I'm considering purchasing a B&M drain plug kit for my F-150's transmission pan. I'm a little concerned about messing up my pan by drilling a hole in it. Does anyone who has installed one of these plugs have any advice they would like to share? Are there better options available? Thanks in advance.
transmission pan drain plug
- Thread starter rspoden
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Buy a new pan or find a used one, take it to a machine shop or a welder, have them install a drain plug. Local trans shop here wild do that, they will weld in a drain plug.
Remove oem pan and install the new pan when you change ATF.
Thats what I would do.
Remove oem pan and install the new pan when you change ATF.
Thats what I would do.
Kestas
Staff member
Welding is best. But for the average DIYer, drilling and using the kit is the best choice. I've used a regular 1/2" drill bit which is tough on sheet metal - it digs in and catches the metal. It's best done with a step drill for either method.
If your truck has a 4r70w transmission, then a 1998 lincoln mark8 OEM pan will have a drainplug from the factory, and it will bolt up fine.
They are pretty cheap, 40 bucks I think. The bozo "racer" pans with the drain are 150 bucks.
Talk to your dealer about it.
They are pretty cheap, 40 bucks I think. The bozo "racer" pans with the drain are 150 bucks.
Talk to your dealer about it.
Being a cheap ba$tard... I'm not willing to pay for a transmission drain plug. Here's how I do it:
Remove the pan, and find a convenient location where the drain plug won't interfere with the solenoids, valve body, etc. Drill a 3/8" hole in the pan, then use the cutoff wheel on a die grinder to make a 1/8" deep notch across a 3/8x16 nut. Tighten a bolt into that hole with the notch in the nut toward the bottom of the pan. Tack-weld the nut on each side (90 degrees from the notches). Remove the bolt, reinstall with a copper washer.
I've done this on several vehicles and it works great. I've also brazed in a 1/4" NPTM X 1/8" NPTF steel pipe bushing- works just as well, but the 3/8" bolt with a copper washer is quicker and cleaner.
Remove the pan, and find a convenient location where the drain plug won't interfere with the solenoids, valve body, etc. Drill a 3/8" hole in the pan, then use the cutoff wheel on a die grinder to make a 1/8" deep notch across a 3/8x16 nut. Tighten a bolt into that hole with the notch in the nut toward the bottom of the pan. Tack-weld the nut on each side (90 degrees from the notches). Remove the bolt, reinstall with a copper washer.
I've done this on several vehicles and it works great. I've also brazed in a 1/4" NPTM X 1/8" NPTF steel pipe bushing- works just as well, but the 3/8" bolt with a copper washer is quicker and cleaner.
My truck has a C6 transmission. It's an 86 so I'm not looking to put a whole lot of $ into it. Replacing the pan with one that already has a plug will probably cost more than I want to put into this truck. I don't have a welder or drill press but was hoping I could use a regular drill and install a plug at little cost. I'm afraid of the plug leaking over time though and was wondering if anyone else has had that problem. I don't want to eliminate one headache and create another one. I just want to be able to keep the fluid fresh without the hassle of removing the pan. I wonder how much a tranmission or welding shop would charge to install a plug?
Kestas
Staff member
I've done it with a hand drill and 1/2" bit. Like I said, it was a clunky way to do it, but I got my hole, and installed a drain bolt kit that works fine. Just make sure the bolts are mounted really tight to the pan so they can't work loose after reinstalling the pan.
Start with a small drill bit and work up to the size you need. You still may have to flatten the area after. Usually not a problem if you're careful.
Set the pan on a piece of wood before you drill. The wood will support the surrounding area and prevent any serious deformation. And the wood won't hurt the drill bit.
I used the B&M on 2 different cars and they both leaked. I recently bought one from NAPA that was a different brand, but looked identical to the B&M. Installed in May and hasn't leaked yet, but I also followed the instructions and torqued the big nut to 25 ft/lbs. So far so good.
Don't worry about messing up the pan...I used a punch to make a dimple, then drilled a small pilot hole first (1/8" IIRC) then drilled the ½" one. Cleaned it up with a small file and it looked good.
Don't worry about messing up the pan...I used a punch to make a dimple, then drilled a small pilot hole first (1/8" IIRC) then drilled the ½" one. Cleaned it up with a small file and it looked good.
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Buy an inexpensive oil extractor. I picked one up at Tractor Supply for 40 bucks.
I installed the NAPA plug a few weeks ago on the Taurus wagon. Of course, while the pan was off, I cleaned it with brake cleaner and replaced the tranny filter. The previous owner maintained the car well, and the pan was virtually clean.
It was pretty simple to drill the hole using a Unibit (step drill) after drilling a 1/8" pilot hole. After making the hole, I deburred it with a deburring tool, which is a handy item to have if you can find it. If you use the NAPA plug, the plastic washer goes under the head of the main bolt on the outside of the pan. I bought and added a 12 mm steel washer to use under the nut on the inside of the pan and used a drop of blue Loctite on that nut. No leaks.
Back in the spring I had had a shop with the appropriate equipment do a complete flush-and-fill with Amsoil ATF using the lines to the radiator. After dropping the pan to install the plug, I found that it took a full 6 quarts to replenish the transaxle, so in the future I will need to ensure I have that much Amsoil ATF on hand when I drain the pan using the plug.
The original Amsoil fill has 14,000 miles on it. Topping it after installing the plug last month replaced nearly half of that, which was about 2,000 miles ago. I don't plan to start draining the pan for a while, probably after another 16,000 miles. That will be during the third oil change since the plug installation. I'm using PP and changing that every 6,000 miles.
Was installing a tranny drain plug overkill on this car? No. Certain Taurus transaxles have a shaky reputation, and I want to try to keep this one going as long as possible.
It was pretty simple to drill the hole using a Unibit (step drill) after drilling a 1/8" pilot hole. After making the hole, I deburred it with a deburring tool, which is a handy item to have if you can find it. If you use the NAPA plug, the plastic washer goes under the head of the main bolt on the outside of the pan. I bought and added a 12 mm steel washer to use under the nut on the inside of the pan and used a drop of blue Loctite on that nut. No leaks.
Back in the spring I had had a shop with the appropriate equipment do a complete flush-and-fill with Amsoil ATF using the lines to the radiator. After dropping the pan to install the plug, I found that it took a full 6 quarts to replenish the transaxle, so in the future I will need to ensure I have that much Amsoil ATF on hand when I drain the pan using the plug.
The original Amsoil fill has 14,000 miles on it. Topping it after installing the plug last month replaced nearly half of that, which was about 2,000 miles ago. I don't plan to start draining the pan for a while, probably after another 16,000 miles. That will be during the third oil change since the plug installation. I'm using PP and changing that every 6,000 miles.
Was installing a tranny drain plug overkill on this car? No. Certain Taurus transaxles have a shaky reputation, and I want to try to keep this one going as long as possible.
rspoden, I wouldn't sweat the installation of an aftermarket drain plug kit at all on your truck. Like the other fellas say, a step drill would be the safest and easiest, but stepping your way up with a good set if drills with the pan set on wood will work fine. IMO- I would not want to blow a hole in the pan of an 'exotic' AT, but a run-O-the-mill 4R70W, 4L60E, AX4N, etc..etc.. No problem at all. A new OEM style replacement pan can be had cheap if you don't like your drain.
Joel
Joel
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