Oil change valve
09-05-11, 06:26 AM
#2
None personally, and I plan on keeping it that way... where oil drains typically are, the lowest part of the engine, they are exposed... ever hit a pothole where it felt like the car was going to fall apart? sure, not very often, but it can happen - typically this ends up scraping the bottom of the car - a drain plug, if it hits this as well, has a pretty good chance of surviving - it is low profile and very strong - a valve as listed above here could easily break off or crack in this same circumstance - it is hollow, so it is not as strong and it is many times longer making it stick down farther as well...
09-05-11, 11:55 AM
#3
Instructor
Thread Starter
So far, I've read tons that have used these on other cars,SUVs,trucks but I haven't read anybody with lexus using this yet. The reviews are all positive, haven't read any negative at all.
I plan to do the oil change after my 10K hence this will make things easier.
I plan to do the oil change after my 10K hence this will make things easier.
09-05-11, 01:37 PM
#4
Lexus Test Driver
To me, such drain valve only reduce 10 seconds of work over the 14mm wrench. But the risk of it ripped out of the oil pan by speed bumps and pot holes is not worth it.
09-10-11, 09:39 PM
#5
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I have had the Fumoto Drain Valve on both of my vehicles since new and never had any problems. I always change the oil on all of my vehicles. It is cleaner and easier to use. No more worrying about overtightening or under-torquing the drain plug. If you happen to overfill, it is no problem to drain the excess oil. On my ES, i do try to be carefull about not running over road debris on the right side of the vehicle. I use the one without the nipple for clearance reasons. Unless it is a car that is very low to the ground, (ie Honda S2000 or Toyota MR2) I will never go back to a drain plug.
09-12-11, 04:55 PM
#6
I have had the Fumoto Drain Valve on both of my vehicles since new and never had any problems. I always change the oil on all of my vehicles. It is cleaner and easier to use. No more worrying about overtightening or under-torquing the drain plug. If you happen to overfill, it is no problem to drain the excess oil. On my ES, i do try to be carefull about not running over road debris on the right side of the vehicle. I use the one without the nipple for clearance reasons. Unless it is a car that is very low to the ground, (ie Honda S2000 or Toyota MR2) I will never go back to a drain plug.
No 14mm wrench,no washers,no burn fingers or dropping the hot oil plug in the oil,no mess.
09-28-11, 10:17 PM
#7
Out of Warranty
Somewhere in the late seventies the Houston Police Department installed similar drain valves on their fleet. Because their patrol cars run as much as 24 hours/day, most are in for an oil change every five to seven days. Thanks to the caliber of oil change monkeys the police garage employs, conventional drain plugs get cross-threaded regularly, requiring replacement of the pan. Changing the entire fleet to these valves eliminated removing and reinstalling the pan plug, eliminated the possibility of cross-threading.
A friend who was once the Captain of the police garage told me their largest single expense for parts (other than the usual consumable items) was oil pans. By switching the fleet to these valves, not only did they make changes faster, but they cut their replacement cost to near zero, and never had a problem with the valves - even when wrenched by the lowliest "mechanic" on the shift.
A friend who was once the Captain of the police garage told me their largest single expense for parts (other than the usual consumable items) was oil pans. By switching the fleet to these valves, not only did they make changes faster, but they cut their replacement cost to near zero, and never had a problem with the valves - even when wrenched by the lowliest "mechanic" on the shift.
Last edited by Lil4X; 09-28-11 at 10:21 PM.
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10-02-11, 11:16 AM
#10
Lexus Test Driver
Somewhere in the late seventies the Houston Police Department installed similar drain valves on their fleet. Because their patrol cars run as much as 24 hours/day, most are in for an oil change every five to seven days. Thanks to the caliber of oil change monkeys the police garage employs, conventional drain plugs get cross-threaded regularly, requiring replacement of the pan. Changing the entire fleet to these valves eliminated removing and reinstalling the pan plug, eliminated the possibility of cross-threading.
A friend who was once the Captain of the police garage told me their largest single expense for parts (other than the usual consumable items) was oil pans. By switching the fleet to these valves, not only did they make changes faster, but they cut their replacement cost to near zero, and never had a problem with the valves - even when wrenched by the lowliest "mechanic" on the shift.
A friend who was once the Captain of the police garage told me their largest single expense for parts (other than the usual consumable items) was oil pans. By switching the fleet to these valves, not only did they make changes faster, but they cut their replacement cost to near zero, and never had a problem with the valves - even when wrenched by the lowliest "mechanic" on the shift.
They overcharge and are incompetent....resulting in damages on my vehicles and others' vehicles.
If they can mess up on a simple oil change, image what they can do on bigger jobs...
After a while, I started to understand and learn to work on cars.
10-02-11, 11:51 AM
#11
Dysfunctional Veteran
This is exactly why I don't trust most mechanics in the first place.
They overcharge and are incompetent....resulting in damages on my vehicles and others' vehicles.
If they can mess up on a simple oil change, image what they can do on bigger jobs...
After a while, I started to understand and learn to work on cars.
They overcharge and are incompetent....resulting in damages on my vehicles and others' vehicles.
If they can mess up on a simple oil change, image what they can do on bigger jobs...
After a while, I started to understand and learn to work on cars.
A guy's gotta make a living. Your average independent mechanic's wages are likely less than yours (obviously I dont know what your wages are, but you probably catch my drift). Most own their own shops and have to pay over head, cost of tools etc.
The ones that are incompetent and overcharge are the ones who are (largely) employed by chains or (sometimes) dealerships. The prices are set in a chain shop, usually by corporate or the franchise owner, and some places (remember City Garage in the late 90's early 2000's?) would hire just about anybody. If an independent is retarded he will fall flat on his *** quickly, with the price of tools, equipment and shop space/insurance, you cant afford to be "incompetent".
Anywhoo, I would not reccomend something like this on a lowered car. but for applications on trucks/SUV's and fleets, they are indeed a nice addition.
10-02-11, 08:10 PM
#12
This is exactly why I don't trust most mechanics in the first place.
They overcharge and are incompetent....resulting in damages on my vehicles and others' vehicles.
If they can mess up on a simple oil change, image what they can do on bigger jobs...
After a while, I started to understand and learn to work on cars.
They overcharge and are incompetent....resulting in damages on my vehicles and others' vehicles.
If they can mess up on a simple oil change, image what they can do on bigger jobs...
After a while, I started to understand and learn to work on cars.
how much money per hour do you think is fair to
a) pay for the shop, its maintenance and insurance
b) pay the technician a fair wage
c) cover warranty on labor
d) pay for tools and training
incompetent... a proper tech will run circles around you when it comes to repair work - most drain plug issues aren't caused by cross threading - simply, the threads on the pan eventually wear out - sometimes, its caused by damage to the pan causing issues with the drain plug...
Every time you take a screw or bolt out of something and reinstall it, there is a certain amount of wear that goes on - that goes for drain plugs as well... The difference is how well said shop recovers from the issue, not that it happened...
10-03-11, 11:09 AM
#13
Lexus Test Driver
Thats why I said "most" mechanics.
In my experience, years ago, when dealing with dealerships, modification shops, and some quick lube garages, the results weren't very satisfactory.
In my experience, years ago, when dealing with dealerships, modification shops, and some quick lube garages, the results weren't very satisfactory.
10-03-11, 11:30 AM
#14
Lexus Test Driver
Anyways, my 97 Lexus ES300 is at 250,000 miles driven in the Toronto area where there are snow / salt on the road during the winter. Oil pan is still original. I have done oil change on it since 60,000 miles. I also have numerous vehicles with +180,000 miles with original oil pans...no issue.
I just don't put too much torque on the drain plug. Shop manual calls for 33 ft lb of torque. Other cars (i.e. 2004 Corolla) call for 27 ft lb of torque. I have removed numerous drain plugs (oil change done by other shops) which were much tighter than that torque. In most case, the oil pan is made of aluminum and stamped from a relatively think sheet metal. It will yield very easy.
I just don't put too much torque on the drain plug. Shop manual calls for 33 ft lb of torque. Other cars (i.e. 2004 Corolla) call for 27 ft lb of torque. I have removed numerous drain plugs (oil change done by other shops) which were much tighter than that torque. In most case, the oil pan is made of aluminum and stamped from a relatively think sheet metal. It will yield very easy.
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