I took my 97 Camry LE 4cyl, 82k miles, in to the local dealer for a routine oil change. This dealer is the ONLY facility to have changed the oil on this car since new. They informed me that the oil pan drain plug threads were stripped and it needed to be replaced, total cost in the vicinity of $300, parts out of stock. They had to keep the car overnight while waiting for the parts kit. They would not consider re-tapping the pan for a larger plug or anything like that.
I was told that such severe thread wear is not unusual in a 6-year old car. As far as I know, it is actually very rare, almost unheard of, unless someone overtightened the plug one time. It seems to me that ultimately it is their fault, that only damage due to negligence could cause such a failure. I have the old pan and the threads look pretty well gone, as if someone cross-threaded and forced the plug. Is there a torque spec for the drain plug? Is this is a common problem? My next step is to try and get some satisfaction from the dealer and if that does not work, Toyota.
Thanks in advance for any comments.
Cory