drain plug is stuck

It requires a T45 Torx socket. If someone uses an allen wrench, it strips the threads in short order. It's made of aluminum. Perhaps you can grab it both pulling and turning with a Vice Grip to get it out.

The female part of the plug is not stripped. I have access to the T45 Torx socket, and there is no slippage there. But the plug itself just turns. There is a very small overhang on the side of the plug to try vice grips, which I tried, but I can't get a good enough grip to pull out and turn at the same time. I'm just real curious at this point what is happening. I guess the threads are stripped on the plug and/or the pan. I'm hoping once I get the pan off, I can apply the force outward to get the plug out.

I changed the oil only once since I got my '01 L300 (bought used this past January). I change the oil hot after a good warm-up to get any sludge drained too. Even hot, I thought it very difficult to remove the drain plug even using the correct wrench and a 3/8" breaker bar. with a bit of effort, it came out. Since the plug has an o-ring seal, I felt that it didn't have to go back in all that tight. No leaks yet and it is nearly time to change the oil again. Looks to me that the dealer used an impact wrench to put the plug on last.

Sounds like you have a problem on your hands. I don't recall a threaded sleeve into the pan. I think that the pan itself was threaded. Are you the original owner and do you know if the plug was ever stripped and someone put in a repair sleeve? Sounds like you may have to pull the pan and perhaps take it to a machine shop.

Oppie

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It can be helicoiled while on the car. Might have to drill a hole in the plug, tap it, then use a slide hammer on it. Just flush the chips out afterwards. Personally I would replace that damn plug with a good old "hex head" plug.

Depends. When done right, Torx is actually a nice design. For instance, the primary drain plug on my Harley is a T-40, an it works well because it's *DEEP*. The primary cover screws? They were T-27 button head and man did that suck. I went to allen heads, which at least were semi workable.

I don't get why companies have such a hard-on about Torx anyway. It's really not that spectaular of a fastener design, and in some ways is pretty stupid...

Definitely do not skimp on getting a good set of torx drivers. A cheap set (as with most cheap tools) will cause you more cost in stripped and broken parts.

I heard once, that the torx fasteners were used because they were well suited to automated assembly machines and robotics.

I just checked the L-series shop manual. The only note about the oil pan was that the plug was to be tightened to 18 foot pounds. I am very disappointed in the manuals for doing any general mechanical work.

I dont know how they could be more descriptive there?

Lefty loosy, righty tighty?....... :D

I've almost finished this repair work. To make the long story short, I had to remove the pan and drill the old plug out. Just couldn't get it out without drilling it. Tried everything too. Maybe could have drilled it without removing the pan, but it would have been tough to apply enough pressure to make progress. After drilling it out, I took it to a machine shop to retap it to the correct size for a Fram quick change plug. That pan is made of aluminum and I'm afraid it'll strip again in the future, so I'm trying the quick change plug (i.e. you don't remove the plug at all, there is a valve in the plug that opens up when you connect the corresponding tube to change the oil). Hopefully the shop won't have any problems...should be an easy job for them. Couldn't tell for sure, given that the drill bit chewed the hell out of the threading in there, but it looked like parts of the old plug and the pan were stripped. There is no nut or bushing on the inside of the pan, something I thought might be causing the problem. Bottom line, if the plug just spins, something is stripped, and you'll have to drill it out.

I only mentioned that as there were several sections of the manual that dealt with stripped threads and how to repair them. There was one set of threads in the cylinder heads that must have gotten stripped often enough to include a repair section in the manual. No mention of any repair for the oil plug (or 710 plug if it is upside down )

Chris, Hope it all goes back together OK. Manual says there is a chamfered surface that has to have RTV applied for proper sealing. As a general precaution, I usually coat both surfaces of any gasket with sealant before reassembly.

My wife adds that, "Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus but the car is from Saturn"

Oppie

Got the RTV ready to go...just waiting on the oil pan from the shop. Supposedly it'll be ready tomorrow.