trav
If its like the one in the picture use a cold chisel on the right side of it at about 4 o'clock and hammer it CCW.
Make sure to keep the chisel flat as not to damage the case, you may get a few nicks and scratches but you want to keep it to a minimum. Use heavy sharp hits and open the fill plug first.

Originally Posted by Gebo
I think I will try the torx method first. Then the square extension.

Trav, you are my "go-to" man but that chisel thing....I'm not sure my testicles are big enough for that method as of 7:16 am this morning. Although there may come a time that I "Get mad at them eggs!"

Cool Hand Luke...


Well, Trav & I have both said it and trust me, it works fine and without much hassle or damage.
I had to do this on my wife's Lexus. If you damage it, get another plug at the dealer. They're cheap enough!



Well, I already have a new replacement in my pocket. So I don't care how bad I damage the old one. I may be growing a pair.

 

[KrisZ]

The plug looks not too bad, a slightly bigger Allen key hammered in should remove it no problem. But I would consider this plug a gonner. Get a new one and make sure you use the right size Allen key. In a lot of situations people mess these up because they used metric instead of imperial or vice versa.

 

[Trav]

Originally Posted by Char Baby
Originally Posted by Char Baby
I usually tap the plug with a chisel straight on to cut in a groove. Then with said chisel, tap the plug in the direction(CCW) to unscrew it.

Originally Posted by Trav
If its like the one in the picture use a cold chisel on the right side of it at about 4 o'clock and hammer it CCW.
Make sure to keep the chisel flat as not to damage the case, you may get a few nicks and scratches but you want to keep it to a minimum. Use heavy sharp hits and open the fill plug first.

Originally Posted by Gebo
I think I will try the torx method first. Then the square extension.

Trav, you are my "go-to" man but that chisel thing....I'm not sure my testicles are big enough for that method as of 7:16 am this morning. Although there may come a time that I "Get mad at them eggs!"

Cool Hand Luke...


Well, Trav & I have both said it and trust me, it works fine and without much hassle or damage.
I had to do this on my wife's Lexus. If you damage it, get another plug at the dealer. They're cheap enough!


I didn't read the whole thread, I didn't mean to parrot your answer with no recognition. All the ways mention in the thread work and I have used every one of them at some point, sometimes you cant get enough room to swing the hammer to get a bigger bit in so out comes the cold chisel. It does work fine though and is easy on this style of plug.

 

[StevieC]

You can also try hammering in the normally sized Allen key but with a blue shop towel over top of it maybe folded once so it fits in there really tight in the hex. Yours doesn't look that messed up. I thought it was completely round.

 

[Lou_Boyle]

Assuming it is a steel plug, have a shop tack weld a nut on the face of it.

 

[scurvy]

Originally Posted by Gebo
It can be problematic when you use your left leg to push on the ratchet because you don't have enough ground clearance for a breaker bar and your foot keeps slipping off the ratchet and send the ratchet flying back to the rear differential area.


No wonder it slipped out. Stop using your leg!

 

[CharBaby]

[Gebo/Quote:] Well, I already have a new replacement in my pocket. So I don't care how bad I damage the old one. I may be growing a pair. [/quote]

Funny!

 

[CharBaby]

[Trav/quote]: I didn't read the whole thread, I didn't mean to parrot your answer with no recognition. All the ways mention in the thread work and I have used every one of them at some point, sometimes you cant get enough room to swing the hammer to get a bigger bit in so out comes the cold chisel. It does work fine though and is easy on this style of plug.
[/quote]

No problem. Or as we say in my circle, No Blem!

 

[Gebo]

Originally Posted by scurvy
Originally Posted by Gebo
It can be problematic when you use your left leg to push on the ratchet because you don't have enough ground clearance for a breaker bar and your foot keeps slipping off the ratchet and send the ratchet flying back to the rear differential area.


No wonder it slipped out. Stop using your leg!


Need to use my head....

 

[Nick1994]

Yeah I'd get a Torx bit in there. If you don't have multiple sizes, you can buy a few at the auto parts store and return what you didn't use.

And I'd also get a cheap propane torch and heat it up real good.

 

[supton]

Originally Posted by Lubener
Use a suction gun in the fill plug.. I think you will be opening a can of worms by trying to extract that plug.

I resorted to that on mine. That reminds me, I could use a larger jar for my Mityvac, removing 4oz at a time from a 66oz sump was... a long time.

 

[Gebo]

I'm gonna start tackling this project later today.

There is no way in this God's green earth I'm gonna suck anything out of this differential. It's not in my genetic makeup. Heck, I'd fly Trav (well, maybe Amtrak) here to get it out before it comes to that.

That nut will surrender! I will not be defeated. With a little help I can do all things...

Penetrol, hammer, chisel, etc

 

[Gebo]

Well, all is well that ends well. Heat and chisel worked. Take a look at my handiwork.

I must admit after trying some of the other methods and after beating with this chisel til my body started hurting, I was considering other options.
But then I decided to heat the heck out of this plug with my little propane torch. I believe the extra heat did it.

Thanks to all your advice and help.

 

[Gebo]

For anyone else that gets into this type of situation, do not underestimate the power of heat.

 

[Delta]

I know you already got the bolt out, but everytime I've run into this situation I welded a nut to the affected fastener. The combination of heat and something to grab on works wonders. Now, not everybody has a welder available, but an inexpensive flux core is something very handy to have in the garage!

 

[StevieC]

Heat and Beat for the win.

 

[Gebo]

As you look at the finished work, quietly sing "You are so Beautiful" by Joe Cocker.

 

[KrisZ]

I'm glad you got it off.

 

[Gebo]

Originally Posted by StevieC
Heat and Beat for the win.


Any pun intended?

 

[StevieC]

Originally Posted by Gebo
Originally Posted by StevieC
Heat and Beat for the win.


Any pun intended?


No it's a phrase I've heard thrown around before both in my dad's shop and his mechanic buddies shops. Heat it and then beat on it to remove stuck things like exhaust bolts or whatever.