TOYOTA OIL DRAIN PLUG GASKET

[ripcord]

Toyota and their drain plug washers just seem like a fetish to me. I can count on one hand the number of washers I have replaced. Must of those have been Toyotas that I used a sensible copper washer as a permanent replacement.

 

[Exhaustgases]

Just strange when such a simple part in this day and age can not be (designed) manufactured correctly, goes to show how far off everything is now.

 

[Woody71]

I take our corolla on a highway run after an OC and then re-tighten the drain plug. The heat from the oil pan causes the adheseive to degrade, awful design. Luckily I just need to run it up on ramps to get under it.

 

[D60]

I take our corolla on a highway run after an OC and then re-tighten the drain plug. The heat from the oil pan causes the adheseive to degrade, awful design. Luckily I just need to run it up on ramps to get under it.

I was recently looking at "fake" Toyota composite plug gaskets....ya know the sorta green "fiber" looking ones.

I filtered to negative reviews and several reports of the (apparently) paper degrading and then the plug loosens up.

I don't know if this is your issue, but I found it eye-opening. I'll often use inexpensive metal gaskets but it would seem with composite/fiber/paper/whatever you should be careful

 

[Joba27n]

This is interesting, i've never had this issue. I've slacked in torquing them even and reuse them typically 4 times before they seep. At that point I replace them the following oil change

 

[Hohn]

I've never, ever, used a torque wrench on a drain plug. Motorcycle, car, lawn mower, never.

People with no mechanical aptitude think they are doing "the right thing" when using a torque wrench for everything. Problem is, sometimes these people pick up on the wrong spec, the threads are lubed when they shouldn't be, or the threads in the equipment have deteriorated. Before you know it, stripped threads, or something tight or loose.

Drain plugs are easy: tighten until bolt contact, then tighten a little more, while you "feel" the washer crush down just a little. Done.

Of course, some people have hands like spatulas, basically, no feel. If you are like this, find a good mechanic, and don't F*** anything up.

Same and exactly right. It's pseudo-precision for the home gamer. Well-intended but ignorant.

I alluded to this in a video I made while repairing my GX460. Torque specs are established for new parts and new hardware, and even when correctly installed will have ±30% actual tension variation just due to normal k-factor variation.

Watching someone "torque to spec" the lug nuts on their car-- with rusted studs and bolts and corroded wheels-- makes me cringe. That torque spec is for shiny new parts with a known k-factor range and relatively low friction. Using it with old and nasty hardware will cause the stretch to be much too low and is a safety risk.

An oil drain plug is a plug not a bolt. If the torque was enough to keep the plug in place and not leaking, it was enough torque. The lowest torque that does this reliably is the correct torque.

Ditching the metal washer for an elastomeric seal like a Viton Stat-o-Seal will allow effective sealing at very low torques. You can barely snug it with a stubby ratchet and it will stay in place just fine and probably be reusable forever.

 

[tblt44]

I had one that felt that way one time. All other times still tight. I do not use a torque wrench.
I buy gaskets aftermarket on Amazon

 

[Kira]

Just strange when such a simple part in this day and age can not be (designed) manufactured correctly........

That the various drain plug gasket designs can be central to a "snowstorm" of confusion is what amazes me.
We flew to the Moon 57 years ago; didn't we?

 

[tired]

torque both drain plugs to 18 ft-lbs per Toyota spec

Maybe it's been covered in the 6 pages, but are you sure about this spec? My Toyota is 27 ft-lb. I think Toyotas are usually 27-30 ft-lb.

 

[rondhol]

For Toyota, I used original Toyota blue gasket and it is re-usable about 2-3x before it leaks. The felt is tough and never peel off unlike the aftermarket or fake blue gasket. I used the rubberized steel washer from Dorman, it only holds for 1y/10k miles using PAO Ravenol VSE. The rubber peel-off

 

[Chris Meutsch]

I have two (2) Camry's...both with the 4-cylinder engine. I change oil in both of them ~ 2x per year. I use the Toyota oil drain plug gasket pictured below and torque both drain plugs to 18 ft-lbs per Toyota spec. Over the past 2 years, I've noticed that both drain plugs are finger tight at best when I change the oil. I've noticed that the coating or whatever is on both sides of these aluminum washers disintegrates...mostly on the side of the gasket that is in touch with the oil pan. FWIW both oil pans are metal. The drain plugs are both the original and are perfect. You can hand tighten both bolts snug and then tighten with the torque wrench. FWIW I have two different torque wrenches I've used to make sure there is not a problem with the amount of torque applied. I have in the past bought packets of washers from a Toyota online parts dealer and really haven't had an issue. I went to my local dealer and bought a few washers for the most recent change to see if I would get a different result....same problem. Within a week both drain plugs have loosened to where you need to tighten the bolts another 1/4 turn or more. Thankfully neither drain plug has completely come out. Generally they seem to about one to two turns to being hand tight.

Question...has any one experienced this problem using TOYOTA drain plug gaskets? For reference here is a picture of the gasket and the Toyota p/n.

P/N 90430-12031
View attachment 285725

Yep, I’ve been noticing this on my 4Runner as well. It’s unnerving.
Meanwhile, the drain plug in the (metal) filter housing also loosens up to an uncomfortable level.
Weird.

 

[tired]

Yep, I’ve been noticing this on my 4Runner as well. It’s unnerving.
Meanwhile, the drain plug in the (metal) filter housing also loosens up to an uncomfortable level.
Weird.

I think 18 ft-lb is far too low. I haven't looked up the torque spec for the Camry, but I thought nearly all Toyotas were 29 ft-lb. That's what I use.

 

[The Critic]

Yep, I’ve been noticing this on my 4Runner as well. It’s unnerving.
Meanwhile, the drain plug in the (metal) filter housing also loosens up to an uncomfortable level.
Weird.

Never seen this issue before - you might be undertightening the drain plug.

 

[Chris Meutsch]

Never seen this issue before - you might be undertightening the drain plug.

I’ve always done the “tight, then an extra quarter turn” method without using a torque wrench. What is the official number, 29?

 

[zzyzzx]

It's just a drain plug gasket. No need to buy the Toyota brand. Even a Dorman drain plug gasket will work.

 

[tblt44]

Ya i noticed that one.
Now I just tighten it

 

[The Critic]

I’ve always done the “tight, then an extra quarter turn” method without using a torque wrench. What is the official number, 29?

Depends on the model. Recent ones have been 30.

It's tighter than you'd expect. Tighten until it fully bottoms out with a foot long ratchet.

 

[Hootbro]

I have used the real OEM and knock offs with no issue.

Have wondered the reason for the coating material though whether it was for dissimilar metal corrosion prevention and/or sealing properties?

 

[CR94]

Using Toyota's blue-clad OE washers, I've never had a problem with them loosening or leaking. Usually the washer sticks to the pan, and I leave it there, as long as the surface contacting the plug head still looks good---which it always does.

Considering that I never had any trouble with the original plain metal drain-plug washers of previous vehicles either, the switch to supposedly single-use washers seems a gratuitous complication and waste.

 

[iCurious]

I have only seen this issue on high mileage engines where the oil pan drain plug threads are weak.

Also, the published drain plug torque spec is definitely intended for dry threads and surfaces. 30ft lbs will feel way too tight on Toyota steel pans during a routine oil change.

If that is the case, I don't see what is the point using a torque wrench.

Does this applies to transmission, transfer case and differential drain plugs too?