oo7spy

I realized the first time that I tried to change my oil that the dealers are impact happy with their wrenches. When I went to remove the oil drain plug, I had to use a breaker bar. Once the bolt was out I took a look at the washer. It had been cranked so hard that the washer was actually pushed into the drain hole of the pan. There was a ring along the inside where it had been pushed into the oil pan. I proceeded to the filter which was just as snug. Seeing it was behind the passenger tire, I attempted to take the tire off for easier access. With my father and me pulling/pushing on each side of a tire iron, we could not remove the lug nuts. To get the filter out, I had to punch a screwdriver through and use that to turn it.

Then one day I had a flat tire. I jacked the car up and attempted to loosen the lugs but again, to no avail. Luckily I had a work buddy who lived nearby bring me a four foot jack bar that I could use as a breaker. As I used the bar, my buddy says, "Hey, you're bending it." I look down in amazement thinking that I am bending his nice bar, but instead, I see this.


How in the F*** was I supposed to do that with my hands? What idiot would turn the psi on their impact wrench up so high that they would mold the washer to the oil pan drain? Seriously?!? I am beginning to get on the same page as rtr that even the dealers are incompetent f*cks that don't know how to use a tool. SSjTrunks was in the same boat recently having to call roadside assistance. Has anyone else experienced this? Is there anything we can do to show the dealer how stupid their technicians are?

silver3.5

That's exactly why I do it myself!

hondaxacura

^ what he said. I simply don't trust these dealers or mechanics.

Wheels should be tighten using a torque wrench or set to appropriate torque, 97 ft lbs for RL. And really, the filter is hand tighten, ~1/2 turn after gasket seats is more than enough. No need for tools.

But i guess all dealerships are like that. I remember having the oil changed at the dealership once, took me a long elfin time to take off the oil filter.

BDoggPrelude

Using an impact gun to remove nuts/bolts is actually better for the parts. The jiggling motion helps to loosen them and reduces the risk of rounding off or breaking them. As for putting them back on...we use air guns with torque sticks to put lug nuts back on and then finish with torquing them by hand. A torque stick limits the amount of torque that can be applied to the part.

As for not being able to get your lugs off and bending the OE lug wrench: When was the last time you took your wheels off? The constant heating and cooling of the lug nuts on the studs basically tightens their grip and makes it more difficult to remove them. Again, this is what impact guns were designed for. Have you ever tried to get exhaust parts off without an impact gun? It's nearly impossible to do without rounding off and breaking nuts and bolts. The OE lug wrench is a POS. I'm not surprised you bent it. Stop being so strong.

combat mediC

iTrader: (1)

You should also break the lugs loose before jacking up the car

oo7spy

BDogg, would you ever take an impact wrench to an oil drain plug?

I bought the car CPO last December. If the dealer did the inspection they are required to do for certification, they took off the wheels. I changed the oil 7,000 miles later probably in May. Two men, one pushing and one pulling, using a 4 ended tire iron could not loosen the lug nuts.

I bought the car in AL. I don't know how much difference that makes as far as tech knowledge of psi and impact wrenches.

BDoggPrelude

If it was on pretty tight I might use one to take it off but definitely not to put it back on. I've never had a drain plug on that tight though because I change my oil myself.

06RL/NBP

I am about to change my oil for the first time and I have the same problem with the oil pan bolt being to tight. i tried to loosen it to no avail so I will go to my local garage and they will put it up on a lift and use a breaker bar to loosen it. I will gladly give him $20.00. I bought a new pan bolt and washer. Then I will go to my garage at home and do the oil and filter change myself. As soon as I purchased my RL I checked to make sure all of the wheel lugs were not to tight and found a couple that were so I went to the private tire store that I deal with and they torqued them to specs. When I take my car to the agency for service i always have them put a note to the mechanics to torque all bolts to specs. A couple of reasons that I change my own oil and filter are to avoid over tightening or over loosening of the pan bolt, proper oil level after refilling (They fill the oil from a 50 gallon drum and if they are not paying attention it is easy to overfill it) and to make sure the filter is tghtened to the proper specs. I have a set of plastic ramps that I purchased at Advance Auto which makes doing under the car maintenance very easy by simply driving up onto the ramps.

Costco

Just to play devil's advocate, the amount of money a dealership technician makes is in part directly correlated to how many jobs he can complete in an allotted amount of time. The faster, the better. Imagine if basically you could do your job in half the time and make essentially twice as money.... what would you do?

As mentioned, torque sticks would have generally worked just fine with an impact wrench as long as they finished with a torque wrench. They most likely didn't.

That's not to say that I approve of some dealership techs' methods. I think the fact that I've never taken any of my own cars to any dealership for service other than warranty work is telling. But in their industry, time literally is money. Again, it's not an excuse for them since things go wrong sometimes.... but still.

HEAVY_RL

iTrader: (1)

impact to take a drain plug out can result a silly mess... Using the impact is up to the tech not the dealer, my guy uses hand tools on the drain plug and a torque stick on the lugs.

When taking a motor apart for service it will be a combo of impact and air ratchet to save time.

oo7spy

Is at any point the dealer responsible to send you off with lugs that could be removed by hand? If I took the car from the dealer, drove out to West Texas where there are no buddies or roadside assistance, and had a flat, I would've been screwed. Has anyone successfully been reimbursed by the dealership due to negligence when tightening lugs? It won't be an issue anymore, but it is concerning nonetheless.

EL19

iTrader: (4)

The people doing oil changes and tightening lugs at the dealership are barely certified techs. Its the equal of having Meinike or Jiffy Lube working on your car. Shot most jobs completed at the dealership are by kids just learning how to work on cars. IF you MUST take it to the dealer, ensure that things arent over tightened before you leave. Ridiculous I know, but better than being stuck on the road. Also you should loosen the lugs before you jack up the car. Idk if you did that before jacking it up.

hondaxacura

IMO, impact wrench + drain bolt does not go together at all! Maybe for loosening it, but for screwing it back in, hand tools only.

This thread wants me to check the torque specs on my RL. Just bought it certified from Acura. Some of these techs are idiots.

alfadoctor

Having been a professional line mechanic at several dealers, I can tell you that I never used a air wrench to oil drain plugs. It is very easy to over torque a drain plug with even a simple ratchet or short arm box wrench, if you apply some muscle when tightening. A new washer each time you remove the drain plug helps to not over torque.

As to lug nuts/lug bolts, what I have found is that if you don't take the wheels off often, the lugs tend to seize in the holts/on the studs. Water enters the threads, minor corrosion sets in and then they seize. Mitsubishi's were the worst back in the late 80's. Even a powerful air gun could not get them off, so we used a breaker bar and a 6 point Snap-On socket to break the stud off. I use a very light coating of anti-seize grease on the threads the first time I remove the bolts/nuts and don't worry again.

Filters stick, that is why I have some big slip-joint (Channel Lock) pliers just for pulling loose a filter. I have seen them on so tight that the oil filters is so mangled that there isn't much left of it when it comes off. This is one reason why you are to oil the seal before installing the new filter.

In my tool box are 2 torque wrenches for various torques. Wheels and every critical part that needs a torque gets it.