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My Saab community members have helped me so much with my '99 V6 wagon (98K miles), I wanted to share some tips that I hope others will find useful regarding oil changes. I'm sure many members already know this stuff, but I did not find it in one handy place.
The 13mm drain plug is made of soft steel to minimize the chance of stripping the threads in the aluminum pan. Therefore, it's very easy to round off the bolt points if over-torqued.
Proper torquing is 25 ft-lbs. Standard rule-of-thumb on bolts in general is 2 times the mm socket size. Always use six-point sockets and wrenches, never 12-pts. This minimizes the chances of round-off. ALWAYS use a new copper washer. Re-using an old over-compressed washer greatly increases the chances of a stuck drain plug.
After several mightmare experiences with my dealer over-torquing and then either me or them rounding off the bolt, I went to Sears and invested in a good ratchet-style torque wrench, a set of six-point sockets, and a six-point 13mm combination wrench. I also bought six new copper drain plug washers from the dealer. I don't let anyone else change the oil now!
I got the 25 ft-lb spec from one of the techs at my dealer one day when I was able to sneak into the shop. They're nice guys, most of them. This one was very friendly and helpful. He went to the manual and we looked it up together. When asked if they used torque wrenches for the oil plugs, he said no. He also offered this professional advice, "Mechanics all come from the same tree. If you want it done right, you have to do it yourself."
posted by 192.28....
, Mon, 6 Oct 2003 15:12:27
, Mon, 6 Oct 2003 14:49:44
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