I seriously doubt insurance will do anything.
At my shop if that happens the shop eats the engine.
Diesel engines too, easy $30K fuckup.

I do my own oil changes but have the shop write me an RO for it so I have a record of maintenance for warranty.
New seal on the plug, torqued to spec and marked with torque set.

Best bet now is to find a wrecked truck and get the engine from it. But there goes any warranty other than the wrecking yard one.

You will have to tear the engine down to see if it's salvageable.
If it's just a rod then it just gets recranked with a new rod and bearings.
If it spun a maim bearing it's a goner and will need a short block.

By the time the low oil light comes on it's too late, it doesn't take very long at all to lock it up with zero oil pressure, especially if it's at speed.
From personal experience, about 15 seconds and you are welding the bearings to the block, rods and crank.
On that one I had just got it fired up after spending 120 hours getting it out rebuilt and back in when I noticed the oil pressure had dropped to zero, tap the gage a few times, let off the throttle and it stopped pretty quick and wouldn't crank.
New bearings and 10 hrs polishing the crank under the truck later I pulled it out of my ass and saved it.
The engine had a mechanical gage in the dash and the engine ECU had its own sensor that had stuck in range, it was reading 100 psi with the engine not running so never threw a light or shut the engine down.
A stuck oil pressure relief valve was the cause of all the heartache on that pig.

I've seen a number of oil drains loosen or come out, resulting in oil loss. Failure to torque the drain plug can result in loss, both from overtightening and undertightening (damage from overtightening, and insufficient plug neck tension from undertightening). Two gaskets can result in plug loss, as can not cleaning the mating surface under the plug, cross threading and thread damage, and a worn plug gasket or o-ring/packing. During the oil change, commonly the surface around the drain plug is lubricated by the draining oil, and is often dirty; the area should be thoroughly cleaned and degreased prior to re-installing the plug.

Drain plugs do not "shoot out." The only way one could see that happen, even if it were possible (isn't: the oil sump isn't under pressure unless the case relief is plugged), would be to be watching when it occurs, and the original posters son claims he has no idea when it happened. It didn't happen here. The drain plug fell out.

Engines do not seize immediately, even with complete loss of oil. I've experienced complete loss of oil several times, both in cars and in aircraft, and even in aircraft with an engine turning 30,000 RPM, the engine does not seize right away. One would have to operate it for some time for that to occur (Honeywell stated that their TPE-331 will run a half hour without oil, ask me how I know).

In aircraft, we safety-wire plugs to prevent their loss. In cars, I apply RTV silicon adjacent to the plug to reduce rotation, or safety the plug, and examine the threads in the plug, and in the drain hole for damage, cross threading, etc.

A warranty company will want to know who did the oil change, because the blame will follow the person who installed the plug. Someone suggested that the original poster's son not own up to changing the oil; unless he intends to falsely accuse someone who didn't change the oil, then it comes back to him.

Insurance will attempt to pass costs to other parties; if an oil change facility failed to secure the plug, the insurance (warranty) would seek to make the oil change facility pay for it or replace the engine. If the original posters son changed the oil, then he owns the loss of the drain plug, and the insurance (warranty) will look to him to replace the engine.

Bear in mind that it didn't shoot out, didn't suddenly seize, and didn't just fall out. A plug backs out and is lost because of poor maintenance, and an engine seizes because it's been operated for some time after oil loss, temperature increase, warnings, performance loss, and ultimately failure, and has been operated while ignoring the signs and warnings.

Okay no more on “shooting out”. As I said it was just his words.

At this point all I can do is make him do the leg work to find a motor and better price than the dealer. I’ve provided him with reputable garages to call.

He said he has $2k savings. I can get him another 2k but it will hurt me significantly. Hoping he can find a way to keep this under 4 k. I could put another grand on a card but I am vehemently opposed to credit debt so that will be troublesome for me.

I had an issue with Toyota service and warranty coverage. I have purchased back to back new Tundra platinums from the same dealership. On my last Tundra I did the initial oil change myself and installed an aftermarket magnetic drain plug. When I took the truck in for its first “complementary” dealer oil change, the tech stripped the threads in the aluminum pan. (At least he admitted it and didn’t send me down the road with stripped threads) might be a possibility that your son over torqued his plug but it took a few heat cycles for the threads to catastrophically fail.
Anyway, the stealership told me that due to the “aftermarket” plug I’d voided the warranty and they wouldn’t cover a new pan and I’d be out $585, or they could install a helicoil for $120. I demanded to speak to the GM and they replaced the pan gratis. Not sure that this helps your sons’ case any but I’m pretty sure you can do your own maintenance on a Toyota without voiding the warranty. There is probably an exclusion for coverage of failures caused by improperly performed maintenance.

Go in his garage and see if he has 5 quarts of 10/30 sitting on the shelf. Bet he never filled it after draining it. Taco might go 2K with no oil, those things don't die.

If I remember correctly, a vehicle manufacturer cannot deny a warranty claim merely because a non-authorized dealer or other party performed the repair. If the repair was negligent and was the cause of the claim, they can deny the claim.

They cannot deny a warranty claim for aftermarket parts unless the parts caused the loss.

A non-manufacturer warranty is different. You get what you paid for based on the detailed language in the warranty document.

Contract law can be boiled down to one sentence: "No one gives you a contract to protect you."

I think Toyota's extended "Warranty" is really a maintenance contract covering certain failures.

quote:

Originally posted by frayedends:
My son changed his oil 2000 miles ago on his 2015 Tacoma, 6 cylinder. I taught him how to change oil.

I'm just curious. Does he use the proper torque?
I'm no wrencher but I get the sense that many, if not most, don't bother w/ "instructions".

quote:

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.

The whole insinuation that he has enemies to cover a loose drain plug, I'm not sure where we are going. It sounds like the parents of "didndonuffin's" who don't want to admit their child made a mistake. From someone passing through the thread, that's a strong signal. I'm not saying that's what happened. Just an observation that there's a lot of "I trained Jr., therefor..." going on.

And maybe I'm ignorant. I've not gone through life w/ people trying to exact revenge on me. Hell, I'm probably not the norm and I don't know what I'm talking about. But I do own own a torque wrench.

Don't go into cc debt frayed. Wrong lesson and the wrong thing for you to do. Encourage him to find a second job to pay for a motor then drive it until the truck is paid for.

Still might not hurt to file a comprehensive claim with the auto insurance company.
Worst they can say is no, but it would most likely be covered.
Also might not hurt to see if the policy has gap coverage tossed in.

Sell the truck as is. Buy something cash. Best lesson he could learn. Best if learned early

About all I can add is the following...

I have had two catasphrophic engine failures in my 44 years of driving; the first was a dropped valve seat on a Cosworth Twin-Cam Vega that I bought for $800.00 (from my brother). The engine restoration cost me three times what I'd paid for the car, but since it was a "collectible", I ended up breaking even about a year later when I sold it to a fella in Florida (wish I still had it though).

Second time was about two years ago when a detonation sensor failed in my 2000 Honda Accord that I inherited from my brother after his death earlier that year. I had nothing invested in the car itself other than tags, title and insurance, but the repair bill ended up costing me just north of $2,600.00, which of course is/was over the value of the car! Had it not been from my deceased brother, I probably would have sold it at salvage and not paid for the repairs. As it currently stands, I doubt that I could get more than $2,000 max from it... and that would be if I could find someone willing to pay for a Honda Accord with a 5-speed transmission!

So... what is the Tacoma worth "as is"? Can he buy a rebuilt engine cheap enough to not exceed the total value of what he owes? Those are the questions to be entertained...

I suspect the plug was insufficiently torqued & vibrated out resulting in a rapid loss of engine oil. Regrettably this is a rather expensive conundrum & the extended warranty folks have you at there Mercy.

I'd still make a Comprehensive claim with your insurer. The most they can do is deny it. He can argue vandalism, rough road, etc, that the oil light never came on (if it didn't or he doesn't think it did) as long as he is sure he did the oil change properly. Comprehensive claim adjusters are usually the least experienced adjusters, and I've seen weirder things covered under comprehensive coverage.

Frayed, I’m sorry to read about your son’s issues and don’t have anything to add except that when he’s back on the road consider installing a Fumoto oil drain valve in place of the plug. We have these is all our vehicles except the Porsche and they work great....and make changing the oil a breeze.

http://www.fumotousa.com/parts...=F103N&partnumber=30

quote:

Originally posted by oldbill123:
Sell the truck as is. Buy something cash. Best lesson he could learn. Best if learned early

This is an interesting suggestion. Does your son really need a truck? If not there are much less expensive options available than a Toyota truck. I am certainly sorry for his situation.

quote:

Originally posted by Gene Hillman:

quote:

Originally posted by oldbill123:
Sell the truck as is. Buy something cash. Best lesson he could learn. Best if learned early

This is an interesting suggestion. Does your son really need a truck? If not there are much less expensive options available than a Toyota truck. I am certainly sorry for his situation.

Didn’t the OP say he owes $20k on the truck? How is he going to sell it “as is”, with a seized engine, and provide a clear title? Let alone have anything left to buy a beater. Unless he wants to default on the loan and blow up his credit, the vehicle should be repaired. Then it can be sold/traded for something less expensive.

quote:

Originally posted by frayedends:
Okay no more on “shooting out”. As I said it was just his words.

At this point all I can do is make him do the leg work to find a motor and better price than the dealer. I’ve provided him with reputable garages to call.

He said he has $2k savings. I can get him another 2k but it will hurt me significantly. Hoping he can find a way to keep this under 4 k. I could put another grand on a card but I am vehemently opposed to credit debt so that will be troublesome for me.

I don't mean to sound heartless, but how is this your problem?

He's 20 years old.
He was big enough to go against your advice and buy a truck you told him he couldn't afford in the first place.
He should be big enough to handle the problem himself.

Just a comment. If you hate it, just ignore it. I thought somebody had to say it.

Best thing for him to do is buy a used engine or rebuild it himself. He could install the engine in a weekend.

Buy a good core, rebuilding it, and doing the install saves a lot of downtime.