Drain bolt

So I found out that the certified Accord I purchased 3 yrs ago had an oversized oil drain bolt… I recently got an oil change and now I’m being told that the bolt is a non OEM drain bolt and needs to be replaced with a factory bolt to stop the slow drip, eventually an oil pan needed ($860 at one place, $954 with labor at another place.) Am I being “played”? Gosh I wish my father was alive :sob::sob::sob:

What year Accord?

Tester

2015 sedan v6

The first thing I would do is see if a shop will install a Fumoto drain plug. It does not have to be removed for an oil change . If the shop can get it to tighten with some gasket sealer and it does not leak then that will be cheaper.

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Do they offer these for stripped oil plug holes?

Find a repair shop that has a Time-Sert oil pan drain hole repair kit.

https://www.timesert.com/html/drainplug.html

The oil pan doesn’t need to be removed.

Tester

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Seriously? Ugh! I’m on it, this totally looks doable! Thank you so, so much! :hugs: I’ll find a shop tonight! Lol

Do you notice oil leaking where you park? What kind of a shop did the oil change? This is not an emergency, no need to rush.

Yes, oil is leaking. I know the shop can fit the bolt in place but they’re trying to force me to do something right away

I had an oil change done at the Honda Service Center

Try an independent shop, not a chain store. If you don’t know a good one, ask everyone you know who they use and if the shop is good. Eventually, a few will get positive mention by several people. Try them. Hondas are not exotic, and anyone can do this job. Expect it to cost about $500 for parts and labor. The Timesert fix should be much less than that.

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The OP already has 2 prices and they are much more than 500.00 .

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I’m calling and texting my peeps right now, I really appreciate this support! This site is a life changer!

I know that, I can read. I suggested a price in my area. Central Maryland is expensive, and repair prices reflect that.

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Looks like alum pan. Aftermarket is <$100. Labor is couple hours.
image

First, I think the only thing you need is a new drain plug gasket. Since you went to a Honda dealer and you have an oversize drain plug, they do not have any gasket that would fit your drain plug.

I believe that your Honda has a 12mm drain bolt as OEM. It may have been replaced either with a 14mm bolt or a 1/2" bolt. A 1/2" bolt will leak no matter what you do as the threads were different and the 1/2" is too close in size to the 12mm, only 0.8mm larger that cutting new threads would still leave some of the old threads that would allow oil to leak around them.

Anyway, next oil change, bring a new gasket both in 1/2" size and 14mm size with you and have them tell you exactly which size bolt is currently being used. @Tester has the best solution altogether, but you may need to know the exact size of the current bolt in use before you get one of these kits, otherwise it may not work.

BTW, if the current bolt is a 1/2", a good mechanic should be able to just drill out the hole a little and cut threads for a 14mm bolt, you won’t need the kit for this. Just make arrangements with the mechanic ahead of your next oil change.

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I’m so doggone grateful. I feel empowered and less wimpy! Thank you for your support… I’m calling the dealer to find out the size of the bolt they used and will print this feed so I’ll be armed and dangerous! I’ll find a male relative to accompany me since you all are probably scattered over the USA lol… Will circle back. :grin::hugs:

Take a male friend if you need to, but if you go in and treat this like a business transaction and don’t try to out-mechanic the mechanic, you will get more respect. It is after all a business transaction. You are hiring them to do a job and you should expect them to to the best job they can if they expect to get your business in the future.

If you bring a male friend and he tries to out-mechanic the mechanics, they will not respect either of you. He needs to act like a business man also. Respect each other and you will get the best service.

But certainly do print out the replies here and ask them for their opinion and to provide the information requested. But be forewarned, they may not remember the size of the bolt and will have to remove it to measure it and that will dump out all the oil. They may get a good idea just by measuring the size of the bolt head, but that is not always foolproof because there are speciality bolts with odd sized heads.

As I said before, the best time is at the next oil change but work with them before the oil change and ask them to have a selection of bolts available or you bring the suggested selection of bolts, and the necessary washer/gasket.

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Keith, that makes sense. It’s like going to the doctor but trying to tell him how to do his job. I’ll definitely handle this alone :wink::grinning_face_with_smiling_eyes:

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How fast is the leak? Does it leave a puddle? You might get better results with a cooperative independent mechanic, the dealer may be reluctant to do any fix other than replacing the pan.

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