Loyill Posted November 27, 2015 Share Posted November 27, 2015 So after a long day at school on tuesday, i came out to my car after an hour or so of being home, to find a huge puddle of oil under my car. Puddle is an understatement.. it was ALL of the engines oil... Nooo! I grabed my head lamp and got under there thinking the worst. What i found was odd. The normal drain plug (the 17mm at an angle twards the passenger side) was dry as a bone, however, there was a second hole just beyond it, where all the oil had poured out along with the remains of what appeared to be a rubber grommet dangling from the hole. What is this hole? Its just behind the "normal" drain plug and is pointing straight down. what was supposed to be there? Ive worked on these alot and have even replaced oil pans and oil pan gaskets and i have never noticed this second hole before. Anybody know what this is or how i should plug it? Beleive it or not the cork gasket dosent leak and i dont want to replace the pan and go through that whole ordeal if i dont have to. Thanks for taking the time to read and your potential response. I did alot of searching and found no mention of this "second" hole or whatever it is. -1989 NA / EA82 5MT 4wd wagon Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loyale 2.7 Turbo Posted November 27, 2015 Share Posted November 27, 2015 I'm not completely sure about the Situation, but maybe it was something from the inside that punched out a Hole on the oil pan? ... ... So, I kindly suggest you to take a couple of Photos of it and share 'em here with us, in order to provide better advice. As for the cork gasket troubles, I've been using Mega Grey / Ultra Grey silicones without any gasket there, and it works Awesome to seal the oil pan easily, and on a long lasting way. Kind Regards. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
l75eya Posted November 27, 2015 Share Posted November 27, 2015 It's your transmission gear oil drain plug. Sounds like it's gone. Check your gear oil to be sure but that's what it sounds like to me. Don't run your car until you plug the pan and refill with 80/90 gear oil. Pretty sure it takes almost five quarts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott in Bellingham Posted November 27, 2015 Share Posted November 27, 2015 That second hole may be from the wrecking yard, I've seen that from a wrecking yard engine, 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonas Posted November 27, 2015 Share Posted November 27, 2015 Nice job on being observant. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loyill Posted November 27, 2015 Author Share Posted November 27, 2015 Thanks everyone. i think you guys are miss-understanding a bit. its my engine oil pan. literally like two inches from the drain plug. its engine oil on the ground. Not the trans at all. i cant take a pic till tomorrow because im outa town today for the holiday. Scott, you seem to know what im taliking about. what is it? and if the wrecking yard put it there, do you know how they pluged it originally? Im in a jam with this thing and im wondering how it somehow held for years till ultimatly failing. Anybody know if i can thread a bolt in there? Thanks again guys this is a pretty weird thing. im super stumped. Thanks Jonas, its hard not to notice a mirrior like reflection under my whole car haha. im just glad it happened when i got home, and not on my way home. Scott please elaborate if your able. Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted November 27, 2015 Share Posted November 27, 2015 someone previously damaged or repaired it. pick up the pieces on the ground and see what it was? i would tap the hole for a plug for now - but that pan is thin - i'd consider that a "get it home" repair. i wouldn't want that there permanently. maybe tap, thread in a bolt with a crush washer to seal it and tack weld the bolt head in place. i'm not sure if you ever need to remove it what happens - but a rivnut would be a nice clean repair - but the product and tooling may be annoying. weld it? i've seen people weld pans - i'm not sure how that works though - getting all the fluid out from the inside so it's not flammable - etc. i wouldn't do it myself, but others have done it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loyill Posted November 27, 2015 Author Share Posted November 27, 2015 Oh elite master of the subaru, thank you. The only piece i found was the small rubber grommet with a hole in the center. Thats what i was thinking about trying anyways as those are really my only options. I dont have a welder or the skills to do anything like that. Im going to clean it all up real good to see exactly what im working with, then tap and thread in a bolt with a crush washer. The tack weld part may have to wait. Hmm those rivnuts are interesting, i may go that route, but i have to do a little more research to see what id be in for exactly. Thanks grossgary, i really appreciate it. I'll fill you guys in somtime tomorrow evening with what i come up with. Im the meantime any other comments, experiences, or sugestions would be great. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loyill Posted November 27, 2015 Author Share Posted November 27, 2015 Just checked out the rivnuts.. Im starting to think that may have been what was in there originally but im not sure. I wish i would have known somthing was there though. i could have been keeping tabs on it, or keeping it tight, if thats what it was. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted November 27, 2015 Share Posted November 27, 2015 take some kind of cleaner with you to get all the oil out of the hole/inside for clean working/prepping if needed. is the hole smaller than the drain plug such that you could slide a nut into the drain plug hole to accept a bolt passing through it? if you tap it, maybe locktite on the threads since the pan metal is so thin. or slather it in high grade sealant instead of using a crush washer - the sealant might secure the bolt in place and seal it? fortunately the bolt isn't structural - it just needs to seal/stay in place. as long as the crush washer doesn't require more torque to seal than the threads can hold you should be golden. maybe use a rubber washer/oring/gasket just to get home and assess once you're there. i think i'd go the crush washer route if i were tack welding it in place and sealant if i wasn't going to tack weld. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted November 27, 2015 Share Posted November 27, 2015 does the pan look otherwise damaged - like this was caused by damage or is it a perfectly drilled/placed hole like it was intended for something? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SubaruWagon87 Posted November 27, 2015 Share Posted November 27, 2015 My guess is junkyard. The longblock in my car came from a junkyard and rather than pull the drain plug, they punch a hole in the pan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ahhsit Posted November 27, 2015 Share Posted November 27, 2015 maybe instead of tack welding the nut and washer in place you could use some JB weld. it's a two part epoxy you mix together and let dry. stuff is really strong (once dry) and will hang in there for the long haul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveT Posted November 27, 2015 Share Posted November 27, 2015 If it's a small hole. Get a thread forming screw a little bigger than the hole. Nor a self tapping screw. Goop it up with a good sealant, screw it in. Sheet metal is too thin to tap. Other idea, use a finger , or a wire to hold a nut in place, screw in a screw with sealant from the outside. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted November 27, 2015 Share Posted November 27, 2015 maybe instead of tack welding the nut and washer in place you could use some JB weld. it's a two part epoxy you mix together and let dry. stuff is really strong (once dry) and will hang in there for the long haul I wouldn't go JB weld on an oil pan myself. It is strong but not resilient to all the heat cycling, vibrating, impact from road debris over time. i've had JB weld fail when used on engine blocks before, i no longer consider it a reliable high mileage option for critical items. I'd avoid the epoxy route on an oil pan myself but maybe there's a higher grade marine or option...i don't know anything about this but maybe something along these lines would be better: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00L220ZFU?tag=viglink21921-20 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john in KY Posted November 27, 2015 Share Posted November 27, 2015 Cut a metal patch panel larger than the hole, lather it with RTV goop, and rivet the patch to the pan. Lots of rivets, like one every 1/4 inch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loyale 2.7 Turbo Posted November 27, 2015 Share Posted November 27, 2015 Cut a metal patch panel larger than the hole, lather it with RTV goop, and rivet the patch to the pan. Lots of rivets, like one every 1/4 inch. The rivets needs Drillings on the oil pan... How the oil will manage such amount of metal debris? Sounds pretty Dangerous. I believe that swap oil pans is the way to go. Kind Regards. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
turbosubarubrat Posted November 27, 2015 Share Posted November 27, 2015 (edited) Just get another oil pan there not hard to find and are easy to take off. If not i would go the bolt route or find somebody to weld it. Edited November 27, 2015 by turbosubarubrat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loyill Posted November 27, 2015 Author Share Posted November 27, 2015 Hey everybody, im back in town. im going to clean it up in a bit after i unwind and see what im working with here. i would just swap the pan if i had one here but id prob have to find one at the yard, which would be difficult as i work, or have school every day.. and then theres the fact of the one from the bone yard might be punched out as well. and my gasket dosent leak one drop so if i can do an in-place fix, then as gary put it, id be golden. thanks for all the sugestions. im leaning towards the bolt with an o ring as i have LOTS laying around. ill be back on in a bit with my findings. Maybe ill just chew up some gum and stick that in there.. it works on leaky dams right? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loyale 2.7 Turbo Posted November 28, 2015 Share Posted November 28, 2015 (edited) ... Maybe ill just chew up some gum and stick that in there.. it works on leaky dams right? Now that's Fun! If EA82 engined subarus on junk yards around your area, are Scarce; and you don't have time to search for the oil pan; maybe another USMB member nearby your area, can sell you an used oil pan, so you can swap it easily. Kind Regards. Edited November 28, 2015 by Loyale 2.7 Turbo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loyill Posted November 28, 2015 Author Share Posted November 28, 2015 (edited) Thank you JesZeK. That did cross my mind. Ive been trying not to put too much money into the engine besides all the regular matanince, because I plan on Ej swaping it.. but ive been saying that for 5 yrs haha.. what can i say, shes a tropper. So I fixed it! at least for now shes holdin up good. After I pulled the skid plat off there, and was able to see what was actually going on, It was definatly a JY puncture. It looked like somebody shot a fat slug in it. It was a perfectly round concave hole. I messured it with my caliper and it was about .45in. I could tell the oil pan was very thin, as mentioned, so i did some more research and came across expandable oil plugs. pretty much just two washers that compress rubber to plug a hole. I need my car to get to work in the morning so i drove (in my ladys car) to just about every store insearch of one thats a half inch. These things are common in bigger sizes but hard to find that small, and needing it tonight i had to settle with an lever style one. I tightned it down a bit, squeezed it in there, clamped the lever, and filled it up. I let it run for about 15min and it stayed dry. then i took on a test drive, went up a big hill, took it home and YES! still dry as a bone on the plug. I'll be watching it like a hawk, and if it starts to fail i'll do the overall right thing as a few of you said and just replace the pan.. I guess worst case is it bought me some much needed time. If it fails im sure youall will hear about it. Thank you everybody for helping mee get through this. I really hope this works out and somebody else can find this thread, and fix usefull. we"ll see what happens! Dang i took pictures but i guess i have to host them. Ill figure it out soon as they ilistrate what i did, and what i was dealing with Edited November 28, 2015 by Loyill 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loyale 2.7 Turbo Posted November 28, 2015 Share Posted November 28, 2015 Thank you JesZeK... Dang i took pictures but i guess i have to host them. Ill figure it out soon as they ilistrate what i did, and what i was dealing with You're Welcome! ... I'm glad that you fixed your Subie. Here: ~► http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/topic/152891-recurrent-question-how-to-share-photos-on-your-posts/ You can see ideas to share Photos and Videos on posts. Kind Regards. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
l75eya Posted November 28, 2015 Share Posted November 28, 2015 Jb-weld. Stuff is magical. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SubaruWagon87 Posted November 29, 2015 Share Posted November 29, 2015 I used quicksteel on mine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loyill Posted November 29, 2015 Author Share Posted November 29, 2015 The damage.. Looking at this pic i don't know how i didn't notice a previous repair there either The plug. One on the left. You can tighten the inside washer thing before you put it in and clamp it down so you can make it a pretty tight squeeze before hand. The ones i found online looked like they'd be an even better fix Put about 30mi on it today and its still dry. I know the lever style is not ideal, but its in there pretty darn good. even if the lever flips up it will probably still stay in there a while.. I'll just keep my eye on it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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