Dealer strips out drain plug - Says its normal?

Spowers · **Posted:** Thu Feb 28, 2008 10:08 am

I take the lib. to a local dealer for oil changes - they do it for $10 more than I can - seemed like a no brainer - untill...

Tuesday, as they are finishing, I am approched by the tech manager - He tells me that when the tech removed the drain plug - it cam out very hard, and they believe the treads are shot.

He then tells me that "steel plug with aluminum pan - this is normal"?!?!

Then he tells me that they will "let it slide under powertrain warrenty" but I have to pay the $100 deductable. ( Liberty sitting at 73K techincally out of warrenty)

So, I am just numb hearing this and need to get back to work, well this has been brewing on me all week, and I feel that I should not have to pay anything.

Is this worth messing with?
don't the dealers have insurance for issues like this?
Any dealer techs out there - please add your insight.

chrispitude · **Posted:** Thu Feb 28, 2008 10:55 am

Someone overtightened it. US techs are used to steel oil pans, and are not used to having to torque oil pan bolts to a torque spec. See here:

http://www.lostjeeps.com/forum/phpBB3/vie ... hp?t=25569

http://www.lostjeeps.com/forum/phpBB3/vie ... hp?t=25573

I would push back. Properly installed oil pan bolts do not strip the threads.

- Chris

cerich · **Posted:** Thu Feb 28, 2008 12:04 pm

Spowers wrote:

I take the lib. to a local dealer for oil changes - they do it for $10 more than I can - seemed like a no brainer - untill...

Tuesday, as they are finishing, I am approched by the tech manager - He tells me that when the tech removed the drain plug - it cam out very hard, and they believe the treads are shot.

He then tells me that "steel plug with aluminum pan - this is normal"?!?!

Then he tells me that they will "let it slide under powertrain warrenty" but I have to pay the $100 deductable. ( Liberty sitting at 73K techincally out of warrenty)

So, I am just numb hearing this and need to get back to work, well this has been brewing on me all week, and I feel that I should not have to pay anything.

Is this worth messing with?
don't the dealers have insurance for issues like this?
Any dealer techs out there - please add your insight.

Hey that happened to me yesterday as well! They are also covering under Powertrain and i get to pay the $100, i inform them that isn't the case at all. Anyway I go to pick it up today, we will see who wins the fight.... :shock:

nursecosmo · **Posted:** Thu Feb 28, 2008 12:25 pm

If they broke it, they must fix it. It would be a different story if the SM approached you and said something like "our tech can't get the oil plug loose without stripping it, what would you like us to do?" and then give you some options. And they DID break it. If he tries telling you that it was broke before you brought it in, ask him how it held oil.

007husky · **Posted:** Thu Feb 28, 2008 1:04 pm

Fight it! sounds like BS. Specially if THEY (or other dealer) made the last oil change

dirtmover · **Posted:** Thu Feb 28, 2008 1:11 pm

I'm with the others. I assume you've always had it to the same dealer? They broke it - they fix it, on their dime! There is absolutely no excuses for stripping the thread if the plug is torqued properly.

They really don't have a leg to stand on if you have documentation to show that they are the only shop that has done oil changes on the vehicle.

Spowers · **Posted:** Thu Feb 28, 2008 3:27 pm

For the last say 50,000 miles this dealer did the chages (that makes 11 to date) almost 2 years.

Thanx for the support, I was thinking the same, but then again did not want to look a gift horse in the mouth..

red_lion · **Posted:** Thu Feb 28, 2008 3:42 pm

Seems definitely to be problematic. On the Grand of a friend of mine they stripped the treads too. And they knew in advance that it would happen as they ordered another pan already. His car is always at the same dealership since new and it was still covered under warranty.
If mine is out of warranty I'd mount a different system with a welded-in steel nut. It's more work but only once.

MOSFET · **Joined:** Sat Feb 25, 2006 11:40 pm **Posts:** 295

The sad thing is that it probably is normal for this vehicle.

Most (if not all) techs do not have enough experience with the quirks of the CRD. I wish they kept making the CRD so the mechanics would figure out how to work on it.

The dealer should pay for the cost of repairs if they stripped it.

red_lion · **Posted:** Thu Feb 28, 2008 4:09 pm

They are still made, just not sold in the US.
Here I estimate 95% of Cherokees, Grands and Wranglers are sold with diesel engines. They soak up almost all the production capacities in the US (so I was told). I was offered a new gas Grand Cherokee for 19000 Euros under MSR, that's almost 30.000$ less. Nobody wanted them.

chadhargis · **Posted:** Thu Feb 28, 2008 4:37 pm

RUN, don't walk from the dealer and never go back.

Take your money and buy yourself a Timesert or helicoil kit. I'd vote for the Timesert as it uses a carbon steel insert that won't strip again.

You can let your dealer put a new pan on, which will still be soft, or you can take the same money and fix it yourself the RIGHT way so you won't have any more problems with it.

After you put in the timesert, get a Fumoto drain valve and never remove the drain plug again.

kjfishman · **Posted:** Thu Feb 28, 2008 6:18 pm

Yep the dealer stripped mine out . Then they wanted the $100 deductible for fixing it. They manged to find other problems they fixed so they wouldn't have to eat the $100 deductible. So now they say it's fixed for life and they will fix it for free if it happens again. Well time will tell. I really doubt they would cover it under warranty if I stripped it out. If they break it they should fix it.

cerich · **Posted:** Thu Feb 28, 2008 8:56 pm

well I ended up not paying the deductable and in fact even got them to fill my CRD up with $35 worth of fuel to compensate for the extra trip they caused me(in the rental car my extended warranty got me while I waited for the new pan to arrive)

Of course I left and the had the steering wheel cocked about 30 degrees off, turned around and waited another hour while they fixed that (the guy siad it was the "cradle" that was removed to get the new pan on)

It took some work to get out of te $100 ded, a little less on teh fuel, I think they were worn out by that point.

Reflex · **Joined:** Mon Jan 29, 2007 8:48 pm **Posts:** 567

Question: Is the CRD the only one with the aluminum oil pan? Do the gassers have a more conventional steel one? If so, why the heck do we have a different oil pan in the first place..?

nursecosmo · **Posted:** Thu Feb 28, 2008 9:15 pm

Reflex wrote:

Question: Is the CRD the only one with the aluminum oil pan? Do the gassers have a more conventional steel one? If so, why the heck do we have a different oil pan in the first place..?

Totally different motor made by a different company.

nursecosmo · **Posted:** Thu Feb 28, 2008 9:16 pm

Alls well that ends well.

Pablo · **Joined:** Thu Feb 02, 2006 10:06 pm **Posts:** 1201

Aluminum pans are becoming more common. It is done to reduce weight and because it displaces heat better than steel does. Most aircraft have aluminum everything (that is not titanium). Most exotic cars have aluminum oil pans and more and more vehicles will have them as EPA requirements are getting tighter.

You will never hear an aircraft A&P mechanic describe stripped aluminum threads as "normal". This is not "normal". It is hamfisted people who refuse to use a torque wrench or cross thread the plug.

warp2diesel · **Posted:** Thu Feb 28, 2008 10:25 pm

If any one knows, please post it, I want to order my Keenserts in advance.

Steve

Spowers · **Posted:** Fri Feb 29, 2008 5:49 pm

Good advice on the inserts, I actually just got it back with the new pan in.
AND the dealr picked up the balance - leaving me with $0 due.
(after some polite conversation when I dropped it off this morning)

So Fumoto drain valve here I come.

dgeist · **Posted:** Fri Feb 29, 2008 6:02 pm

Spowers wrote:

Good advice on the inserts, I actually just got it back with the new pan in.
AND the dealr picked up the balance - leaving me with $0 due.
(after some polite conversation when I dropped it off this morning)

So Fumoto drain valve here I come.

Congrats. You'll be happy with the Fumoto.

Dealer strips out drain plug - Says its normal?

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