Friday, January 8, 2010

Is it normal to see some oil on the oil drain plug after an oil change or should it be completely dry of oil?

When I looked at the oil drain plug the first time it looked like it had some oil on it (maybe some oil is seeping out?). So I dried it with a paper towel and it was dry. When I came back a few minutes later to check it the oil drain plug looked like it had some oil on it again. Is it normal to have some oil around the oil drain plug so I can tell if I need to tighten it more?





95 Honda Civic LXIs it normal to see some oil on the oil drain plug after an oil change or should it be completely dry of oil?
jaydubb has a good answer





Never over-tighten the drain plug or you can and likely will eventually damage the threads on the oil pan [not the drain plug]. This is common. To help prevent this from happening you should always replace the aluminum drain plug washer with each oil change. It will compress a bit when you tighten the drain plug. If you use the old one over and over you have to keep tightening the drain plug a bit more each time to compress the washer. Better to use a new one each time. They cost less from an auto parts store than from the dealer. Small price to pay for peace of mind.





Here is a great web page that addresses the problem and offers multiple solutions http://classic.artsautomotive.com/HondaO鈥?/a> One of the best solutions they offer is using a fiber drain plug gasket instead of the aluminum one as follows:





';Use a fiber washer.





Toyota has used fiber washers for years. Toyota's current generation of oil pans never have drain plug or oil pan issues. If your pan has only mild thread or sealing surface damage, using fiber washers can buy some time. The problem with fiber washers is they will frequently get switched back to aluminum washers with the next oil change. A mechanic will see the fiber washer on a Honda and say, ';Hey, that's the wrong kind of washer; I'll fix it'; as they put an aluminum washer in it's place. Also, many shops will not have a supply of 14mm fiber washers, since they are not original equipment for any car that I know of.';Is it normal to see some oil on the oil drain plug after an oil change or should it be completely dry of oil?
It isnt normal, tighten it again, take your car for a spin come back and put some white paper underneath the drainplug. If you have any spills then you need to change the plug.





When the car is running the oil gets warm it will leak even more. I suggest you drain and get a new drain plug, if its new oil then drain and put it back in. If your due for an oil change then change the oil and get a new drain plug
If you wiped it totally clean then there should not be any more oil. This IS a frequent problem though. I have had the plug not tight enough after they changed the oil. I have had the plug stripped, so it leaked. And I have had the plug put in crooked which caused it to leak. They do the oil changes so fast that any of the above can occur. I keep an extra new one in my car now so that when they screw up, I take it back and make them put in the new one. I also make them refill the oil they lost putting in the new one. I did that twice and now they seem to be getting it right every time.
There shouldnt be any oil after you wiped it.


Since I dont know how tight you've tighten it, it might be that you need to replace you're o-ring.


The drain plug should be tight, so it doesn't move easily.





oil pan / o ring / drain plug

No comments:

Post a Comment