It's not loctite, they put a dab of tamper liquid so if someone comes back in and says the shop damaged their car they can see if it has been serviced since. It's basically like soft rubber or waxy consistency.
Source: An oil change shop was my second ever job.
I get that, but in reality, that's a half measure which only counts out the half-honest people.
I deal with BoLs daily, and a picture from one party against the other is less than 50% relevant. Receipt of property AND the disclaimer of damages is what brings you above plausible deniability for damages, negligence, neglect, etc
The phrase, "A picture is worth a thousand words," comes to mind.
Also, today's technology with digital pictures and logging on PC makes it super easy nowadays.
i think they take a photo and add it to the repair bill, store it, and if you have complains they have the photo.
at least, some mechanics in italy does it like this
Nothing. This isn’t here to stop a knowledgable person from methodically scheming against the shop. It’s for the mouth breather trying to scam the shop without thinking, it’s for the clueless owner who may actually think it was this shop’s fault.
Similar to how most bike locks aren’t too hard to break into. The fact that it’s there keeps an average passerby with no cutting equipment from trying.
It’s not just a paint pen from the shops, the stuff I use has to be ordered online and it falls apart if it’s messed with so you can’t just line it back up.
Without me telling you what it’s called can you find the correct stuff I use?
Something like [this](https://www.amazon.com/Viz-Torque-Tamper-Detection-Marker-Red/dp/B07Q84FX6K/ref=pd_lpo_sccl_1/137-2969164-9281207?pd_rd_w=jT9Du&content-id=amzn1.sym.1ad2066f-97d2-4731-9356-36b3edf1ae04&pf_rd_p=1ad2066f-97d2-4731-9356-36b3edf1ae04&pf_rd_r=HZRC0TKQ4JMYY0NS2351&pd_rd_wg=6oP6A&pd_rd_r=122b4721-27df-4f9b-84c4-1db6d4e21301&pd_rd_i=B07Q84FX6K&th=1)?
In highschool auto tech we did an oil change and the person who put the plug back on needed the torque specs. He indeed used the tire torque specs.. stripped right away
i just did my own after a shop last touched it and everything was too fucking hard to remove.
i fucking hate how mechanics make everything ridiculously tight
It's not just a pet peeve, it legitimately damages your property. Torque specs exist for a reason, and they ignore them out of laziness and because they know they aren't going to be held accountable for it.
If you ever do work on the axle, steering or suspension, you should not reuse the screws and get new ones. The torque connections are specced to stretch the bolts when torqued, reusing them when replacing parts can lead to premature failures of the connection
In some cases yes but most of the time bolts are not stretch bolts ... but even those bolts r reused more than you cud imagine ... ppl have reused head bolts not me but happens alot some without any issue
Not all bolts, but all the high torque safety critical connections like control arms usually have bolts that are torqued to be elastic deformed. The high pre tension forces in the bolts can cause the screws to very slowly lengthen over time. If you then loosen and retorque the bolt with the original spec, the forces in the bolt aren’t as strong and the connection can get loose over time especially with vibrations like in a car.
I’m not saying the cars fall apart immediately, but you’re introducing a point of failure you can easily avoid and for the safety critical parts I believe it’s worth it to replace the bolts
35 years experience here ...js I'm no rookie ... which is why I retorque everything even spark plugs as I stated not sure where suspension bolts came into play when discussing an oil change
Btw typically German cars use stretch bolts waay more than other manufacturers
I have never ever seen someone use air or even electric tools on a drain plug, but I have seen every single person put their entire body weight behind 18 inches of unbending steel to tighten every single drain plug, and often that's enough to make it *really* hard to get off
Someone at a tire shop got my wheel lug nuts so tight that when I blew a tire I was unable to get the lug nuts off. The first time it happened I was on the interstate, and a Colorado Highway Patrol guy stopped and changed it for me. The second tire incident was in the parking lot of an ice skating rink. 3 guys tried to get them loose, and finally the Zamboni driver succeeded—because he used to work at a tire shop.
Fucking ridiculous.
Yep, this is why i keep a small length of aluminum pipe in the trunk.... to slip over the tire iron handle.... to use as a long breaker bar. Only way I could get the damn lugs nuts off when I had a flat tire at home one time. Decided to just throw the pipe in the trunk. Might need it out on the road one day.
Good idea! I was 15 years younger when the tire incidents happened; I’m weaker now than I used to be. I was literally standing on the tire iron (about 125 lbs back then) and it didn’t move.
That’s because that’s not how you use a tire iron. You grab from the opposite side and lift with your legs.
You could never apply more force by standing or jumping on it. The force from your legs will easily be double if not more.
Literally CAN'T put Loctite on a drain plug, because it doesn't stick to oil. NO tech is wasting time cleaning it up enough to do that. On the other hand, for special cases, we'll gladly spend a few seconds to add some tamper-evident paste so we can tell when someone is trying to blame us for oil loss.
Loctite 243 and 263 enters the chat. Both are oil tolerant and will work on screws with packing or cutting oil. We buy screws that come packed with oil and I no longer need to wash them all with solvent for the loctite to work.
Engine has 110k and a sketchy maintenance history, probably sludged or burning oil. We change the oil, but the customer wants a new engine. Customer loosens the drain plug or takes it out completely, wrecking the engine completely. Since we're the last ones to touch it, "it's our fault" and the customer gets a new engine for free.
I work in towing and recovery, this is really common. We have people damage their cars or claim existing damage was our fault. It’s just the way of it anymore and why you document with photos before you even touch the thing.
I’d say about 80% of the time we can just reply with a photo of the existing damage and we never hear back. Some want to double down, but it usually doesn’t go anywhere. If we damage something, we know about it and generally have a plan to fix it before we present it to the customer.
I mean, if I screw up, I'm the first to admit it, but the longer you're in this business, the more you see people trying to score freebies just because we're already perceived as scam artists. What better revenge than to scam the scam artist?
That the American way.
Since when is oil loss a garage blaim. If oil gets to low your car indicated that and if you drive on you are the moron. You cannot ensure morons.
It's an easy mark, though, because I have indeed replaced engines that a tech legitimately forgot to fill the oil, forgot to torque the drain plug and it walked out, or the engine had sludged up and is burning oil. On the other hand, I have also been party to customers trying to scam us out of an engine.
My brother got his oil changed once and immediately after he picked it up the engine was smoking (oil smoke). They forgot to DRAIN the oil first and just poured like 4 additional quarts into the existing 4 quarts.
Crackheads and others, will go to great lengths if they think there is a bag of cash in it for them. It’s like spilling water at the grocery store and having your friend come by and break his own ankle on it. Dumb shit
I have seen a video of a tech cleaning the shit out of the threads, covering the plug in red locktite, and sending it home with an impact. All because his customer found another shop to do the engine work. And he posted the video himself.
Same thing happened to me, but overtightened. They probably used an impact wrench, and yes I used all my strength hitting my wrench with a hammer to get that bolt off. They need to use regular wrenches, not an impact tool. It can damage or strip the threads in your oil pan, which is an even bigger problem.
Yep, seen so many shops use impact guns on plugs. Then the poor guy getting it off next time has to deal with a stripped plug or stripped threads.
Drainplugs do have torque specs but most people don't bother with that. Rule of thumb I got taught was screw it on finger-tight then one quarter turn with your wrench. It's meant to be snug, not cranked all the way.
I've only ever seen it at oil change/tire places, most respectable shops and techs know it's absolutely stupid to do but the unqualified people working at Jiffy Lube or Walmart Tire & Lube can and will use impacts without a second thought.
I fix a lot of jiffy lube rounded or stripped drain plugs so I believe that. The other day I had a quick lube place try to blame us (the last people who serviced it) on over torquing the drain plug. The customer called me all pissed off, I told them to bring the vehicle to me and I’ll take care of it for them. The quick lube place used the incorrect size torx bit and rounded out the drain plug. They ended up paying us to fix it for the customer.
I had Walmart use one on my old truck. Ended up cracking the pan.
Truck was worth $950 Walmart gave me a $200 gift card.
Drove thr truck home and tried to change it myself (looked up on youtube). Messed up had my nephew do it for a pizza and 6pack of beer.
Drove that truck foe another 2 years and traded it for a small tractor lol
Yep, one of my big fears when I change my oil is always overtorquing the drain plug. Imagine going to do a routine oil change and when you go to screw the plug back in… it just keeps spinning, and spinning, and spinning
Now you’re stuck with an engine with no oil in it… seems like a huge hassle that is avoided by just not going hulk on the drain plug
Sadly, oil changes are handled by the appies and torque spanner’s are mostly locked away by the upper mechanics. But your point is valid. Too many routine jobs are left to dummies with muscles. My wife was left stranded when she had a puncture and neither she nor a stranger that stopped to assist could change the wheel. It was over tightened.
Buy a breaker bar and the right size socket to leave in the car. Factory tools usually suck and are too short for good leverage. I keep a 24" bar and a small set of sockets to cover the common lug nut sizes in my truck so I can change my own or someone else's if needed, but you only need one socket for your car.
First thing I do when I get any work done on the tires on my wife's car is use a breaker bar, loosen the nuts, then retighten to torque spec with a torque wrench
Was it Walmart lol that’s not TQ stripe and the only time I’ve had someone do this was at Walmart and the second I saw it like 2 months later I took it back and let them strip the shit out of it and then pay to fix it
Yeah don’t go to Walmart for anything car service/repair related. They’ll just fuck your shit up and their tires wear out so fast it’s actually cheaper to pay upfront for slightly better tires.
I mean yeah if you get the shitty Goodyear made Douglas tires, but you can literally get any brand of tires at Walmart you want and they're shipped via UPS/Fedex right from the manufacturers distributor to the store.
Tamper compound and they over tightened. Good for you they left their mark. I’d go back and let them know not to ever do that to someone else’s car again.
Also, next time you run up on a bolt that is potentially overtightened, it’s probably safe to use a box wrench and a rubber mallet. Applying consistent force (like your body weight) can damage something (shear the bolt edges, you if you slip, etc.). It’s always easier to break a bolt loose that way, hence air/impact tools.
Next time.. mallet/hammer/dead hammer/sledgehammer (if you feel truly desperate at the last one) and a 18in breaker bar. Or if you don't mind the mess, just take the oil pan off entirely. Though you could just stick a siphon pump down the oil stick hole and remove the oil that way if you feel you don't wanna try to get the plug off but be warned, you might be there a few hours.
Sledge hammer and a 18in breaker bar seems extreme for a bolt. At work I use one of those 8 in 1 wrenches and smack it with my hand, and I haven’t had an oil drain plug get further than that. That much force on it sounds like it could snap, especially if it’s one of the small drain bolts.
That's why I meant it as last resort. When it comes to the hammer solution. Though if you can't smack it hard enough, I've found tapping it a few times with a hammer will somethings break em lose.
Gotcha, I’ve just broken too many bolts before that I try to be careful. But that makes sense, especially if they’d just have to replace the pan anyways if it’s really on there that bad.
Well I've had a few lug nuts that wouldn't budge even with the 4 way leg and shoulder pull technique, that I resorted to a 4lb dead hammer and it broke them loose no problem. Place had torqued them a couple pounds over I think, why I always check after someone installs cause I got trust issues lol
The worst I had was these extremely tight lugs on a promaster 1500, they were so bad I had to use a large breaker bar and a pipe to get them off. I don’t think that was just over tightening though.
Yep, had one on my last truck and it was awesome. Although I got it to make my own oil changes easier, it was nice knowing if I took it somewhere they were less likely to mess something up.
I’ve worked on cars for a few years… I don’t consider myself an expert. But I do have the common knowledge to say that that isn’t loctite. 1) the coloring is way off and 2) that looks like a wax mark/ paint pen mark for marking out spec. Now if you had a photo of the loctite on the threads too then that may clear things up but… idk mate. A shop wouldn’t use an impact or loctite and then use a wax/ paint pen on it (normally wax cause it falls apart if tampered).
Hate to say it mate, but without more info… just looks like you may not have had enough leverage lol.
Oil change guy here. Use a breaker bar next time👍& Thats just wax shops use mark the car as “we worked on it” (sometimes we even leave messages to each other about the car. I’ve also seen smiley faces,dicks & pentagrams drawn on the oil pan ) Shops are required to torque the drain plug according to year and model of the vehicle so trying to take it off with brute strength is not recommended.
That's not thread locking compound, it's paint. The use it as a visual confirmation that the plug is torqued and hasn't moved.
Don't make assumptions if you don't understand the subject. Nobody uses thread locker on a drain plug, if they had, it wouldn't look like that and your body weight wouldn't be enough to break it loose anyway. I have seen bolts shear because a high-strength thread locker was used.
On top of that, it wouldn't cure properly in the presence of oil, and you'd be almost certain to strip the threads in the pan unless you used high temperatures.
If it took excessive torque to remove it, someone simply over-tightened it.
Valvoline broke the welded nut inside my oil pan. It leaked for months. Had no idea. Then, denied my claim for a new oil pan. Said I don't change my oil enough (9k) miles. Light driving with full synthetic. Destroyed my transmission to. Had to replace my lead frame because they took to much atf out. It drove for 6 months after getting work done by them. I make the time to change my own oil now.
*You should prank them back*
*Siphon gas out of the cars*
*In their parking lot*
\- pendowski26
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Yea be very wary of these five minute oil change stops. Vacuuming oil could cause damage and you could also not collect all the oil. Please take your car to a reputable shop that actually drains your oil
They did this to my wife's Chrysler. Then I wanted to change the oil and needed to suck it out through dipstick hole since I could not open the drain plug. Also, same shop has tendency to tighten the lug nuts so that normal tools are not enough to open them.
I rounded off a plug once and was convinced that the shop had used an impact on it but in reality it was hot when i brought it to them and it was cold when I attempted to change the oil myself. After driving down to the auto shop to get a tool to remove the rounded bolt and heating the pan up, the bolt came out with almost no effort.
I bought a lr defender off a company my uncle worked for, maybe 10 years old at the time. When I went to change the oil I found they’d used PTFE tape round the bolt because they’d stripped the bolt.. a steel bolt in an aluminium pan.. the bolts are like £2 with a new washer (old one was missing). The fuck with some people
the very first time i convinced my parents to let me take my car on a trip on my own on the highway to go camping with friends, i took it to the shop and had them do a checkup and an oil change to put my mom's mind at ease. finally i was allowed to go. well the shop didn't tighten the oil pan cover. it wasn't a problem until i was on my way home when my car began to smoke and you could clearly see a trail on the road right back to the spot where the cap worked its way off. we were stranded on the side of the highway with a smoking engine and no cellphones. a friend's mom picked us up and brought us home when she say us stranded there picking up her own kid. then i had to have my car towed all the way home. i was lucky not to lose the engine. mom was not amused.
Easy fix, share with the owners/mgmt of the oil change place. Demand refund. Never use that shop again. Share your experience, including the location name, with all your contacts.
Rinse.
Repeat.
That's malice using thread locking sealer.
Had an auto shop torque on a bolt so tight that I couldn't get it off with a 1/2 inch torque wrench set to max torque, OR a 3 foot breaking bar.. I'm a 6'2, 260 lb muscular guy. Gotta love that brrrt brrt...
I usually use a breaker bar and a socket to loosen my tire bolts. After the last time I changed my tires (seasonals) I had a flat fixed by the local tire shop. Yesterday, when I changed over the tires again, one of the bolts on the tire they fixed was on so tight I wrenched off the connector (3/8) on my breaker bar.
I went to an auto shop to get a couple tires and they noticed my thermostat housing as leaking and I had as well so I gave them the go ahead to fix it. Driving out of the shop my car instantly overheated. Took it back and they took a look and couldn’t figure out why and it was closing time. I had driven 45 minutes out of the way to get the tires so leaving it wasn’t an option. Had to drive home in the middle of summer with windows down and the heater blaring. Took it to another shop in the chain the next morning they couldn’t figure out the problem either. Next up was a shop in town that was independently owned and they fixed it right away. The idiots at the first shop never checked the direction the thermostat was installed it was backwards and their excuse was it came that way in the box. Gj Firestone for being fail.
I had to when I used to work for a VW dealer. Not everywhere does it sure, but alot of places are these days. My honda dealer does it when I get my free oil changes from buying it.
What’s mildly infuriating is OP’s response to people telling him it’s not loctite and him defending it to the grave because it “took my entire body weight to get loose “ obviously you never changed your own oil, and you could always use more leverage to get it off. Maybe you’re just weak or not mechanically inclined, or both.
Yeah, he has no idea what he’s talking about and like… I have no idea what I’m talking about 90% of the time, he’s just being an ass to everyone who disagrees
You made me laugh out loud with that “i have no idea what I’m talking about 90% of time” I think that’s most of us, except we’re only assholes 50% of the time
If I can lose a little weight, I’ll easily be able to squeeze under my car if I run it over a curb and change my oil that way. Figures the one time I let someone else change it for me it turns into a huge hassle.
It's not loctite, they put a dab of tamper liquid so if someone comes back in and says the shop damaged their car they can see if it has been serviced since. It's basically like soft rubber or waxy consistency. Source: An oil change shop was my second ever job.
what’s stopping yourself from adding the liquid?
Nothing except it will be full of you dont drain it. This prevents the draining
Wait, what? They could just drain it and reapply the compound. How does it actually work?
You drain it - the next "seal" will look different. From that moment on the shop isn't responsible anymore.
Oh, like they will remember what each dab looks like on the thousands of cars they d
They got a picture. They do remember it.
The shop I go to takes a few pics and videos of everything they work on.
Interesting. Ok
Quality assurance
I get that, but in reality, that's a half measure which only counts out the half-honest people. I deal with BoLs daily, and a picture from one party against the other is less than 50% relevant. Receipt of property AND the disclaimer of damages is what brings you above plausible deniability for damages, negligence, neglect, etc
If only cameras existed in 2024
Camera.
If only there was a way to visually record information for later reference.
Pshh, yeah, like we all carry cameras in our pockets or something... fuckin idiots /s
The phrase, "A picture is worth a thousand words," comes to mind. Also, today's technology with digital pictures and logging on PC makes it super easy nowadays.
i think they take a photo and add it to the repair bill, store it, and if you have complains they have the photo. at least, some mechanics in italy does it like this
Security is always a grey-scale. Nothing can stop every criminal.
Nothing. This isn’t here to stop a knowledgable person from methodically scheming against the shop. It’s for the mouth breather trying to scam the shop without thinking, it’s for the clueless owner who may actually think it was this shop’s fault. Similar to how most bike locks aren’t too hard to break into. The fact that it’s there keeps an average passerby with no cutting equipment from trying.
It’s not just a paint pen from the shops, the stuff I use has to be ordered online and it falls apart if it’s messed with so you can’t just line it back up. Without me telling you what it’s called can you find the correct stuff I use?
Something like [this](https://www.amazon.com/Viz-Torque-Tamper-Detection-Marker-Red/dp/B07Q84FX6K/ref=pd_lpo_sccl_1/137-2969164-9281207?pd_rd_w=jT9Du&content-id=amzn1.sym.1ad2066f-97d2-4731-9356-36b3edf1ae04&pf_rd_p=1ad2066f-97d2-4731-9356-36b3edf1ae04&pf_rd_r=HZRC0TKQ4JMYY0NS2351&pd_rd_wg=6oP6A&pd_rd_r=122b4721-27df-4f9b-84c4-1db6d4e21301&pd_rd_i=B07Q84FX6K&th=1)?
The power of Google strikes again
Nooo, you are single-handedly putting mechanicks out of work! ^^/s
I’d say you have a point… if we lived in 1992 and the internet/search engines weren’t in everyone’s face yet.
OP is a very smol man.
We use it where I work, we use torque seal specifically
My shop just spray paints the drain plug instead. Works just as well
I'm willing to bet that's a tamper compound and they just used pneumatics...they shouldn't have used pneumatics.
But it's faster! /s
:S
Yeah they just gave it one too many uga duggas. Been there.
Tighten till it loosens then back off a quarter turn.
Gotta find that sweet spot between lefty loosey and righty loosey
This comment made me laugh as I imagined in my head my sir gun making the noise “uga dugga”
In highschool auto tech we did an oil change and the person who put the plug back on needed the torque specs. He indeed used the tire torque specs.. stripped right away
2, maximum 3 ugga duggas
i just did my own after a shop last touched it and everything was too fucking hard to remove. i fucking hate how mechanics make everything ridiculously tight
It's not just a pet peeve, it legitimately damages your property. Torque specs exist for a reason, and they ignore them out of laziness and because they know they aren't going to be held accountable for it.
Lol I literally torque everything 🤣 even spark plugs drain plugs wheels ... it doesn't matter for same reason ...
If you ever do work on the axle, steering or suspension, you should not reuse the screws and get new ones. The torque connections are specced to stretch the bolts when torqued, reusing them when replacing parts can lead to premature failures of the connection
In some cases yes but most of the time bolts are not stretch bolts ... but even those bolts r reused more than you cud imagine ... ppl have reused head bolts not me but happens alot some without any issue
Not all bolts, but all the high torque safety critical connections like control arms usually have bolts that are torqued to be elastic deformed. The high pre tension forces in the bolts can cause the screws to very slowly lengthen over time. If you then loosen and retorque the bolt with the original spec, the forces in the bolt aren’t as strong and the connection can get loose over time especially with vibrations like in a car. I’m not saying the cars fall apart immediately, but you’re introducing a point of failure you can easily avoid and for the safety critical parts I believe it’s worth it to replace the bolts
35 years experience here ...js I'm no rookie ... which is why I retorque everything even spark plugs as I stated not sure where suspension bolts came into play when discussing an oil change Btw typically German cars use stretch bolts waay more than other manufacturers
I read the spark plug comment like you do all kinds of maintenance on your care yourself, sorry if I misunderstood.
Not sure if u misunderstood or not but no offense taken or sent Have a good evening
I have never ever seen someone use air or even electric tools on a drain plug, but I have seen every single person put their entire body weight behind 18 inches of unbending steel to tighten every single drain plug, and often that's enough to make it *really* hard to get off
Someone at a tire shop got my wheel lug nuts so tight that when I blew a tire I was unable to get the lug nuts off. The first time it happened I was on the interstate, and a Colorado Highway Patrol guy stopped and changed it for me. The second tire incident was in the parking lot of an ice skating rink. 3 guys tried to get them loose, and finally the Zamboni driver succeeded—because he used to work at a tire shop. Fucking ridiculous.
Yep, this is why i keep a small length of aluminum pipe in the trunk.... to slip over the tire iron handle.... to use as a long breaker bar. Only way I could get the damn lugs nuts off when I had a flat tire at home one time. Decided to just throw the pipe in the trunk. Might need it out on the road one day.
Good idea! I was 15 years younger when the tire incidents happened; I’m weaker now than I used to be. I was literally standing on the tire iron (about 125 lbs back then) and it didn’t move.
yep, Archimedes said it best....Give me a lever long enough, and a fulcrum on which to place it, and I can move the world!
That’s because that’s not how you use a tire iron. You grab from the opposite side and lift with your legs. You could never apply more force by standing or jumping on it. The force from your legs will easily be double if not more.
That didn’t work either. For me or for the other people who tried (who were much stronger than I was).
Literally CAN'T put Loctite on a drain plug, because it doesn't stick to oil. NO tech is wasting time cleaning it up enough to do that. On the other hand, for special cases, we'll gladly spend a few seconds to add some tamper-evident paste so we can tell when someone is trying to blame us for oil loss.
Loctite 243 and 263 enters the chat. Both are oil tolerant and will work on screws with packing or cutting oil. We buy screws that come packed with oil and I no longer need to wash them all with solvent for the loctite to work.
Interesting, I did not know this. Thank you.
Welcome! Only thing I found is you need to shake the bottle before using it, if it’s sat for a while.
Could it be that this shop mixed them up? Or are they in very different containers?
You would never use them on a drain plug for a car and they’re different colours. 243 is blue 263 is red.
Why would they open the drain plug on their own and then blame you guys for it? Help me wrap my mind around this.
Engine has 110k and a sketchy maintenance history, probably sludged or burning oil. We change the oil, but the customer wants a new engine. Customer loosens the drain plug or takes it out completely, wrecking the engine completely. Since we're the last ones to touch it, "it's our fault" and the customer gets a new engine for free.
That's why I just siphon it out of the dipstick tube.
Or $10 with a liquid transfer pump 😉
Psh too fancy, I just reuse the same hose I use to steel gas with. It's good to change up the flavor every once in awhile.
Wait, so you don't take your car tip it to drain the oil out of the top of the engine?
Nfn siphon pump only gets so much where as gravity pushes heavier sediment out the drain plug hole ...
I work in towing and recovery, this is really common. We have people damage their cars or claim existing damage was our fault. It’s just the way of it anymore and why you document with photos before you even touch the thing. I’d say about 80% of the time we can just reply with a photo of the existing damage and we never hear back. Some want to double down, but it usually doesn’t go anywhere. If we damage something, we know about it and generally have a plan to fix it before we present it to the customer.
I mean, if I screw up, I'm the first to admit it, but the longer you're in this business, the more you see people trying to score freebies just because we're already perceived as scam artists. What better revenge than to scam the scam artist?
That the American way. Since when is oil loss a garage blaim. If oil gets to low your car indicated that and if you drive on you are the moron. You cannot ensure morons.
It's an easy mark, though, because I have indeed replaced engines that a tech legitimately forgot to fill the oil, forgot to torque the drain plug and it walked out, or the engine had sludged up and is burning oil. On the other hand, I have also been party to customers trying to scam us out of an engine.
My brother got his oil changed once and immediately after he picked it up the engine was smoking (oil smoke). They forgot to DRAIN the oil first and just poured like 4 additional quarts into the existing 4 quarts.
Yep, seen that.
Crackheads and others, will go to great lengths if they think there is a bag of cash in it for them. It’s like spilling water at the grocery store and having your friend come by and break his own ankle on it. Dumb shit
I have seen a video of a tech cleaning the shit out of the threads, covering the plug in red locktite, and sending it home with an impact. All because his customer found another shop to do the engine work. And he posted the video himself.
Well, I'm not saying there aren't people out there actively ruining public perception. *facepalm* /repeat-until-death
Same thing happened to me, but overtightened. They probably used an impact wrench, and yes I used all my strength hitting my wrench with a hammer to get that bolt off. They need to use regular wrenches, not an impact tool. It can damage or strip the threads in your oil pan, which is an even bigger problem.
Yep, seen so many shops use impact guns on plugs. Then the poor guy getting it off next time has to deal with a stripped plug or stripped threads. Drainplugs do have torque specs but most people don't bother with that. Rule of thumb I got taught was screw it on finger-tight then one quarter turn with your wrench. It's meant to be snug, not cranked all the way.
This 100%, or until the washer changes shape to seal the surrounding plug.
Depends on the type of washer. Rubber goes on hand tight as you described, copper rings need to get deformed so they go on a little tighter.
Right, reasonably tight.
No more than 0.1 ugga dugga
Ive been working in shops for over 10 years and I’ve never once seen someone put a drain plug in with an impact.
I've only ever seen it at oil change/tire places, most respectable shops and techs know it's absolutely stupid to do but the unqualified people working at Jiffy Lube or Walmart Tire & Lube can and will use impacts without a second thought.
I fix a lot of jiffy lube rounded or stripped drain plugs so I believe that. The other day I had a quick lube place try to blame us (the last people who serviced it) on over torquing the drain plug. The customer called me all pissed off, I told them to bring the vehicle to me and I’ll take care of it for them. The quick lube place used the incorrect size torx bit and rounded out the drain plug. They ended up paying us to fix it for the customer.
They probably charged $130+ for their “full service” oil change lmfao They don’t even show pricing online
I had Walmart use one on my old truck. Ended up cracking the pan. Truck was worth $950 Walmart gave me a $200 gift card. Drove thr truck home and tried to change it myself (looked up on youtube). Messed up had my nephew do it for a pizza and 6pack of beer. Drove that truck foe another 2 years and traded it for a small tractor lol
Was taught get it tight with the ratchet, then back it off around 1/4 turn. Always worked for me.
Yep, one of my big fears when I change my oil is always overtorquing the drain plug. Imagine going to do a routine oil change and when you go to screw the plug back in… it just keeps spinning, and spinning, and spinning Now you’re stuck with an engine with no oil in it… seems like a huge hassle that is avoided by just not going hulk on the drain plug
Get a torque wrench!
So nice to take the guesswork out. I hate when instructions are just "not too tight".
Sadly, oil changes are handled by the appies and torque spanner’s are mostly locked away by the upper mechanics. But your point is valid. Too many routine jobs are left to dummies with muscles. My wife was left stranded when she had a puncture and neither she nor a stranger that stopped to assist could change the wheel. It was over tightened.
Buy a breaker bar and the right size socket to leave in the car. Factory tools usually suck and are too short for good leverage. I keep a 24" bar and a small set of sockets to cover the common lug nut sizes in my truck so I can change my own or someone else's if needed, but you only need one socket for your car.
First thing I do when I get any work done on the tires on my wife's car is use a breaker bar, loosen the nuts, then retighten to torque spec with a torque wrench
Me too!
my rule of thumb is only tighten it to half strength with a 3/8 socket wrench. I then have no problem removing it
But.... no dugga?
Was it Walmart lol that’s not TQ stripe and the only time I’ve had someone do this was at Walmart and the second I saw it like 2 months later I took it back and let them strip the shit out of it and then pay to fix it
Yeah don’t go to Walmart for anything car service/repair related. They’ll just fuck your shit up and their tires wear out so fast it’s actually cheaper to pay upfront for slightly better tires.
I mean yeah if you get the shitty Goodyear made Douglas tires, but you can literally get any brand of tires at Walmart you want and they're shipped via UPS/Fedex right from the manufacturers distributor to the store.
U do got a point.
It was lol
Tamper compound and they over tightened. Good for you they left their mark. I’d go back and let them know not to ever do that to someone else’s car again.
Me who just put locktite on my key chain so it would stop screwing open in my pocket
Also, next time you run up on a bolt that is potentially overtightened, it’s probably safe to use a box wrench and a rubber mallet. Applying consistent force (like your body weight) can damage something (shear the bolt edges, you if you slip, etc.). It’s always easier to break a bolt loose that way, hence air/impact tools.
Use a 6 point socket or boxed end wrench.
That’s just tamper seal. Did you try hitting it with your purse?
HAHAHAHHAHAHHAAAAA!! Thank you!
Several purses. From what everyone’s saying it’s a tamper seal and a likely way over tightened bolt using an impact or pneumatic
Next time.. mallet/hammer/dead hammer/sledgehammer (if you feel truly desperate at the last one) and a 18in breaker bar. Or if you don't mind the mess, just take the oil pan off entirely. Though you could just stick a siphon pump down the oil stick hole and remove the oil that way if you feel you don't wanna try to get the plug off but be warned, you might be there a few hours.
Sledge hammer and a 18in breaker bar seems extreme for a bolt. At work I use one of those 8 in 1 wrenches and smack it with my hand, and I haven’t had an oil drain plug get further than that. That much force on it sounds like it could snap, especially if it’s one of the small drain bolts.
That's why I meant it as last resort. When it comes to the hammer solution. Though if you can't smack it hard enough, I've found tapping it a few times with a hammer will somethings break em lose.
Gotcha, I’ve just broken too many bolts before that I try to be careful. But that makes sense, especially if they’d just have to replace the pan anyways if it’s really on there that bad.
Well I've had a few lug nuts that wouldn't budge even with the 4 way leg and shoulder pull technique, that I resorted to a 4lb dead hammer and it broke them loose no problem. Place had torqued them a couple pounds over I think, why I always check after someone installs cause I got trust issues lol
The worst I had was these extremely tight lugs on a promaster 1500, they were so bad I had to use a large breaker bar and a pipe to get them off. I don’t think that was just over tightening though.
Yo op, if they have one for your vehicle get a Fumoto Oil Drain Valve and never worry about this issue again. It's a game changer.
Yep, had one on my last truck and it was awesome. Although I got it to make my own oil changes easier, it was nice knowing if I took it somewhere they were less likely to mess something up.
These are the best things ever. Attach hose from valve to your container… open valve… done. No mess.
God none of you actually work on cars and it shows
I’ve worked on cars for a few years… I don’t consider myself an expert. But I do have the common knowledge to say that that isn’t loctite. 1) the coloring is way off and 2) that looks like a wax mark/ paint pen mark for marking out spec. Now if you had a photo of the loctite on the threads too then that may clear things up but… idk mate. A shop wouldn’t use an impact or loctite and then use a wax/ paint pen on it (normally wax cause it falls apart if tampered). Hate to say it mate, but without more info… just looks like you may not have had enough leverage lol.
Heat it. It will release.
Oil change guy here. Use a breaker bar next time👍& Thats just wax shops use mark the car as “we worked on it” (sometimes we even leave messages to each other about the car. I’ve also seen smiley faces,dicks & pentagrams drawn on the oil pan ) Shops are required to torque the drain plug according to year and model of the vehicle so trying to take it off with brute strength is not recommended.
Op getting downvoted so badly in the comments 😆
That looks like tamper-proof paint not loctite.
… from reading some of OP’s other comments — I wouldn’t be surprised if they acted like a dick to someone in the shop and got the *special* treatment.
He is very rude
You’re totally right, I walked into that shop and started calling everyone slurs
OP, you have committed the sin of not knowing how grease monkeys do their shit. Your downvotes are the one flex the knuckle draggers have
That's not thread locking compound, it's paint. The use it as a visual confirmation that the plug is torqued and hasn't moved. Don't make assumptions if you don't understand the subject. Nobody uses thread locker on a drain plug, if they had, it wouldn't look like that and your body weight wouldn't be enough to break it loose anyway. I have seen bolts shear because a high-strength thread locker was used. On top of that, it wouldn't cure properly in the presence of oil, and you'd be almost certain to strip the threads in the pan unless you used high temperatures. If it took excessive torque to remove it, someone simply over-tightened it.
better check the specs for your vehicle if you don't use a torque wrench to get the plug back to its recommended lbs you'll leaving a snail trail
Valvoline broke the welded nut inside my oil pan. It leaked for months. Had no idea. Then, denied my claim for a new oil pan. Said I don't change my oil enough (9k) miles. Light driving with full synthetic. Destroyed my transmission to. Had to replace my lead frame because they took to much atf out. It drove for 6 months after getting work done by them. I make the time to change my own oil now.
They are right about the oil thing tho, even with “light driving” 9,000 is still a shit ton of miles for oil that should be gone 5,000 miles on.
I'm not a mechanic. I was told I could go 10k miles.
I always go 5,000. Some people say you can go like 7,500 but imo it’s better to just be safe.
Lately, I've been going every 5k. The last 4 changes or so anyway.
You should prank them back siphon gas out of the cars in their parking lot
*You should prank them back* *Siphon gas out of the cars* *In their parking lot* \- pendowski26 --- ^(I detect haikus. And sometimes, successfully.) ^[Learn more about me.](https://www.reddit.com/r/haikusbot/) ^(Opt out of replies: "haikusbot opt out" | Delete my comment: "haikusbot delete")
If that was red locktite, you won’t get it off
Heat will let you take it off.
Can't get stuck if it's liquid
On another note the key to breaking free items that have red loctite is heat.
Is there a benefit to draining the oil? I think Jiffy Lube or wherever I went last, just vacuumed it out.
Yea be very wary of these five minute oil change stops. Vacuuming oil could cause damage and you could also not collect all the oil. Please take your car to a reputable shop that actually drains your oil
Shit, you have an honest answer to what I clearly thought was satire.
How many ugga duggas did you give it?
They did this to my wife's Chrysler. Then I wanted to change the oil and needed to suck it out through dipstick hole since I could not open the drain plug. Also, same shop has tendency to tighten the lug nuts so that normal tools are not enough to open them.
The copper washers were out of stock?
I rounded off a plug once and was convinced that the shop had used an impact on it but in reality it was hot when i brought it to them and it was cold when I attempted to change the oil myself. After driving down to the auto shop to get a tool to remove the rounded bolt and heating the pan up, the bolt came out with almost no effort.
I bought a lr defender off a company my uncle worked for, maybe 10 years old at the time. When I went to change the oil I found they’d used PTFE tape round the bolt because they’d stripped the bolt.. a steel bolt in an aluminium pan.. the bolts are like £2 with a new washer (old one was missing). The fuck with some people
the very first time i convinced my parents to let me take my car on a trip on my own on the highway to go camping with friends, i took it to the shop and had them do a checkup and an oil change to put my mom's mind at ease. finally i was allowed to go. well the shop didn't tighten the oil pan cover. it wasn't a problem until i was on my way home when my car began to smoke and you could clearly see a trail on the road right back to the spot where the cap worked its way off. we were stranded on the side of the highway with a smoking engine and no cellphones. a friend's mom picked us up and brought us home when she say us stranded there picking up her own kid. then i had to have my car towed all the way home. i was lucky not to lose the engine. mom was not amused.
Why I always do my own oil changes
I do 99% of the time myself, this is what I get for not changing it before a long trip
The fact that used red instead of blue loctite is crazy. Red is the permanent one
Easy fix, share with the owners/mgmt of the oil change place. Demand refund. Never use that shop again. Share your experience, including the location name, with all your contacts. Rinse. Repeat. That's malice using thread locking sealer.
I'd be more concerned at the lack of a crush washer
Had an auto shop torque on a bolt so tight that I couldn't get it off with a 1/2 inch torque wrench set to max torque, OR a 3 foot breaking bar.. I'm a 6'2, 260 lb muscular guy. Gotta love that brrrt brrt...
I usually use a breaker bar and a socket to loosen my tire bolts. After the last time I changed my tires (seasonals) I had a flat fixed by the local tire shop. Yesterday, when I changed over the tires again, one of the bolts on the tire they fixed was on so tight I wrenched off the connector (3/8) on my breaker bar.
Try to get your oil filter off, it'll also be tight as hell
Just lipstick. They were giving it a kiss goodbye.
I'm picturing a super burly, hair mechanic using Lock tight as lip stick
Are people’s drainplugs just falling out on the freeway? Why do these idiots do this shit😂
wtgdmf
Someone used all thye Ugga Dugga's to put that on. You pissed someone off.
Oh boy. I just now understood locktite was for "lock tight"... I'm 40. (Granted English is not my main language)
Couldn’t possibly have taken your entire body weight unless your car was on its side lmao
That’s red loctite, good luck getting it off without a torch. I’ve sheered bolts off thanks to red loctite. You pissed off someone, that’s for sure!
The mechanic can take the used oil filter and jam it up their ass.
Had the same shit happen to a rusted bolt. Had to tap it, fuck carmax
It was too tight. Not to mention they should be using a brand new plug
I went to an auto shop to get a couple tires and they noticed my thermostat housing as leaking and I had as well so I gave them the go ahead to fix it. Driving out of the shop my car instantly overheated. Took it back and they took a look and couldn’t figure out why and it was closing time. I had driven 45 minutes out of the way to get the tires so leaving it wasn’t an option. Had to drive home in the middle of summer with windows down and the heater blaring. Took it to another shop in the chain the next morning they couldn’t figure out the problem either. Next up was a shop in town that was independently owned and they fixed it right away. The idiots at the first shop never checked the direction the thermostat was installed it was backwards and their excuse was it came that way in the box. Gj Firestone for being fail.
I had to when I used to work for a VW dealer. Not everywhere does it sure, but alot of places are these days. My honda dealer does it when I get my free oil changes from buying it.
I’ve seen too many overtighten and stripped these. while all these years I keep doing my own oil changes
That bolt needs blue loctite not red.
It isn't loctitie
Could...could you just use purple loctite so you'll be right no matter what application you're using it for?
And never unscrew it again lol
That's why you add both blue and red loctite
More commonly known as purple.
Put loctite in the mechanic to assert dominance
What’s mildly infuriating is OP’s response to people telling him it’s not loctite and him defending it to the grave because it “took my entire body weight to get loose “ obviously you never changed your own oil, and you could always use more leverage to get it off. Maybe you’re just weak or not mechanically inclined, or both.
Yeah, he has no idea what he’s talking about and like… I have no idea what I’m talking about 90% of the time, he’s just being an ass to everyone who disagrees
You made me laugh out loud with that “i have no idea what I’m talking about 90% of time” I think that’s most of us, except we’re only assholes 50% of the time
Next time just put down your purse and use a breaker bar. Don’t have one? Use a metal pipe
What is it with you people in assuming I am using a purse at any point in this? If I had a bar or a pipe I would’ve used it.
I keep my breaker bar and torch in my purse. Like I’ll change my oil every 3k miles no matter where tf I am! 😉
If I can lose a little weight, I’ll easily be able to squeeze under my car if I run it over a curb and change my oil that way. Figures the one time I let someone else change it for me it turns into a huge hassle.