Messed up my gf's 2007 Denali when doing an oil change - HELLLLP

[wsteele]

There are a number of drain plug “repair kit” options, none as professional as replacing the pan. Definitely, if you cross threaded an old drain plug, you don’t want to be doing anything too fussy or involved. leave it to a pro.

You might try and find a shop that gets good reviews who will consent to trying to fix it by chasing the threads with a tap. Pretty much any auto shop will have a set of taps that can do the job. If they don’t think the threads are salvageable, but are still willing to work with you, you might ask about a piggy back drain plug. They come with a self tapping oversized bolt that has the center drilled out and tapped for a smaller bolt. The main self tapping bolt is threaded into the bunged up original hole with a seal and the piggy back drain plug threads into the self tapping bolt and is the one you use to drain the oil going forward.

 

[OR VietVet]

@wjburken, @Bill 1960 and @George B are all correct that only a trained tech should even attempt this repair and @91RS is also correct that using a helicoil is only recommended for a one time fix that will not come apart again and should also only be by a trained tech. The threads may not be cross threaded but just stretched from an untrained person over tightening the drain plug, you in this case if in fact that is what happened, and if you want to attempt any of these repairs and get in even deeper shit with the girlfriend and possibly do more damage to the engine, then by all means do what you want to try and put a bandaid on this problem. Ask for the old pan and drain plug back and show close up pics of what the tech said is damaged and also pics of the original drain plug, if you still have it, that you swapped out in the beginning that you still have not fessed up to why you changed it out in the first place.

Oh, by the way, welcome to the forum from Oregon.

As a guy that was in and ran shops for 35+ years, I have often said that I heard people talk about how easy an oil change is to do. It is, when done correctly. I originally thought you were leading up to a story about not removing the old oil filter gasket when it stuck to the oil filter housing when you removed the old oil filter and you did not notice and then you spun the new filter on right on top of it and then it spewed oil all over the place. Did you remember to look for the old oil filter seal when you dropped it down during removal, like you should have, or did you just get lucky and it did come down with the old filter, even though you did not look? Did you lube the now oil filter seal before spinning that filter on? How many turns after seal contact did you tighten the filter?

 

[gooffeyguy]

Helicoil a one time use?

The aluminum cylinder heads I have on my mustang came with helicoils in the majority of the threaded holes[emoji848]

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[jbluemke]

SOOOO......what you're telling me.....is that Im pretty much screwed?

I may just try taking it out and using the old one first.

And if that doesn't work..... I guess I'm screwed and have to pay the $400 that we dont have???

I have never run a tap on anything so after seeing some people warn against it ..... maybe I should leave that one alone

damn man..... this has never happened to me. Im so f'd

 

[wjburken]

SOOOO......what you're telling me.....is that Im pretty much screwed?

I may just try taking it out and using the old one first.

And if that doesn't work..... I guess I'm screwed and have to pay the $400 that we dont have???

I have never run a tap on anything so after seeing some people warn against it ..... maybe I should leave that one alone

damn man..... this has never happened to me. Im so f'd

Talk to your friends and see one of them would know how to do it and might do it for the cost of the parts and a pizza / beer dinner

 

[Bill 1960]

You’re not listening. We’re telling you it's maybe a $50 repair from an honest mech. $100 worst case if he needs to use a new oversized specialty plug or thread insert.

 

[George B]

SOOOO......what you're telling me.....is that Im pretty much screwed?

I may just try taking it out and using the old one first.

And if that doesn't work..... I guess I'm screwed and have to pay the $400 that we dont have???

I have never run a tap on anything so after seeing some people warn against it ..... maybe I should leave that one alone

damn man..... this has never happened to me. Im so f'd

Where is the truck?

 

[1BADI5]

Just take it to a shop and have a professional tap it and be done. Should be no more then an hours labor and $15 in parts.

Don't let your pride and frustration make matters worse.

 

[OR VietVet]

Helicoil a one time use?

The aluminum cylinder heads I have on my mustang came with helicoils in the majority of the threaded holes[emoji848]

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In most instances, not all, I believe that a helicoil is a one time use thing. Everything has to go perfectly for reuse. We are talking about a repair to install a secondary set of threads instead of the factory cut threads. The area where the helicoil is threaded in to has to withstand the stress as well. It is only my opinion, not the final call. In my shops I have seen guys use them and even did it myself with success but I chose to always think of them as a REPAIR and a temporary one in the long run. They can just as easily be stretched if over tightened during reuse.

 

[gooffeyguy]

In most instances, not all, I believe that a helicoil is a one time use thing. Everything has to go perfectly for reuse. We are talking about a repair to install a secondary set of threads instead of the factory cut threads. The area where the helicoil is threaded in to has to withstand the stress as well. It is only my opinion, not the final call. In my shops I have seen guys use them and even did it myself with success but I chose to always think of them as a REPAIR and a temporary one in the long run. They can just as easily be stretched if over tightened during reuse.

My heads came new from Edelbrock that way. Granted, it's been about 15 years, so head material and technology may have changed since. I always thought helicoils in aluminum helped prevent steel bolts from stripping the threads in softer aluminum.

Heck, I think even the standard repair for stripped or blown out spark plug threads in aluminum heads are helicoils. Spark plugs get installed and removed quite frequently

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