About to light my TDI on fire

[lifeminimalized]

Spent the last 2 weeks doing continuous "TLC" to my '00 TDI Jetta. My final tasks were changing out the oil and now I can't seem to get the oil drain plug to seal. It is still weeping by slowly leaving a drop every day or so on the piece of cardboard I have laying down. And yes it has a crush washer on it that the Dorman comes with.

I am using Dorman 090-171 drain plug. I torqued it to spec at 21 lb*ft and then even went to 25 lb*ft. I will not try any higher of a torque on an aluminum oil pan thread. So I am wondering if anyone else has had issues with Dorman specifically or if I have something going on with the threads in my drain pain which I doubt is the case...but who knows.

This is the final leak my car has and I was excited to seal up the couple small coolant leaks I had around my Frost Heater that needed the clamps re-tightened. This damn oil leak has been haunting me the last couple days despite what I do.

 

[Stupendous60]

I would get another washer and do the jiffy lube trick- take off oil fill cap, using shop vac, put hose over oil fill hole, turn on shop vac (need a helper) while shop vac is on, switch out washer. You wont lose a drop of oil in the process. I kid you not.

 

[hskrdu]

I've not had good luck with Dorman items. It's just a drain plug- if it's the right diameter and thread pitch, there shouldn't be any leaks.

 

[fatmobile]

If you are really going to start your car on fire,
you'll need a bigger leak.
Just a couple drops every day or 3 just ain't gonna do it.
Unless you plan on doing it a month from now maybe.
Oh wait, you have cardboard too,.. OK it might just work.

 

[Gothmolly]

1 drop every day = throw an extra quart in every 5k miles and be done with it

 

[mittzlepick]

They dont leak oil they mark their territory.

 

[MukGyver]

copper crush washer? checked for scratches and burrs on all the surfaces? sand or polish out. should seal.

 

[lifeminimalized]

1 drop every day = throw an extra quart in every 5k miles and be done with it

yea well I don't want my driveway looking like something you'd see in Dorchester, MA.

 

[oilhammer]

Get an OEM drain plug. That's far easier and cheaper than anything else. If that doesn't fix it, replace the oil pan. Which is also a relatively cheap and easy thing on an ALH.

 

[PakProtector]

Get an OEM drain plug. That's far easier and cheaper than anything else. If that doesn't fix it, replace the oil pan. Which is also a relatively cheap and easy thing on an ALH.

It is not radically different on a BEW, is it?

To the original problem, next oil change examine the sealing surface. Both my ALH and BEW leak enough to get the drain plug a bit damp. MetalNerd drain plugs, and Cu washers that show what looks to be a proper imprint from being torqued down. If that is the biggest thing I have to worry about, I am going to call the whole affair good...
cheers,
Douglas

 

[oilhammer]

ALH and BEW (and AWP, AZG, AVH, AEG, etc.) are all identical, yes.

 

[Tdijarhead]

I've had this problem. Back the plug out 3-4 turns and run a small bead of rtv around the exposed threads, tighten it back up. No need to remove the plug completely and you'll only loose about 3-4 additional drops of oil. I use a small bit of rtv on the plug at every oil change now just as a preventative measure. Be careful not to over do it at oil change time you don't want rtv getting into the oil pan and over the years clogging the oil pickup.

 

[Rrusse11]

A fix I never hear about, but is there a problem with using teflon tape on the drain plug threads? A stopgap measure perhaps, but should help, especially if you use the thicker yellow tape.

 

[tgray]

I know it is not the best way but it has done me well over the years. I buy jb weld in the tube, clean it up and put that over the plug. No more leaks. When I change my oil I just knock the glue off with a screw driver and then glue it up again. I have had pans that were either cracked or cross threaded somehow and would not stop leaking no matter what washer I used.

 

[pedroYUL]

A fix I never hear about, but is there a problem with using teflon tape on the drain plug threads? A stopgap measure perhaps, but should help, especially if you use the thicker yellow tape.

That's what I had to do in my 2015 GSW. Evidently someone before me buggered the oil pan threads, but I'm not going to change the pan just because. Also, I do all my oil changes from the top, this one was the first one and I wanted to see if there was other crud in there, so I used the bottom drain, but not anymore moving forward.

 

[tgray]

I have tried the tape and sometimes it will work but don't tighten it too tight the tape makes the thread slippery and you can over tighten easily.

 

[MukGyver]

If you can't get that sucker to seal by inspecting and polishing all the surfaces and using a crush washer or other nylon bolt gasket etc,. then I would suspect you're threads are boogered or the axis of the threaded hole is not perpendicular to the sealing surface. The latter is probably unlikely since the hole and treads I would assume were machined into the drain insert on a lathe separately and then welded into the pan at manufacturing of the pan.

 

[Nevada_TDI]

Quite a few years ago a knuckle head over tightened my oil pan drain plug, and it leaked, duh. I remember going to Auto Zone and they had a slightly larger self-tap plug with rubber gasket and a magnet attached. I haven't had an oil leak in years.

 

[pkhoury]

I might have to go back to the dealer's oil plug. I transferred my Fumoto from the BEW, and it looks okay, but a few drips. Haven't lost any oil yet, so only time will tell (the car has also spent more time in my driveway over the last three weeks).

 

[Hsiegl2010]

Dealer oil plug might be a good idea. I had to re-tighten mine a 2000 miles after oil change.
20fp 2015 TDI Passat SE. I hope that is right. Better than some guy at a quicky oil station using an impact wrench set to 100 meant for wheels.

 

[Mongler98]

I would get another washer and do the jiffy lube trick- take off oil fill cap, using shop vac, put hose over oil fill hole, turn on shop vac (need a helper) while shop vac is on, switch out washer. You wont lose a drop of oil in the process. I kid you not.

MY GOD!
GENIUS!
Of course my luck would be that because i have drilled and tapped out my escapes oil drain plug to an m15 from many times it stripping out....... that he shopvac sucks all the oil back up and out the wrong way!