DIY - Time Sert Oil Pan Thread Repair

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JHZR2

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As soon as I got the 350SD, I changed the oil. And as soon as I saw the plug (non typical and took a 17mm), I saw that the pan was slightly stripped. There were a few threads but not a full set. The plug didnt want to tighten fully and I didnt want to force it. It held oil but I wanted to fix it.

I bought an M14 insert kit from Time Sert. Had this been a 617 Id just put a new pan. OM603 not so much. Cost me about $130 from Amazon.

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I drained about half the oil out into a VERY clean container. The intent was to pour it back through the engine to help flush junk out. The rest I wanted flowing when the work was being done. I did this cold, so the oil was more viscous and drained slower.

All the parts have a square end. They recommended using a ratchet. My palm ratchet wasnt handy, so I used my old 1/2 that has the knurled top. It worked well.

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Slowly worked it in and out, so the big bits could fall out.

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Then you use a tool to carve a lip below that the insert will gauge against to set its depth and stop it from screwing in too far.

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This reams out more material, but only on that small cutting edge. It is fairly foolproof as it is set to the size of the drill that removed the old threads.

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After that, you tap the hole with their tap. Not sure if it is a special size or what. They do have a cover for the tap, which sits on the pan, to help ensure that the tap is absolutely straight. Didnt get any pictures of that, but it's much the same. Tap, in and out, slowly, flush the threads and remove the bits.

After that, you oil up the threads on the setting tool. Then screw an insert on. They are phosphate coated steel.

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You can see how the insert creates that inner layer, and ends up sitting flush with the pan.

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Apparently the tool and the setup of these inserts not only sets it flush, but also then expands the inner threads slightly so it's really stuck in there firmly.

That's it. I installed a long M14 magnetic drain plug from Dimple. After I flushed a bunch more old and new oil through.

So, here's the issue....

As I was doing the initial drilling, I was going in a bit, out a bit. When I was more or less all the way through, the bit got fairly stuck. Maybe I wasnt perfectly straight, maybe there was too much debris, I dont know. I thought maybe it was galling, though I doubted it since there was so much oil. When I investigated in the hole, I noticed a ridge in the bore that I had just drilled out. I though the ridge was just where the drill bit perhaps stopped cutting, but when I touched it, the part was loose.

So now I have a small triangle of aluminum in my oil pan. I tried to fish it out, tried to flush it out, and at some point it ended up in the pan someplace I cant see. Its a long, narrow triangle, maybe 1cm on its base, and going to a long, narrow point, the length of the threads, maybe 2cm?? The pan still tapped very easy, and the insert set very easy, so the lack of material was not an issue for that; rather, its more of an issue that it's in my oil pan. How concerned should I be? Removing an OM603 pan is not an easy job, but neither is pulling an engine...
 
Unfortunately I cannot be much help regarding your issue however thank you for sharing such high quality pics with details. Its neat to know that DIY kits like this exist if I every have to do a similar project. Is there any chance you can slide a magnet attached to a stick/rod inside the hole and see if you can snag it? Good luck getting the metal out of the oil pan!
 
Its aluminum so a magnet wont help. If I could site it Id try to get something sticky to grab it, though I dont want to risk leaving more junk behind in there.

There is a sensor up higher that is screwed on. Might be a window to get a scope and tweezer in.

Not sure if its so emergent to do so, or if Im ok leaving it for a few weeks and then do another quickie oil change...
 
Perhaps you could rig a suction line?

The fragment is likely too big to suck into a tube, but you might be able to snag it and draw it close to the drain hole and ease it out from there with bent bits of wire, tweezers etc,

I've thought of using suction to enhance oil removal at change time, if I ever change my oil again.

You could probably rig something with a standard vacuum cleaner, though you'd need a trap for aspirated oil.

If you've got a water supply you could use a venturi pump, which is what I was planning to do
 
It may not hurt anything in there, but i totally understand wanting to get it out. I'm thinking if you had a really long blow gun tube, you could insert it in the drain hole and push it way in. Let it rip with some air and hope it moves back toward the drain hole with some air escaping the drain hole. Flush afterwards a few times with some oil and hope it comes out with the flush.

Maybe something like this? If you take the tip off and straighten/ bend it to get more length into the pan? I don't know if it would work, just a thought.

Thanks for the write up, i've never used time serts, this was very informative!



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I presume that you can still see it through the oil drain plug hole? If so, I would use a small diameter, but fairly long pick, or some other type of wire that doesn't bend easily, smear it with same tacky grease and try to get this bit of aluminum stuck to the grease. Perhaps you can pull it out this way.
 
Originally Posted by KrisZ
I presume that you can still see it through the oil drain plug hole? If so, I would use a small diameter, but fairly long pick, or some other type of wire that doesn't bend easily, smear it with same tacky grease and try to get this bit of aluminum stuck to the grease. Perhaps you can pull it out this way.



No, that was the issue. When I first drilled out the threads and found it loose, I tried getting it out with a pick. It somehow shifted in there, and neither light nor access is great.

There is a low oil sensor on the side of the pan. I'm thinking to remove that, put a scope in, find it and pull it out...
 
Unless you are turning the engine upside down I wouldn't worry about it. Over the years I have seen all sorts of things in oil pans that never got into anything, nuts, bolts, pieces of plastic from chain guides, small springs, etc.
Its aluminum so even if a small piece broke off and got past the pickup screen the hardened oil pump gears would pulverize it and it would end up in the filter long before getting into an critical oil passage.
If it were steel or iron I would try to get it out as that could score the pump if it got past the screen.
 
While I doubt that it will make it through the pickup screen, I also doubt that my OCD could handle it either!

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An inexpensive endoscope to look around would be my first suggestion...
 
Too late now , but I would have looked for a drain plug that would " chase the threads " . Even if it ended up next size larger .

Now , try reducing the hose on a wet vac to a hose that will fit in the hole . While it is vacuuming , pour another quart of oil into the engine to try to " flush it out " ?
 
Originally Posted by WyrTwister
Too late now , but I would have looked for a drain plug that would " chase the threads " . Even if it ended up next size larger .
I would have spent the money on a thread restorer kit, if it was not leaking then chances are the threads were worth saving. OP can do as he pleases on his cars, but if the thread repair was successful you just paid for that tool that has a much greater chance of fixing something else than a time sert kit.
 
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It held oil but I wanted to fix it.

The only job of the oil drain plug is to hold oil; I would not have touched it as long as it was doing that job but now it is all oil under the car :)
 
A thread restorer is fine for iron or steel but aluminum threads as in this case tend to break off making that kind of tool useless. He did the repair correctly.
Don't buy thread restorers just make a few slits in a hardened bolt the same size as you need and cut a few slits in it with a Dremel. I just did one that oddball threads, a metric brake line nut had the right thread so I cut a couple of slits in that, it cleaned it right up nice.

For an oil pan just cut a few slits in the original up to about half way, it will clean the threads up, grease the plug up and run it in a couple of times then remove any chips and grease with brake cleaner before putting it back and tightening it.
 
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