Repairing stripped A/T pan drain bolt---2008 Corolla

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pbm

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While doing a D&R of ATF last week on my 2008 Corolla I noticed the drain bolt felt a little funny while being loosened.
When I put it back in it wouldn't tighten all the way down (kept spinning). I ended up refilling the pan and haven't seen any leakage since. (I now realize I probably should have used a new crush washer last time but it's too late now).

I've searched the internet and local auto parts stores but there is no oversize replacement for the OE which is an M10X1.5 bolt and only about 1/2" long.

I'm thinking of tapping it out with a 7/16" tap and installing a new 7/16" bolt. I'm thinking 7/16" because it's closest to 11mm which is the next size up from OE and 11mm is very hard to find.

Any thoughts or suggestions before I dive into this? Thanks.

PS: I used Mobil 3309 fluid for those interested.
 
Originally Posted by JeffKeryk
Junkyard pan?



A new (aftermarket) pan is pretty reasonable....approx. $40 + delivery for a Dorman.....but when I look at the pan bolts the rust scares me...I don't want to snap one and create a whole new problem. I think tapping in a new bolt would be a better option.
 
Is it okay to re-tap the pan on the car ? Won't you put metal shavings from the tapping process into the pan ?
 
Originally Posted by hallstevenson
Is it okay to re-tap the pan on the car ? Won't you put metal shavings from the tapping process into the pan ?


I planned to throw a quart of 'rinse' ATF into it and let it drain out then I'll let the OE rockcatcher and inline Magnafine catch anything that's left....I don't see how any debris could get past both of them. I'll change the Magnafine after a few days.
 
Originally Posted by pbm
Originally Posted by JeffKeryk
Junkyard pan?



A new (aftermarket) pan is pretty reasonable....approx. $40 + delivery for a Dorman.....but when I look at the pan bolts the rust scares me...I don't want to snap one and create a whole new problem. I think tapping in a new bolt would be a better option.


You didn't drop the pan to replace the filter?
 
Originally Posted by atikovi
Originally Posted by pbm
Originally Posted by JeffKeryk
Junkyard pan?



A new (aftermarket) pan is pretty reasonable....approx. $40 + delivery for a Dorman.....but when I look at the pan bolts the rust scares me...I don't want to snap one and create a whole new problem. I think tapping in a new bolt would be a better option.


You didn't drop the pan to replace the filter?



No, I've run a Magnafine since it had about 30K...the OE filter is a 'rockcatcher' anyway.
 
When I stripped a trans pan bolt on my 2010 Corolla with an air ratchet, I grabbed my 1/4-20 gun and bottom taps and tapped it out with no drilling, put in a SS bolt I had, and got on with hand-tightening the rest.
 
Originally Posted by HangFire
When I stripped a trans pan bolt on my 2010 Corolla with an air ratchet, I grabbed my 1/4-20 gun and bottom taps and tapped it out with no drilling, put in a SS bolt I had, and got on with hand-tightening the rest.


Could you explain the process in more detail? 1/4-20 gun?..bottom taps?

I plan on removing the stripped bolt, catching the new fluid in a clean pan, trying a new 10mX1.5 bolt that's a little longer to see if it grabs the deep threads and if it doesn't I'll hand tighten a 7/16" tap as far as possible before using a wrench (to keep it straight) and then continue by wrench (putting a little grease on the tap was recommended on YT to catch the filings) and then flush with a quart of ATF.....before installing new bolt and refilling pan.
 
Only 10mm for the drain hole diameter?

The 12mm ones on Hondas seem so small to me given the 14mm examples on the Saab pans and18mm ones on the Volvos'.

Goonies at the localest QuickieLube joint stripped my neighbors Honda oil drain hole but there was enough bite left to accept a Fumoto valve with Ultra black sealer.

Thank heavens for that.
 
Originally Posted by HangFire
When I stripped a trans pan bolt on my 2010 Corolla with an air ratchet, I grabbed my 1/4-20 gun and bottom taps and tapped it out with no drilling, put in a SS bolt I had, and got on with hand-tightening the rest.


Can you explain this with a little more detail please?
 
If you retap the drain-plug hole with Pan still on vehicle;
here is some tap info you may not know,

2 flute tap
* Pushes the chips towards point of tap (into your pan)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
3 or 4 flute tap
* The chips are caught within the flutes.
* I would put some 'grease' on the flutes to catch & hold any chips.
* You slowly screw in (1/2 turn) and keep backing off to break the chip.

Edit: To make draining my Pan easier, I bought a Dorman pan and had someone weld a hex-nut to the outside,
drilled a hole thru it and used a magnetic drain plug.
 
Last edited:
Got a free oil change on my old Saturn Vue with the Honda engine. Monkeys over-tightened the drain bolt that was into cast aluminum. Didn't find out until I went to change the oil the next time. I ended up using liquid steel and a Fumoto valve. Worked fine until I traded it in.
 
I fixed it today and I got lucky......when I took out the old plug the threads on it were shot so I tried the same diameter (10mm) bolt only longer and it grabbed perfectly. The original bolt is only about 1/2" and the one I used was about an inch.....success without having to tap it out.
Thanks for all the replies...
 
A gun tap is made for fast tapping and has a lot of taper to it.

A bottom tap is to get the threads cut all the way to the bottom of a blind hole.

Overkill, really, but I inherited a lot of taps.
 
Originally Posted by HangFire
A gun tap is made for fast tapping and has a lot of taper to it.

A bottom tap is to get the threads cut all the way to the bottom of a blind hole.

Overkill, really, but I inherited a lot of taps.



Thanks for the explanation....I learned a lot about 'taps' from this thread....luckily, it's not something I will be doing often...I hope..
 
Glad you got it remedied. Keep in mind that Hangfire was talking about one of the perimeter gasket bolts, not the drain plug.
 
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