Coby,

Many thanks for your advice. I tried it, and it worked, just like you said.

Ron Semko
Orlando, Fl.
1984 Vanagon with 200,000 plus miles, and a new oil pan draon plug 8^)

Coby Smolens wrote:

> As a matter of fact --
>
> What I do is this: Cut a slot (with a cutting disc on a die grinder)in the
> head of the drain plug. Get hold of a monster screw driver, or improvise
> something really big that will work for one (I have used a flat bladed tire
> iron), and which you can grab hold of with a big adjustable wrench or some
> such. It must fit snugly in your improvised screw slot. Preparation is
> everything here - act like you're only gonna get one chance at this (could
> be true, after all). Here comes the fun bit. The problem with unscrewing a
> tight screw, especially a slotted one, is that the screwdriver wants to slip
> out of the slot or bugger the thing to death, right? The reason for this is
> not enough steady force available to keep the driver tight into the slot
> while it's being turned. What better source of steady force then, than 2000
> pounds of Vanagon rear end headed straight for the center of the earth (with
> a little help from the law of gravity)? Righty-o, then, we jack up the back
> of the van carefully lowering the slotted plug head onto the vertical
> screwdriver blade until the weight of the van is pinning the screwdriver to
> the ground so it can't possibly slip out of the slot. We are usually doing
> this under somewhat controlled circumstances, as in, we're using a lift in
> the shop with a concrete floor, but I have done it successfully in our paved
> parking lot as well. (If you're using a jack, you will of course have
> carefully positioned jackstands under the rear frame members in case of
> mishap.) With enough weight on the screwdriver to stabilize it, all that
> remains is to turn the thing with your wrench, just enough to break it free.
> Then raise the beast up with your trusty jack and remove the plug by hand.
> CAUTIONARY NOTE: You should NOT be putting ALL the van's weight on the
> screwdriver, just enough to keep the sucker in place for sure. DO NOT FORGET
> THE JACKSTANDS if you're doing it with a floorjack. If you have a lift
> available the whole thing is a piece of cake. I've done this job many times
> and it's never failed. Boy, was I smug the first time I got one out! The
> whole thing took about eight minutes, if that. Good Luck!
>
> Coby Smolens, Owner
> Valley Wagonworks
> VW Bus and Vanagon Repair
> 1535 Sir Francis Drake Blvd.
> San Anselmo, CA 94960
> 415 457-5628
> www.wagonworks.com
>
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: Scarlett Semko [mailto:damosem@mail.mco.bellsouth.net]
> > Sent: Wednesday, June 02, 1999 12:29 PM
> > To: Coby Smolens
> > Subject: Re: Oil Drain Plug Bolt Rounded Off.
> >
> >
> > Coby,
> >
> > Thought you might have a trick to get out the drain Plug on my 1984 1.9L.
> > Stopped on a trip to get the oil changed at a Penziol store and
> > found out they
> > rounded off the drin plug. Any ideas????
> >
> > Thanks in advance,
> > Ron Semko
> > Orlando, Fl.
> > 1984 Vanagon with 200,000 plus miles