Originally Posted By: The_Eric
I don't understand what's going on.
You state that you started it by hand and torqued it in place but that there is a leak. The threads don't seal it, a gasket or crush washer does. Have you tried replacing it? Did you accidentally lose it?
If you started the plug by hand and it threaded in easily the whole way, then it extremely unlikely you cross threaded it.
Try this: remove the plug and gasket (if still there) and thread the plug in by hand. The head of the plug should be flat against the case of the transmission all the way around the circumference when hand tight. If it is, replace the gasket with a new one and retorque. If not, if there is a gap somewhere, you will need to drill it out straight and proceed with your repair.
Thanks.
The drain plug was definitely cross threaded to the point where the washer was bent. (I think the dealer damaged the threads during a drain and fill they did about a 2 years ago). They also underfilled the trans, which caused some shift issues, so I did the last change myself. At the time I noticed the plug was cranked way down. I think the trans is on the way out, so it was refilled with DF1 to see if the shifts would smooth out. Even with a new crush washer it still leaked. I tried to fix the threads and it didn't work either.
I put a Time Sert in tonight, and it seems to be fixed. Crossing my fingers anyway.