Dropped bolt in engine bay

[The_Eric]

Almost 20 years ago, I dropped a 10mm combination wrench down in the depths of my Mazda B2200 pickup (the real Mazda). Looked for hours because it was my step dad's and never found it. Well, it didn't go unnoticed, even though he basically lived out of state... Well several years later, I pulled the engine to replace the crankshaft due to a worn timing key way and found it nestled down by the motor mount.


On my first day of my first mechanic job, I was assigned an intake manifold job on a GM 3.1. Well, when I was putting it back together, I dropped one of the coil pack mount bolts down behind the engine. Looked for a fair bit of time and didn't find it. Told my boss and he started stressing. Big time. Was afraid it ended up in the engine. Between him, the other mech and I, we wasted probably 3-4 hours looking for this stupid little bolt. I finally convinced him that there was no way the bolt could have fallen into the engine since both the upper and lower intakes were already in place. Dug a replacement up and went on with life. Never found it either. Come to find out the reason he was so gun shy was not too long before I was hired the other guy lost a nut and simply replaced it. When he went to start the engine, he found out pretty quickly where it ended up!


Working on a 1996 Chevy 4X4- replacing the engine (which had already been replaced) due to another shop's incompetence, I found a 1/4" drive locking flex head Matco ratchet with a Snap On 13mm socket attached, a 1/2" Matco combination wrench and a stubby Blue Point ratcheting 9/16 combo wrench... At least 150.00 worth of tools setting on the lower radiator support in front of the radiator! The same sloppy mech that did a horrible job replacing the engine also left his tools laying in the truck.

Personally, I very seldom leave tools in the customer's vehicle. I think maybe 4 times in 7-8 years. I've been lucky enough that I've always gotten them back- mostly due to hunting them down next time the customer comes back, though once a gal found whatever it was that I misplaced and brought it back...

 

[Donald]

Originally Posted By: mclasser
Was doing some stuff under the hood and dropped a bolt into the dark abyss known as the engine bay. After a frantic 30 minute search and smacking the splash shield under the engine around, the bolt fell out near the wheel. What a relief that was.

Share some of your tales about the engine eating up bolts!


Try dropping something into the bilge of a boat. In many boats you cannot get your hand to all areas of the bilge. If it's metallic you can use a magnet. I dropped a brass drain plug. Bought a replacement and found the original one a year latter.

 

[earlyre]

Originally Posted By: simple_gifts
It is not clear why the oil fill cap is not tethered to the engine. The gas cap is tethered to the filler tube.


amen
the only thing i've really dropped down into the bowels, was my fill cap. by the time i realized/remembered what had happened, and found the cap, the exhaust had melted it nearly in half(landed on a crossmember directly under the exhaust)...and i had driven 1100 mi...

 

[Oro_O]

In addition to two sizes of telescoping magnets, I keep a flexible length pick up tool. I no longer swear or get bothered if something falls, I can get it one way or the other. Here's a very handy looking one from HF:

http://t.harborfreight.com/24-inch-2-in-1-pickup-tool-94162.html?utm_referrer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2F

 

[Ducked]

Best tool in this context?

Floor mats.

For covering gratings.

Otherwise, if the grating is within pitching distance, whatever I drop is improbably likely to get there.

And if I'm going to look for it I need to KNOW that it hasn't.

 

[crazyoildude]

nice

 

[440Magnum]

Post links to magnet wands all you want, but they're useless with stainless steel, aluminum, brass, and plastic parts you drop. And many of them are too weak to lift a bolt bigger than 3/8 or so at best (though you can get rare-earth magnet wands that'll try to pick up the whole engine block- another problem with them).

I like mechanical grabbers similar to this the best:

http://www.amazon.com/X-Long-Flex-Cable-Pick-Up-4-Finger-Retriever/dp/B006ZEOXJY

 

[Ducked]

You got a link to/make for a rare-earth magnetic wand? I'd have a use for a small one, though getting it here might be difficult. My block is aluminium so displacing it wont be a problem

 

[Stewie]

I always bring with me a magnetic tray

 

[jhellwig]

Originally Posted By: Stewie
I always bring with me a magnetic tray

I like these when I remember to find and use them. The only problem is I always manage to put to much in them and the it falls out causing the same problem again.

 

[doitmyself]

Awesome thread for OCD types. I have spent hours looking for a socket or nut gone astray. When working on my workplace generator with a Ford engine, divine intervention kept an errant nut from falling into the enclosed generator uniy, a several hour job if I had to retrieve it. My father in law couldn't figure out the tapping noise after he completed new injector installation on a diesel engine. After days of work, he discovered that a nut had fallen into the cylinder and was knocking up and down.

One of the funniest stories here is when our beloved The Critic shot a plastic aerosol straw down his intake manifold, gone forever.

 

[exranger06]

Most recent was a dropped small screwdriver when changing a headlight bulb on the Subaru. It fell down and landed on the large underbelly splash guard. No room to reach my hand down there to grab it, and it way too close to the front of the car to crawl underneath and try to reach from the back of the splash guard. I started to unbolt the whole splash guard, which was proving to be very cumbersome and difficult. I ended up using my telescoping magnetic retrieval tool (that has a very weak magnet and it's kind of a POS) and got it out. One of the most painful headlight bulb changes I've ever done.

I was reinstalling the intake manifold on my Ranger after replacing the thermostat and radiator. The socket/torx bit fell off the end of the ratchet and fell on top of the engine, right below the intake. I spent some time trying to retrieve it, but just couldn't get it without taking the intake back off. I definitely did not want to go through that work again, and I would've needed the lost socket to remove the intake anyway! It's probably still sitting on top of the engine today. I still need to buy a new one to replace it.

I was fixing the AC on my Ranger a few years ago and I dropped the bolt that connects the lines to the back of the compressor. After lots of searching, I gave up and started to research the size and length of it so I could buy another. Ended up finding it by chance a few days later, sitting on top of the front differential.

When I got into an accident with my Ranger and it was at the body shop, the body guy showed me an old rusty pair of pliers he found buried somewhere in the engine compartment. I had never seen them before in my life; they must've belonged to the previous owner. I think I still have those in my toolbox.

I was replacing the front brake pads on my mom's 1994 Explorer. They use these weird pins that hold the caliper to the knuckle, and you have to use a punch and hammer to drive them in and out. I was driving the pin out to get the caliper off. I almost had it off, gave it one last whack, and it flew out. To this day I never found where it went. Ended up getting a new pin.

 

[Yah-Tah-Hey]

Replaced the thermostat on my Camry V6 last August. Went to replace engine cover and dropped one of the three hold down fasteners(look like a 1/4" drive socket) which landed somewhere on the subframe or radiator support. Never found that sucker after looking for a good two hours. I have had the vehicle twelve years so I thought I knew all the possible hiding places. Murphy showed up again and took a bite out of my ***. Still looking.

 

[Rhymingmechanic]

I used to drive a Duster with the Slant-Six. The distributor is at an angle, low on the engine. One of the first few times I changed the points, I dropped a screw down into the distributor.

That distributor happened to have a solid plastic (nylon?) gear that sacrificed itself as soon as I hit the starter. I got another from a junkyard distributor, but I think some parts stores used to stock replacements in the "Help" section.