Leaking LN Magnetic Drain Plug!

[njbray]

Thanks for all the replies.
So I tested my torque wrench and it is between 19.2 NM and 20.1 NM when set at 19 NM. Not sure if this would damage the plug.
I have read on some other forums that the aluminum washer that comes with them may be too hard and it's better to use a genuine Porsche washer!
Anyway..it's still dripping so I guess I have to swap it out and use a new washer or a new plug!

[Frodo]

Have you tried torquing just slightly more?
That worked just fine the one time I under did it during an oil change.
Drain plugs---regardless of where sourced---have to be cranked quite a bit to strip them. In my experience anyway. (ie I've never stripped one.)

[rexcramer]

So somebody double check me on this. I believe the torque spec is in ftlb not nm? And 19 nm would only be +/-14 ftlbs? It isn't tight enough by +/- 5 lbs? Thus causing the leak?

Originally Posted by njbray

Thanks for all the replies.
So I tested my torque wrench and it is between 19.2 NM and 20.1 NM when set at 19 NM. Not sure if this would damage the plug.
I have read on some other forums that the aluminum washer that comes with them may be too hard and it's better to use a genuine Porsche washer!
Anyway..it's still dripping so I guess I have to swap it out and use a new washer or a new plug!

[1PorscheBoxster986]

It is 50Nm (37 ft-lb) for the factory plug. For the magnetic plug it is 19 ft-lb and 26Nm rounded up NJBray. You either mistyped or we just found where your mistake is.

[Jager]

If you over torque this can happen:



And it will leak.

I don't know my own strength sometimes.

Seems like I did over a 1000 oil changes on my first Boxster, and this plug had been torqued a number of times.

[Jager]

If you strip the inside of your oil plug (this happened on my 911, not my fault) this tool is a must-have:

[Frodo]

The other thing I "always" do (though it's possible I might have neglected to do last time—maybe I exited my bed head first that morning, who knows? —hence the tiny amount of seepage I experienced) is to carefully clean up the drain plug & surrounding area when I'm done. Then I start the car (still elevated), letting it run for a minute or so. Gives me a chance to check for leaks. Rexcramer's theory sounds pretty plausible to me btw.

[ZDCATC]

Originally Posted by njbray

8 days ago I changed my oil and decided to use a brand new LN magnetic drain plug as my old one (18 months old Ln plug) was a little oily but not dripping.
I used the washer it came with it and tightened to 19 foot pounds as per instructions.
SO... It is now leaking and dripping oil on my garage floor! I’m very annoyed as I now have to drain the new DT 40 oil and replace plug.
I will not be using LN plugs again as I don’t think they are fit for purpose or maybe it's the fault of the washer they ship with it. This says it is the 'New improved' version too!
Anyone else had this problem?

The same thing happened to me when I first got my Boxster and changed the oil. I used a new Porsche crush washer and 444 in lbf (not a fancy torque wrench, 3/8" drive, 960in lbf max. It was an LN magnetic plug. In hindsight I should've looked up LN's torque specs but at the time I assumed it was the same as factory).

I tightened the LN plug by hand, then with a normal socket wrench until I felt a little resistance, then went in with my torque wrench. But I noticed the torque wrench wasn't clicking and I wasn't getting an increase in resistance as the plug tightened. Then I noticed that the threaded part had sheared off of the head and was spinning deeper into the oil pan as I tightened. The remaining oil started to drip out. Thankfully the previous owners kept the original factory drain plug in a parts bin. The LN plug had been on the car for 15,000 miles and 6 oil changes. I'll post pics if I can find them on my old phone.

If the same thing is happening to you, I would not tighten the plug as it is already shearing.

update: the LN plug that broke was purchased from Pelican Parts in April 2011. Part# LN-106-07. I recall the plug needing a different size and/or type bit (not the 8mm hex like stock). The more I think of it, I don't think the torque spec was written on the head. I feel like I would've seen that and changed my torque setting. I knew some kind of aftermarket magnetic plug was installed and I later noticed the purchase of the plug was documented in the car's logbook so there's still no excuse for me applying the wrong torque. I'm confident the owner who purchased the plug torqued it properly for oil changes 1 and 2. But changes 3 through 6 probably left the plug no chance of surviving based on the mixed bag of people who performed those oil changes.

Here's the LN plug:

I didn't think to take any other pictures (even after it broke)

[piper6909]

So I'm assuming the original drain plug is steel, vs the LN which is aluminum?

If that's the case, for those who want a magnetic plug, why not just put a disc magnet on top of the original plug?

They put magnets in tranny pans all the time, but those are made of steel and these oil pans are made of aluminum. If the original plug is steel, then a disc magnet should hold on it just fine.

Has anyone tried it?

[JFP in PA]

Originally Posted by piper6909

So I'm assuming the original drain plug is steel, vs the LN which is aluminum?

If that's the case, for those who want a magnetic plug, why not just put a disc magnet on top of the original plug?

They put magnets in tranny pans all the time, but those are made of steel and these oil pans are made of aluminum. If the original plug is steel, then a disc magnet should hold on it just fine.

Has anyone tried it?

The original plug is aluminum, and the use of a steel plug in an aluminum sump cover is asking for trouble.

[piper6909]

Originally Posted by JFP in PA

The original plug is aluminum, and the use of a steel plug in an aluminum sump cover is asking for trouble.

Makes sense. But I thought the LN requires a lower torque than the OE Plug. If both the original and LN plugs are aluminum, why do the LN plugs spec such a lower torque and why are they stripping?

[ZDCATC]

Originally Posted by piper6909

Makes sense. But I thought the LN requires a lower torque than the OE Plug. If both the original and LN plugs are aluminum, why do the LN plugs spec such a lower torque and why are they stripping?

They must be manufactured differently (maybe someone else can elaborate with facts because I have no clue). But they're shearing apart because people like me are using the wrong torque spec or none at all. Also in my case, who knows how much force the previous owners were using for the other 5 oil changes. Factory calls for 444in lbf, LN recommends almost half that (230in lbf). There should be no excuse though; it says "26Nm" on the plug lol

[10/10ths]

....is less than the OEM plug because the magnetic part inside the outer plug body can “spin” inside the plug body if you over torque it as I explained above.

The Magnet is not aluminum. The Plug is aluminum. You have two different metals and vastly different hardnesses.

So if you torque the magnetic plug to the same level as the OEM plug, the magnet inside the LN plug can break away from the outer ring and spin and you will leak oil.

[JFP in PA]

Originally Posted by piper6909

Makes sense. But I thought the LN requires a lower torque than the OE Plug. If both the original and LN plugs are aluminum, why do the LN plugs spec such a lower torque and why are they stripping?

From what we have seen, operator failure.

[Qingdao]

… waaaaay to snipy; and I can't find the delete post icon...

[piper6909]

Originally Posted by JFP in PA

From what we have seen, operator failure.

There has to be more to it. Maybe the LN plug is more finicky and less forgiving of the aforementioned operator error than the OE plug?

From what I've read on here, it seems that there's a very narrow window between not enough torque that the aluminum washer won't seal and too much torque that will strip the inside metal from the outer aluminum threads. That's just my observation.

[10/10ths]

....When you invest in the LN magnetic drain plug, it comes with instructions. And the instructions are on their web site.

Read the instructions when you buy a new product. Read the owner’s manual in your car. Engineers spent a lot of time and money and blood, sweat, and tears to engineer these things and then write up detailed instructions for their customers to make sure everything works as engineered.

But people are lazy and don’t want to take five minutes to READ.

People will drop $100,000 on a car, and then not take five minutes to read how to care for that car.

Forgive my rant, but I work in the automotive industry, my specialty is technical instruction.

I always ask folks, “If you bought a private jet, would you make sure you knew how to change the oil properly before you flew across the ocean?”

If you can’t take five minutes to read the owner’s manual, and make sure your car doesn’t dump out all its oil on a drive across Montana, then you shouldn’t buy the car.

Harsh? No. Reality? Hell yes.

RTFM.

I’m done. Thanks for your time. Return to your normal programming.

[ZDCATC]

Originally Posted by njbray

Thanks for all the replies.
So I tested my torque wrench and it is between 19.2 NM and 20.1 NM when set at 19 NM. Not sure if this would damage the plug.
I have read on some other forums that the aluminum washer that comes with them may be too hard and it's better to use a genuine Porsche washer!
Anyway..it's still dripping so I guess I have to swap it out and use a new washer or a new plug!

Originally Posted by 1PorscheBoxster986

It is 50Nm (37 ft-lb) for the factory plug. For the magnetic plug it is 19 ft-lb and 26Nm rounded up NJBray. You either mistyped or we just found where your mistake is.

I don't think these posts should get lost in the fray. After re-reading this thread I change my recommendation. Their plug may not be broken like mine was. Unless the OP is 100% sure they got it right the first time, maybe they can go back underneath and confirm the proper torque value and units were used. Let us know how it goes.

[JFP in PA]

Originally Posted by piper6909

There has to be more to it. Maybe the LN plug is more finicky and less forgiving of the aforementioned operator error than the OE plug?

From what I've read on here, it seems that there's a very narrow window between not enough torque that the aluminum washer won't seal and too much torque that will strip the inside metal from the outer aluminum threads. That's just my observation.

I would not bet on that. We have installed a lot of these plugs, torqued them to LN’s specs, and never had a problem with them. That said, we have also seen quite a few that we did not install that had become “problems”. The common denominator between the two seemed to us to be how they were installed. After multiple oil changes (which we did), the plugs we installed looked brand new; the problem plugs brought to us for the most part looked like they had been through a war with Allan flats rounded off, parts of the plug head chewed up, and some in so tight that they must have been installed with a breaker bar.

[Frodo]

Geeeeeez, I wish I’d never stumbled into this thread.

After 11 years of virtually trouble-free oil changing experiences with my magnetic plug (sans torque wrench!) I’m just sure it’s all gonna go to hell in a handbasket from here on out.