Transmission pan bolt

Anyone of you experience the awesomeness of the transmission pan bolt snapping off while trying to remove the pan? I was going to do a filter change yesterday but the first two bolts I tried to remove had the heads snap off. I obviously stopped at that point. I guess if they all snapped I could clamp on with a vice grip to remove. But laying on your back working above you is never fun. Anyone got some tech tips for this?

 

Not any tips but, when I did mine I had one snap while putting it back on (my finger slipped on my impact). Luckily it was all exposed once I got the pan off so yes it was easy to get out with a pair of pliers afterwards.
My biggest concern would be one snapping and not being exposed outside the transmission case once the pan is off.

May I suggest trying to bump the bolts tight right before trying to remove it? That may break help to break it free before removing it.

 

2 of mine broke but both were in the corners where the ends are exposed. All of the others came out fine. I was able to remove with needlenose vise-grips.

 

Might be too late now but really not much advantage to removing pan. The filter is just a screen. Most of the time just a fluid swap is all that is needed which can be done with just drain and fill plugs

 

They break all the time. Heat them up with a torch before attempting to remove.
If they snap anyways, use vice grips or drill them out if you can’t grab onto the end.
Either way it’s a pain in the rear.
The filter screen is lifetime maintenance free.

 

Good to know! Oh BTW you guys would laugh if you seen my check plug. Let's just say I'll have to use a 16mm socket on it until my new one arrives

Oh and why does toyota make checking the fluid so complicated? My back is killing me! Does anyone make a dipstick conversion kit that screws into the fill hole‍♂️

 

Its hard because its important to not screw it up.
Toyota wants you to have this done with a know-ledgable person. Apparently the tranny cares about volume and it precise. Or that's what i tell myself.

If you're in the rust belt, i'd drummel the exposed threads off with a cutting wheel and ensure you pb-plast or (insert your favorite penetration oil here) on top of each bolt, only three are blind holes (no exit). This will help removing the part that's in the aluminum housing.

Also, i'd consider trying to drill and retap without removing the pan at first (the "on your back" dripping oil on your head sucks). (might be tough because the vice grip method is a good thing to try as well as cutting the studs flush so you can center punch the center).

and i completely disagree with don't replace the filter suggestions. If it has to filter to catch stuff then for my money it makes sense to replace it. (piece of mind and it helps me sleep at night).

Sorry, it took me 8 hours on a lift to do mine and I had tranny fluid raining down on me, in my watch, my hair and on my shoes for weeks.

Good luck.

(toyota said that the tranny fluid was lifetime as well, but my local dealership considers this 100k). but they also state to replace oil if you tow or operate in dusty conditions at 60k??
And to increase intervals for maintenance on older vehicles or harder worked vehicles. Perhaps you can change this stuff at half life-time? Whatever that means? Also replacing quality oil with quality oil or replacing a filter with a new filter is never going to hurt a vehicle).

 

Yep. Living in the rust belt, I don't take anything apart unless it really needs to. Drain and fill a few times and call it good.

 

I did mine and replaced them with stainless allen head bolts. One snapped but it wasn't too bad but I have a lift. Because the gasket is so thick there's usually enough of the bolt remaining to put vicegrips on. But that thick gasket is kind of the problem. It has steel collars to keep it from being crushed if the bolts over tightened. It corrodes there as well as the section of the screw that sticks up above the aluminum housing. Just put plenty of grease on the exposed threads on the top and turn it a little each way and it should come out. If not you can drill it with a small bit and retap it. You can also take a propane torch (just be careful not to light anything on fire) to heat up the aluminum. It'll expand making the steel bolt come out easier. It probably took me 15 extra minutes but I have a lift. If on your back I would get 4 jack stands and lift it up as high as you safely can.

 

This thread has pictures of the filter cut open.

https://www.tundras.com/threads/2014-transmission-maintenance-question.57617/

He also had issues with the bolts I think.

 

I dont think its the paper style filters that fill up and need to be changed.

 

My filter was some sort of cloth on a mesh wire screen. Still have the old one.

 

One of mine broke and wouldn't budge with vice grips. Decided to drill and tap. Of course the last drill bit I needed was missing. As was the tap. Went to three different shops to purchase said drill bit and tap and 2 hours later got the damn thing done. Total time to drill and tap, 8 minutes. Total time looking for missing tools and purchasing them, 3 hours. Can't make this shit up.

 

(Squeaky, gravelly voice) "Obstinate these young jedi, they are. Listen to the Master Jedi, you should."

 

alright. anyone who actually looks at the filter will see that it's a fine media. And that is definitely not lifetime. Maybe some people it's the lifetime of how long they keep their trucks (15k miles) before buying a new one. Replace the filter. If you removed it and saw the fine media there you would not trust the crud that has aggregated on it thus far.

I have a 2006 4runner and that trans filter is a metal mesh and not as fine. literally looks like fine chain link screen. The tundra is much finer. replace it. It's cheaper than replacing the transmission.

 

I went to drain and fill my tranny on my '07 Tundra DC with a 4.7 L engine.......so before buying fluid and a pump I wanted to see if I could get the fill plug and drain loose.........For the first time I seen some small amount of leakage at that plug. Put a wrench on it and bingo it started to pour out.......Luck I had my 5 gallon bucket with my tools in it near my feet.....kick it over to dump tools and put it under the leak. Now I tried to remove the pan bolts......first one loosens right away and then it was snap, snap and snap before I stopped. Being very old with 2 shoulder replacement I knew I couldn't do this physically even though I know how. Called dealer and they said bring it down.......so I took a screw and a rubber washer the screwed into the leaking area which was really a RUST HOLE in the pan. It slowed down the leak to almost nothing.......probably lost about 1 qt of tranny fluid. Dealer is less then 5 miles away.

The Service Manager at the Dealer is very honest and he said ALL the pan bolts need to be heated to remove.........new pan, new gasket and a new filter but he said not necessary plus fluid change cost me $800. First repair in 14 years......or does this still count as a maintenance item ?

Dealer mentioned that there was a little corrosion on the tranny itself and because of that couldn't guarantee no leaks but then he took be back into the shop and I met the mechanic who worked on it. He said he applied a liberal amount of Toyota gasket seal on both sides of the gasket and then let it dry overnight before refilling the tranny. He said I'm good for 100,000 miles before another fluid change is needed and he said THIS WILL NOT LEAK for you. They also said with the bolts being steel and going into the aluminum tranny, that is the problem causing the bolts corroding into the tranny. A few thousand miles later and I'm as good as gold.

 

The problem with the bolts holding the pan onto the tranny is that some go into blind holes (those come right out) while the rest have the end of the bolt goes through the transmission housing and is exposed to the elements (rusts). So when you go to remove those screws they break free and start to turn but then the rusty part of the bolt gets to the threaded part of the tranny. That's when you have to be very careful or they will break. I got all but one out without breaking. I replaced them with stainless bolts so it'll never be an issue again.

 

Never had any issues and my pan has been dropped 4 times already, i use to change tranny fluid every 50 K i don't care to follow toyota's recommendation, although I am coming up on 84 K on tranny fluid which is still very pink and has no burnt smell to it, so i could see it going 100 k. 2003 camry 283417 miles.

 

Your completely different vehicle and transmission and drive train has completely different requirements? Thats crazy, how do you do it?

 

Your missing the point, said transmission bolts whether they are in a camry or a tundra are the same 10 mm bolt, bet my life on it. They are still subjected to the same elements be it salt water rust dirt, all of which contributes to corrosion. The requirements of said transmission is negligible. Read the title of thread. That's how i do it!!

 

Out of 12 bolts 4 snapped for me. I sprayed penetrating oil on them 3 days before dropping the pan. Used a torch on them all as I pulled them. 2 bolts I was able to use easy out. The other 2 I had to drill all the way out and now they are fastened with a nut on top. No leaks. Brand new bolts with anti sieze on them. Not a fun job the 1st time, but should be easier next time.

 

Hoping you're still active on the forum. I did the same as you and replaced with stainless bolts. Theres multiple people on my thread stating that having stainless and aluminum is bad. With tons of googling there arguments in both cases. On top of there are companies that sell stainless steel bolts specifically meant for aluminum heads or pans. Seeing as you have some time with years being in the transmission, have you attempted to remove one and see how its holding up? I put anti seize on mine as well so dont see it being an issue but with the couple of people suggesting its not a good idea has me thinking about switching to a zinc plated bolt.

 

I put anti-seize on the threads but from what I've read the issues are with small aluminum parts. A large casting like the transmission housing (large anode) and a screw (small cathode) minimizes the issue. Out of curiosity I went and removed one of the screws and it came out without any problems. I've used stainless screws on motorcycle engines quite often.

Steel also has issues with aluminum. At the factory the screws are zinc plated and are installed in dry clean threads. The ones installed in blind holes usually don't rust until they are removed then reinstalled again (most likely the thin layer of zinc is gone). But the through holes allow the end of the screw to be exposed and will rust, like the head. Rusted threads are always a problem.

 

Thanks for the reply. Real world experience always better than the guy behind the keyboard telling you you're going to have to drill out all your pan bolts. I did this after having to remove a snapped bolt which was a huge pain.