Re: Magnetic oil drain plug nightmare (archive)

FYI: I recently replaced my stock plug with a magnetic one bought from ALL BMW Discount Parts, and consequently lost the use of my drain pan.
Admittedly I did cross-thread the bolt after changing the oil, but I've never done that before, making me think the new bolt was of a softer metal than the pan.
Problem was, there's only one spot on the pan that's low enough to sufficiently drain all the oil, and it wasn't possible to re-thread the original hole due to it's location, so I had to replace the entire pan.
The entire bill came to $250 for a used oil pan, and about $200 more for the installation, since you have to lift up the engine for the procedure.
Point is, watch out for the quality of new bolts, and never cross-thread when changing the oil! It's a pretty high price for a little mistake.

i had a similar problem on the my '88 528e. i raised a burr on the oilpan threads.the next 2 oil changes were interesting.i found that a 7/16"thread bolt worked pretty well in a pinch. next, i tried a new plug. it stripped. next change i chased the threads with a 12mm tap. success. ive used oversized expansion plugs on other cars. they are a common item at autoparts stores.

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