My son changed his oil 2000 miles ago on his 2015 Tacoma, 6 cylinder. I taught him how to change oil. He has had no drips or leaks at all. The other day apparently the drain plug fell out somewhere while he was driving and engine seized.

He bought an extended warranty but they are blaming his oil change and saying it's not covered. He's totally fucked. They want $6500.

Any options? I have no idea what to do for him. I have no money. He owes like 20K on the damn thing.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: frayedends,

So sorry to read this. Probably not much help but I have an acquaintance who bought a used motor from Japan and put it in his Camry. Was half what the shops wanted but took three weeks to get it back in service

I've asked him to send me the warranty paperwork. They are telling him he can't change his own oil.

My 21 year old son just burned up his engine after holing his drain pan. What's with these kids. The OIL LIGHT is the MOST IMPORTANT LIGHT in the car. LOL

Yipes. Comprehensive insurance coverage? Home equity loc? Sell some ammo stockpile? Sell some guns? Combination thereof?

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They are telling him he can't change his own oil.

I really don't buy this, but I don't know how to argue it.

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Originally posted by 1KPerDay:
My 21 year old son just burned up his engine after holing his drain pan. What's with these kids. The OIL LIGHT is the MOST IMPORTANT LIGHT in the car. LOL

I honestly can't say if this is his fault. He says it lost all the oil at once while driving. I don't know for certain. But it went 2K without a drop on the driveway. His mom would shoot him if any got on the driveway (he doesn't live with me).

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Originally posted by konata88:
Yipes. Comprehensive insurance coverage? Home equity loc? Sell some ammo stockpile? Sell some guns? Combination thereof?

I told him to call insurance. Who knows. It can't hurt.

Having a drain plug shoot out is very odd. I don't understand how that can happen. Possibly it wasn't tight enough and backed out? Shooting out isn't really a possibility. No way, no how.

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Originally posted by 1967Goat:
Having a drain plug shoot out is very odd. I don't understand how that can happen. Possibly it wasn't tight enough and backed out? Shooting out isn't really a possibility. No way, no how.

Yeah it sounds bizarre to me. But I know it was a long time ago he changed his oil. I can't see him not noticing it.

Think of it this way:
If he had taken it to a quick change place and the plug subsequently fell out, would that be covered under Toyota's warranty?

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Originally posted by trapper189:
Think of it this way:
If he had taken it to a quick change place and the plug subsequently fell out, would that be covered under Toyota's warranty?

I don't honestly know. How can they prove why it fell out? I asked my son to have the dealer call me. I want to know what the threads look like on the oil pan. It's just weird that, if loose, it took 2K to leak anything and fell out all at once. Oil plugs leak very quickly if not tight.

Yea....To say it "shot out" implies the plug exploded out of the pan. My first thought is he didn't tighten the plug all the way, but that would most likely see some evidence of slowly leaking oil. If there isn't any kind of damage at all, could it be likely someone tampered with the plug? Maybe loosened the plug, and put some kind of stopper in there so it might shoot out later?

I’m not a mechanic so if someone with real knowledge contradicts what I’m saying, just disregard my reply. The following is predicated on the understanding that the drain plug is missing….

• In my limited experience drain plugs are threaded. I don’t see how one could shoot out of the oil pan. If it can shoot out, it seems it would do a LOT of damage to the threads. Has someone inspected the threads in the oil pan?

• Even if its cross threaded it seems it would not shoot out.

• You say there was no oil on the driveway after he changed oil – correct? We’re not talking about a bad washer or something similar.


What’s the possibility that someone removed the drain plug or loosened it (so it was just barely inserted)? If that’s a possibility, maybe that’s covered by your auto insurance. Might be worth considering.

Edit - looks like BigJoe and I have the same thought. I was typing when he posted.

The first thing I thought of was damaged threads that finally gave, from regularly over-tightening maybe? I also have wondered if drain plugs are nearly as good as they used to be. At my insistence (years ago), I took over oil changes on my wife's Jetta. She had been going to quick change places. Her drain plug threads were 'eaten away' I presumed from overtightening and I replaced the plug and very carefully 'chased' the threads in the oil pan. It didn't feel too bad and the end result was a smooth feel like all the threads were engaged properly.
After about a dozen more changes, the threads on the plug were looking rough again and it got replaced. Now I am thinking it's good for 10 uses max before I should just replace it.

At least they are cheap at VW. Hell the guy just handed me one gratis the last time. They had them in a big bin next to the door to the back counter and he said they change them on every oil change they do there.

I don't understand them saying he can't do an oil change. I wonder if that's spelled out in the fine print of the warranty contract. Regardless, it appears something happened at the oil change which caused the oil to evacuate and screw the engine. No oil leaks would suggest the plug was in properly, but if it some how got out it suggests it wasn't torqued down sufficiently. You can hand tighten these plugs and they will seal for a time. To "blow out" stripping past the threads would require a large amount of pressure in the crank case which would show up in other areas like the fill tube.

I have nothing positive to offer. I for one run from extended warranties for just this reason. Hope you find a resolution to this issue.

So the term "blew out" is my son's term. I don't honestly know what happened. All I know is he didn't have a drain plug at some point.

Regarding the extended warranty, I wasn't involved in the purchase of the vehicle. His mom did all of that. They didn't consult me because I would have told him to get a small car he could afford. I would never get an extended warranty, but he did.

I'm curious now about the idea that someone loosened the plug. I'll have to see if he has any enemies. Maybe an ex girlfriend with a mechanical aptitude.

most likely he didn't get the plug tight when he changed it and it backed out or, he never put it back in,

if it backed out you'd have oil all over the bottom of the truck, look for that, otherwise it would have drained into a large puddle on the drive, and you said that was clear.

I wouldn't be surprised at an aftermarket warranty that had provisions that excluded home mechanical work from coverage, since most home work is done under a shade tree an not by a professional shop, with insurance, where they can go back to recover for shoddy/poor/mistakes.

See how much it's worth with a bad engine, if it's enough or close, sell it, buy another.
COmprehensive insurance might cover, check with the agent, otherwise it's new engine time...

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Originally posted by HRK:
most likely he didn't get the plug tight when he changed it and it backed out or, he never put it back in,

if it backed out you'd have oil all over the bottom of the truck, look for that, otherwise it would have drained into a large puddle on the drive, and you said that was clear.

I wouldn't be surprised at an aftermarket warranty that had provisions that excluded home mechanical work from coverage, since most home work is done under a shade tree an not by a professional shop, with insurance, where they can go back to recover for shoddy/poor/mistakes.

See how much it's worth with a bad engine, if it's enough or close, sell it, buy another.
COmprehensive insurance might cover, check with the agent, otherwise it's new engine time...

I just don't see it taking 2000 miles for even a drop to leak.

Got more details. He says he was driving when the drain plug came out. He lost his oil all at once and he stopped the car right away. He got a new drain plug apparently, installed it (so threads must be okay) filled with oil, but it would not start. Dealer says there is rod knocking and they would have to take apart to diagnose if repair or replacement is needed. They estimated $6500 but I'm not clear on what that covers, repair or replacement. I told him he needs to run from the dealer if it's not warranty.

I'm really suspicious now that someone may have loosened it. Maybe an angry friend that stole his move.

Is there any way someone can check the area where all the oil blew out? If there is any kind of trail preceding the big blow out, it would support a loose oil plug theory. It may have gone from loose but still sealing to complete loss in a very short time. A little "CSI" might shed some valuable clues.

Wouldn't the low oil warning light come on in time to pull over before seizing the engine?