Uh-oh; I stripped the differential fill plug

[wavinwayne]

I was trying to remove the differential fill plug in my wife's Expedition today, & I wound up rounding off the inside of the screw. Basically, you're supposed to use a 3/8" square drive to remove the plug. I used a 3/8" ratchet extension, & a breaker bar for leverage. I thought I was loosening the plug, but it just rounded off the inside of the recessed square portion of the plug.

There is a Havoline Xpress Lube down the street; do you guys think they would have a tool to remove a rounded out fill plug? If not, what is my best option to get the plug out?

 

[04SpecV]

Go to a shop that has a welder, someone who can use it. They can weld a bolt in there and then back it out.
Thats how we got the one out of my truck atleast.

 

[ConfederateTyrant]

The fill plug on my car is slightly rounded inside, and I rounded it by using an extension. If I use the 3/8" ratchet alone it gets a tight hold and does not round it. Is it perfectly rounded inside, or are there rugged edges? If you have some rugged edges then you may be able to get a wide flat-head screwdriver in there and turn it. I watched one of the Xpresslube workers do that when I was there because of a rounded fill plug. You can always try using a 3/8" ratchet alone if it isn't perfectly rounded.

 

[labman]

Usually you can free things by using a punch or chisel around the edge. I think you need to take a large 1/2'' breaker bar and smack whoever over tightened it on the head. Then break the fingers of the engineer or bean counter that failed to use a big hex instead of the little hole.

 

[Dark Jedi]

LEfty loosie, righty tighty

just take it to a shop they can weld something on there to break it loose. then just get a new plug. and one more time lefty loosie, righty tighty

 

[obbop]

"lefty loosie, righty tighty"

Is that true in the southern hemisphere as well?

 

[wavinwayne]

Thanks for the suggestions, guys. I'll have someone at a local shop remove it for me. There are some good shops around here; this is probably child's play to them.

 

[9296D21B14]

This is why I decided to have the rear diff oil changed on both of my D21's at a

Jiffy Lube. I watched the tech very carefully both times. He was not a teenager. From the below ground pit, he used a 3' pipe over the end of a 1/2" ratchet and still had to lean into it to get the drain plug moving. The whole truck shook. No way could I get that kind of torque laying down under the truck while it was on stands worrying about it falling. I tried once after much PB Blaster and still no budge. Same issue on the new mower for the crankcase. Hole in plug rather than hex. Started to strip it the first oil change and am now resigned to draining it by tipping the whole thing to one side per manual.

 

[ConfederateTyrant]

9296D21B14, mine was that hard the first time, I was only able to break it loose because I had it up on a lift and had a 3/8" breaker bar (about 2 feet long). The thing I noticed with my ratchet extensions is that they are semi-round on the connectors for the sockets, I believe this is why the rounding of the plug occurs. I got lucky with my lawnmower, I had the same issue that you had, but I found another extension that was straighter on the 4 sides, so that prevented me from rounding the inside out. After they are broken free the first time, they don't seem to be a problem at all anymore.

I'll never understand the automotive industry and their designs for using such cheap*** parts instead of something that is more reliable, like a bolt instead of a plug.

 

[labman]

So they arm wrestle at the factory, and the winners get to tighten the plugs and oil filters?

 

[Matt_S]

quote:

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Originally posted by labman:
So they arm wrestle at the factory, and the winners get to tighten the plugs and oil filters?

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Apparently so. That's ridiculous. I'll bet they're using an air tool to fasten that plug and not checking the torque that's being applied.

 

[cousincletus]

Makes me glad Chrysler uses a rubber plug. Sometimes if you let the plug soak in Blaster overnight it's easier to remove.