texadelphia
New member
Tried to change my fluid tonight and couldn't get the fill plug out. Not rounded, just won't budge. Is penetrating oil best or heat?
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Can't get manual transmission fill plug off
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Malcolm99
Member
If you can't get an impact on it, grind the face of the 24mm socket so it gets a better purchase on the short plug head, and try a breaker bar making sure you don't slip off, or get a mini sledge and give a shorter 1/2" ratchet a good wack while holding the socket firmly on the plug. You can try penetrating fluid but I don't think it will help much, heat always works just not sure I'd want to apply that much heat to the case. You'll be happy you shaved that 24mm down later when you do other drain fill jobs. Make sure it's a 6 point socket and impact sockets are always stronger.
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Not sure if you drained it already but you ALWAYS break loose the fill plug first then the drain plug after. People who drain the fluid first and then later find out they stripped the fill plug will have a really good day dealing with that mess.
I would definitely heat it up with a torch (not too much, you don't wan to damage it) and carefully crank on it when it's hot. If you feel like it's going to strip, you stop immediately. As said, penetrating fluid might work as well.
I would definitely heat it up with a torch (not too much, you don't wan to damage it) and carefully crank on it when it's hot. If you feel like it's going to strip, you stop immediately. As said, penetrating fluid might work as well.
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Good suggestion. I had a problem like this with a differential fill plug, many years ago. It was likely my T4R, but I'm not certain.
For jobs like this, I have found that a small butane torch is handy. Very hot, very small flame that you can put the heat precisely where you want it to go. That did the trick on my fill plug.
I had a manual transmission fill plug on an old Nissan that had been rounded over by a previous owner. It was a hard lesson to learn at the time, but I foolishly drained the fluid before trying the fill plug. I tried all kinds of tools, up to a pipe wrench, which I was able to get a solid grip on the plug, however I was unable to turn the wrench enough to do anything. I ended up dropping the transmission, but was still unable break the plug loose. I ended up driving a socket onto the plug as far as I could, then welded it to the plug. This was before online stores existed, so I just left the welded contraption on there after re-installing the transmission.
texadelphia
New member
Thanks for the tips guys. I'm going to buy a 6-point socket, hit it with penetrant and see how it goes. I don't have a grinder to knock it down flat so hopefully it will be ok as is. If that doesn't work I'll try some heat but if rather avoid that if possible.
Oh and I went for the fill plug first for just this reason.
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Oh and I went for the fill plug first for just this reason.
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texadelphia
New member
Does hitting the plug directly with a hammer help to kind of free up the threads?
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Sent from my moto x4 using Tapatalk
TheDurk
Elite Member
I was just about to post that suggestion.
96RedRunner
Senior Member
[MENTION=605073]texadelphia[/MENTION] and [MENTION=10169]TheDurk[/MENTION], good call, first thing I'd do.
DreadPirateJon
New member
My experience with stuck (mainly from rust) bolts is to actually try and tighten it first, just enough to get it to break free. I don't know why, but this almost always seems to work. And when dealing with rusty bolts usually prevents a bolt from breaking or rounding.
But the transmission case is aluminum and if the plug has been over tightened there is potential for thread stripping or even to crack the case itself as Ive seen someone do when forgetting righty tight lefty loosey.
But the transmission case is aluminum and if the plug has been over tightened there is potential for thread stripping or even to crack the case itself as Ive seen someone do when forgetting righty tight lefty loosey.
texadelphia
New member
Bought a cheap impact socket at Lowe's and ground it down past the inner bevel. Tried hitting it with a hammer, and then the breaker bar. Eventually put the propane torch to it which did the trick. The drain plug was equally stubborn. The transfer case plugs came off without heat or anything.
Ran out of daylight before I could get to the front diff. That one has me a little scared.
Ran out of daylight before I could get to the front diff. That one has me a little scared.
mtbtim
Elite Member
Applying heat for the win. Heat is your friend for that front diff drain plug as well. I've used it on a guy's rig and it works well. Without the application of heat, you will strip that allen head plug.
texadelphia
New member
Might not be getting to that until spring. Winter seems to have started in earnest here in the PNW.
Is that plug a 10mm allen across the board? I couldn't get a 10mm to go in and the 8mm was too small (don't have a 9) The plug is pretty dirty so it could just have grime build up but I still thought the 10 would still fit.
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mtbtim
Elite Member
It's a 10.
thegipper
New member
When I couldn't get my front diff fill plug off, I welded a 10mm allen socket onto the plug. The plug was completely stripped from prior attempts. Once I welded the allen socket in place, the plug came out with very little effort. The heat from the welds really helps.
Good luck
Good luck
texadelphia
New member
Going to clean everything very well, heat the area around the plug, rap on it with a hammer for good measure, and give it a go. The plug looks to be in very good shape, not rounded or anything, so at least I have a good starting point.
mtbtim
Elite Member
That's the same experience we had when we shot this video. It wasn't so much the fact we now had a solid connection of the allen socket to the plug that made it easier to remove. It was the heat from the welding process that had the most positive affect. After we had that allen socket welded on, I was able to break the drain plug free with a 1 foot breaker bar with relative ease. On other rigs, it took me standing on a 2 foot breaker bar to break it free.
At one of my Timmy the Toolman parties, a guy wanted help getting his front diff drain plug off. I heated up around the plug once, tried with an 18" breaker bar and no go. I applied heat for a second time and tried again. It still didn't budge. I applied heat for a 3rd time and the plug finally broke free. It takes quite a bit of heat to get these stubborn plugs loose. The key is to not strip the plug. You keep on applying heat until you can get it off with a moderate amount of force. If you have to stand on a 2 foot breaker bar like I stupidly did one time and got away with without stripping the plug, you haven't applied enough heat yet.
Folks, I'll say it again. Heat is your friend when dealing with stuck fill and drain plugs.
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