rlin78 Posted September 24, 2005 Posted September 24, 2005 Ok, aside from the poor location lexus engineers picked for the rear differential filler plug and overtightening it, what's done is done. Anyway, I was going to change my rear differential fluid today, but when I tried to loosen the filler plug, I strip the filler plug :chairshot: , what should I do now? I know I could curse at the engineers that designed it and the factory that overtighten it all day, but what else can be done? Thanks for your inputs!
TunedRX300 Posted September 24, 2005 Posted September 24, 2005 Ok, aside from the poor location lexus engineers picked for the rear differential filler plug and overtightening it, what's done is done. Anyway, I was going to change my rear differential fluid today, but when I tried to loosen the filler plug, I strip the filler plug :chairshot: , what should I do now? I know I could curse at the engineers that designed it and the factory that overtighten it all day, but what else can be done? Thanks for your inputs! ← I hope you did not drain the differential before you loosen the fill plug. When I searched the forum for DIY instruction, that was Rule #1. They overtighten everything from oil filter to wheel nuts so no one can DIY, from dealer to private shops - simple practice to improve top line $ of the service depart. It is pretty hard to strip the entire thread, did you just strip the outer thread? Rotate the rear axel by jacking up passenger side rear tire until the axel nut are out of the way. Soak the plug with WD-40 for 15 minutes. Go to sears to buy a 3/8 or 1/2 drive socket with 10mm allen head and insert the hex end into the hex hole. Last use a breaker bar or torque wrench to pull counterclock-wise.
jbarhorst2 Posted September 25, 2005 Posted September 25, 2005 Did you strip the threads or the 10mm hex hole??
rlin78 Posted September 25, 2005 Author Posted September 25, 2005 Did you strip the threads or the 10mm hex hole?? ← I strip the 10 MM hext hole. And no, I didn't drain the gear oil. :whistles:
dcfish Posted September 25, 2005 Posted September 25, 2005 Did you strip the threads or the 10mm hex hole?? ← I strip the 10 MM hext hole. And no, I didn't drain the gear oil. :whistles: ← Are you sure it is stripped? Clean out the 10mm hole and spray some wd-40 in there then tap the 10mm socket into the hole until it hits bottom then remove.
jbarhorst2 Posted September 25, 2005 Posted September 25, 2005 Definitely double check to see if you have stripped it. If you do not have the tool completely seated in the hole then you may have just deformed the outer part of the hole and the lower part will be ok. Either way, you will probably want to get a new one to replace it so that you do not have any trouble the next time. If you find that the hole is totally stripped, you may be able to grip the outside of that bolt head with a pair of vise-grips and twist it loose. If that does not work then you may need to get a large "easy out" for stripped bolt heads. Tom
dcfish Posted September 26, 2005 Posted September 26, 2005 Definitely double check to see if you have stripped it. If you do not have the tool completely seated in the hole then you may have just deformed the outer part of the hole and the lower part will be ok.Either way, you will probably want to get a new one to replace it so that you do not have any trouble the next time. If you find that the hole is totally stripped, you may be able to grip the outside of that bolt head with a pair of vise-grips and twist it loose. If that does not work then you may need to get a large "easy out" for stripped bolt heads. Tom ← Well, Is it officially stripped ?
rlin78 Posted September 26, 2005 Author Posted September 26, 2005 I think it's stripped. I used a craftsman 10 mm Hex socket with 2 extension, do you have any better way of getting to the plug? B) Definitely double check to see if you have stripped it. If you do not have the tool completely seated in the hole then you may have just deformed the outer part of the hole and the lower part will be ok.Either way, you will probably want to get a new one to replace it so that you do not have any trouble the next time. If you find that the hole is totally stripped, you may be able to grip the outside of that bolt head with a pair of vise-grips and twist it loose. If that does not work then you may need to get a large "easy out" for stripped bolt heads. Tom ← Well, Is it officially stripped ? ←
wwest Posted September 27, 2005 Posted September 27, 2005 Pay attention to the lesson you just learned and leave things be.
dcfish Posted September 27, 2005 Posted September 27, 2005 Pay attention to the lesson you just learned and leave things be. ← Something tells me that it is not stripped, The fit of the allen wrench is very tight and to strip it you would have to put a ton of torque on it, Something I don't think you could do by hand, Maybe air wrench ? I don't think the wrench is properly seated. Take your time and see if you can seat the wrench into the plug. I changed the diff. oil on my GS and I know how tight it is. Keep us posted.
jbarhorst2 Posted September 27, 2005 Posted September 27, 2005 Try seating the allen head socket into the hole with LIGHT taps from a hammer. Don't beat on it. See if that helps to seat the socket before you put the driver on. Then ratchet it off. Let us know. Tom
TunedRX300 Posted September 27, 2005 Posted September 27, 2005 I would use PB Blaster to soak the plug, hammer something like a Craftsman tap into the hole and use impact wrench to loosen it. If that fails, find a way to turn the car upside down and use the drain hole to fill gl5 :)
mehullica Posted September 28, 2005 Posted September 28, 2005 Chisel and hammer works well to loosen the plug.
rlin78 Posted September 28, 2005 Author Posted September 28, 2005 Thanks for all your suggestions, I will try to loosen the plug this weekend by tapping the hex socket. I will keep everyone posted on how it turns out. I really hope it is not striped. I just ordered a new set of filler plug and the drain plug, I think it is like $5 and $3 for each, shipping killed it though, something like 7 bucks. I ordered them from irontoad.com
wwest Posted September 28, 2005 Posted September 28, 2005 I'm embarrassed to admit that I removed, and reinstalled, the drain plug from my diff'l with a set of vise grips. >>>Righty/tighty....Lefty/loosey......!!
lenore Posted September 28, 2005 Posted September 28, 2005 I'm embarrassed to admit that I removed, and reinstalled, the drain plug from my diff'l with a set of vise grips.>>>Righty/tighty....Lefty/loosey......!! ← by the way If you use a chisel make sure it is a good quality cold chisel and wear safety goggles, I too have had to resort to that once or twice.
rlin78 Posted October 2, 2005 Author Posted October 2, 2005 Thanks for all your suggestions, I will try to loosen the plug this weekend by tapping the hex socket. I will keep everyone posted on how it turns out. I really hope it is not striped.I just ordered a new set of filler plug and the drain plug, I think it is like $5 and $3 for each, shipping killed it though, something like 7 bucks. I ordered them from irontoad.com ← Ok, it was striped, I took it to a mechanic, he had to put it on the lift and hammered the hex socket in there. I gave him 5 bucks for that since he said I didn't have to pay him. :D I looked at the plug that came out, I don't think it was possible for me to do it myself without a lift. I got a new plug to replace it too, works great. :P
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