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2007 mdx oil pan replacement

16K views 29 replies 6 participants last post by  MDxSport 
#1 ·
Hi Fellow MDXERS,

I'm looking for instructions on how to replace the oil pan on my wife's 2007 MDX. We thought we found a trust worthy shop for oil changes but it turned out that they stripped my oil pan. They did the previous oil change as well.

So I have a few options I'm researching:

(1) Do it the right way and replace the oil pan.

(2) See if the EZ Oil Drain Valve will not leak and safely remain on.
Acura - EZ Oil Drain Valve | Oildrainvalve.net

Attached are pictures I took of the plug and oil pan:
 

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#2 ·
As with all Honda V6s in order to remove the pan you have to remove the lower J Pipe from the front exhaust.. There is no other way to remove the pan.
 
#3 ·
I had the same problem, when I bought my 2007 MDX last Summer. I spent under $35 to solve my oil pan problem.

I bought a caliper bolt, for a Porsche, for under $6.
It has the built in flare/flange.
I cut it 1 1/4" longer than the OEM Acura MDX plug, but I didn't have to.
The Porsche caliper bolt doesn't need to be cut, but it is unnecessarily long, so I cut it.

Note...It uses a "16mm Triple-Square Socket" and the only one that I could find locally needed to be cut to length.
So, the total length of the socket is now 1 1/4" and it fits in to a regular 17mm ratcheting wrench.

Because I don't want to take a chance on stripping it again, I won't torque the oil plug bolt to 29-36 ft/lbs.
I am using the washer with the rubber insert.
Rockauto dot com sells the Oil-tite 9/16" / M14 metal-rubber washer, for $2

The Porsche caliper bolt is on e-bay. Search for:

Porsche oem N10555602 rear brake caliper mounting bolt

Here are some photos of the triple square socket, the wrench, and spare washers.

Sorry, the actual caliper bolt is in service and I don't have a picture of it.






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#5 ·
I had the same problem, when I bought my 2007 MDX last Summer. I spent under $35 to solve my oil pan problem.

I bought a caliper bolt, for a Porsche, for under $6.
It has the built in flare/flange.
I cut it 1 1/4" longer than the OEM Acura MDX plug, but I didn't have to.
The Porsche caliper bolt doesn't need to be cut, but it is unnecessarily long, so I cut it.

Note...It uses a "16mm Triple-Square Socket" and the only one that I could find locally needed to be cut to length.
So, the total length of the socket is now 1 1/4" and it fits in to a regular 17mm ratcheting wrench.

Because I don't want to take a chance on stripping it again, I won't torque the oil plug bolt to 29-36 ft/lbs.
I am using the washer with the rubber insert.
Rockauto dot com sells the Oil-tite 9/16" / M14 metal-rubber washer, for $2

The Porsche caliper bolt is on e-bay. Search for:

Porsche oem N10555602 rear brake caliper mounting bolt

Here are some photos of the triple square socket, the wrench, and spare washers.

Sorry, the actual caliper bolt is in service and I don't have a picture of it.

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Wow this is an affordable fix. I'm assuming I'll have to change the washer every oil change? Thanks for the info, I'm researching the cost now.
 
#4 ·
just find a skilled mechanic and make a larger hole with threads. there are tons of videos on youtube for this. eric the car guy probably has one too.
 
#6 ·
Yes affordable and you retain the flange/flared bolt style.

The pan's thread depth is 1 1/8".
The OEM bolt thread length is 5/8", so the 1st 5/8" of the pan's threads are gone.

That leaves 1/2" of unused threads in the pan.

Regarding the ratcheting 17mm wrench...a 5/8" wrench fits better, but I don't have one that ratchets.

Also, you need to install the caliper bolt, at least one time by hand, before you cut it. The factory edge of the bolt's first thread will "cut" its way into the pan's threads, with a little hand pressure from you. Just keep it straight in the rounded out section where the old oem bolt belonged.

You might want to do your own oil changes, so you don't let someone else ruin the last of your threads.
 
#11 ·
In my search for options (after a local shop messed up my oil pan threads and tried to cover it up with a heli-coil fix on the plug), I got this response from EZ Oil Drain Valve. I'm tempted to at least try before spending the time and money to replace the oil pan.

Hi,

Thank you for your inquiry. Regarding your question about the helicoil and using our EZ Oil Drain Valve, it would depend on the condition of the oil drain port. Since the drain plug had a helicoil on it, I assume that there is some thread damage present in the oil drain port. Here are a few things you could possibly do.

For your Acura, you will need a small extension adapter to clear the recess in the oil pan. The part # for this adapter is AL-106. What you could do is use a helicoil on the AL-106 adapter and install that on to your oil drain pan. Then you could simply install the valve onto the adapter. The valve part # you will need is our EZ-106. Again, this will depend on the condition of your oil pan threads. We can't guarantee that it will work, but if it's not leaking with the stock oil drain plug with a helicoil, I would think that this would also work on the adapter too.

Another option is to use an adhesive agent, such as Loctite and permanently install the AL-106 adapter onto the oil pan. Then install the EZ-106 valve. Again, this would depend on the condition of your oil pan threads. If the damage is extensive, the above option of using the helicoil may be better. For oil pan threads with minor damage, we've had customers use Loctite to secure the valve on. Since there's no need to remove the valve anymore, it's fine to have in on there permanently. In your case you would apply Loctite onto the AL-106 as that would be going into the oil pan first. Hope that helps.

Thank you,
EZOILDRAIN.COM
 
#12 ·
Following up:
I got the Honda Insight oil pan bolt.
The one in the photo, on the left is the OEM MDX and it's 15mm tall (threads only).
The 2nd bolt is for the Insight and it's 20mm tall (threads only).
The 3rd bole is my Porsche rear caliper bolt and it was 40mm tall, but I cut it down to 28mm (threads only).
The 4th bolt is from ACE Hardware. It has a hex head and is 45mm tall (threads only).
They all had a 1.5 thread pitch.

I slid the needle pick (on the far left) into the oil pan and found that the last thread is 18mm deep.

So, once I add my Oil-tite rubber/metal washer, the Insight bolt is long enough to catch all of the oil pan threads.

 
#13 ·
Carpayment- Thank you for sharing these pictures. I've been monitoring for any leaks as I just got my oil change. I'm going to order these parts as a backup plan until I get a new oil pan.

Update - I found that plug and got the last one. My Advance Auto sells the washer for $4 so not bad for a $12 fix.
 
#16 ·
So now the big question is since I just got the oil change, will it be safe for me to use the "shop-vac" technique to suspend the oil from draining and replace it out with the Insight plug and OEM washer? If it's catching the remaining good threads, it should not create any metal shavings, right?
 
#17 ·
I change my own oil.
I don't have anymore 2nd chances, to not replace the pan.

There are no metal shavings, as they stayed on the original bolt.

A jug of full synthetic oil is $22.47 at Walmart and I wrote it off , as an engine oil flush after 50ish miles. There's no harm in trying to use the shop vac method, just have your plastic oil catch tub in place.

As an extra step, I used a dab of Permatex (#82135 Ultra Synthetic motor oil resistant) Gasket Maker, on the end threads and on each side of the Oil-Tite metal/rubber washer. I got it at Advance Auto Parts.

I got a quote of $438 to have my oil pan changed. They said that there was more labor, because of two header pipes on the v-6 motor. I haven't gone down that path, yet.
 
#18 ·
I just priced out the oil change using Mobile 1 5W20 High Mileage Full Synthetic and FRAM Ultra Filter (XG7317). $35 after tax is a great deal. I'm almost glad the shop messed up my oil plug cause I might enjoy doing my oil changes.

I also got the EZ Oil Valve which should make it a breeze to do. I'll use that when I find the time to replace the oil pan.
 
#24 ·
this makes sense. from both your picture and the one in post #12, the insight's plug seems a bit narrower than OEM. Why not try the Porsche caliper bolt now? It is verified working.
 
#26 ·
The copper washer is permanently part of the bolt too. It really angers me that someone would do this without my permission. It's such an obvious repair that when I asked all the shops I've taken for an oil change that they would never do that; they always say if they find a Helicoil it's something they have to report right away since it's dangerous. After doing my own oil change, I can't see how anyone could miss this which makes me believe it was the shop that did my two previous oil changes.
 
#30 ·
Update on my temporary fix:

I found out that the helicoil changed the plug size to M16. I got an M16 plug but it still leaked. I found another company that makes an M16 plug but has a seal on one of the threads.

Using the shop vac technique, installed the new Smart-O Plug and no leaks so far. I do intended to replace the oil pan but this buys me time. I bought the Smart-O on Amazon for $11.

http://www.smartoplug.com/
 

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