Update: found out my oil drain plug crush washer is a one time use part, learned it the hard way in my driveway | DIY Car Maintenance - The Community Guide
Update: found out my oil drain plug crush washer is a one time use part, learned it the hard way in my driveway
I was doing an oil change on my Corolla last Saturday and reused the old crush washer on the drain plug, thinking it was just a metal ring and no big deal. Two days later I found a quarter sized puddle of oil on my garage floor in Phoenix. Did some digging on a forum and found out crush washers are designed to crush once and form a seal, so reusing them is asking for a leak. A new pack of 10 cost me $6 at the parts store and the leak stopped right away. Has anyone else learned this the messy way, or am I the last person to know?
The messy driveway lesson gets us all at some point, and "$6 for a pack of 10" is cheap compared to what a stripped drain plug would've cost you. Don't feel bad, I reused mine for years before someone finally told me.