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Reported or suspected cause
rushing wind during your drive
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No successful repair reported for this finding.
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Reported cause
From the pics, it looks like the mess was caused by the rushing wind during your drive.
Leading evidence: 'rushing wind during your drive' (1 discussions report identifying this cause; no attributable repair resolution). Across 1 matching discussions, the most frequently mentioned possible cause is 'rushing wind during your drive' (1 discussions; 1 report identifying it and 0 suggest it). The most frequently discussed action is 'Check car this morning and there is oil' (1 discussions). For that action, 0 discussions report a resolution and 0 report an unsuccessful attempt. No action has an explicit, attributable resolution report under the current rules. These are forum reports and suggestions, not a confirmed diagnosis.
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Performed · outcome unconfirmed · Original poster
I checked the car this morning and there is oil on the garage floor beneath the engine.
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Performed · outcome unconfirmed · Original poster
The shop owner came to my house Sunday night, appoligized for the error, tightened the drain plug and cleaned the oil from the floor of the garage.
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Performed · outcome unconfirmed · Original poster
The shop owner came to my house Sunday night, appoligized for the error, tightened the drain plug and cleaned the oil from the floor of the garage.
Explicit resolution reports before identified causes, performed actions and suggestions. Within each level, matching component labels precede direct query mentions and inherited thread context; successful versus unsuccessful discussion counts, owner confirmations and independent discussion support determine order. This is not a probability of success.
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Performed · outcome unconfirmed · Original poster
I believe I recall the shop owner telling me he used 8 to 9 quarts in light of the bleeding.
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49 eligible posts · 0 unverified posts · 1 discussions match the subject in their title or opening post.
Rennlist: 1 discussions
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Hello All. I had a 30k service yesterday, which included an oil change. Drove home in the evening. I checked the car this morning and there is oil on the garage floor beneath the engine. Not a pool, but a sliver about 18 inches long and about 2 inches wide. My initial investigation reveals the oil drain plug at the bottom of the engine is missing. On startup, the oil reads full as does the oil gauge on the dash. The shop is @ 20miles from my house and is not open until Monday morning.
Assuming I do not drive the car until Monday morning, any opinions on whether I can drive as-is directly to the shop in morning traffic on Monday?
Any place I can purchase a drain plug this weekend in LA/SoCal?
Many thanks in advance.
There's NO WAY I'd drive it without a drain plug. I think I'd call the shop that did it and have them pay to tow your car back. I hope you had that 30K done at a Porsche dealer just in case this doesn't turn out nicely. (i.e. engine damage)
Have you checked the oil level on the dipstick? If the drain plug is missing, I don't think I'd be driving the car. Not even 20 miles.
I'd call the dealership and have them send a flat bed to tow the car back to the service department. My rationale is something along these lines. A tow would cost me about $100. If the engine does run out of oil and seizes up, that'll cost me about $7.500. If there's only a 5% chance of that engine seizing, then game probabilities are that I'm betting $375 to save $100. And if, the dealership screwed up the service, they should be paying for the tow truck anyway.
G/L with getting your ride back on the road.
You know the drain plug has a recess in it to accept the allen drive?Is that what you are looking at?? and it looks like it is missing. it fits flush with the pan not sticking out like on an american car.You should have had major oil mess all over the rear of that car if the drain plug fell out.
Can you stick your pinky finger in the hole where you think the drain plug was and feel the threads? I think you just have an oil leak from the indy not using a new compression ring with the plug. Otherwise you would not register full on the dash.
Many thanks to everyone. I have no intetion of driving the car. I was hoping it was simply a loose plug, but that doesn't appear to be the case. And there is a bloody mess on the underside of the engine. How do i attach pictures?
Bijan: the dipstick reads full. But i just took pictures and it is pretty clear that the plug is missing. Would a random autoparts store carry a plug that I can use as a bandaid until I reach the shop on Monday? While this is not my daily driver, my DD is temporarily withy my father.
better safe than sorry, have car towed to dealer.
however, i dont quite understand. if you are missing the drain plug, you will have like 9 qts of oil on the floor. it doesn't drip, it will POUR right out.
my suscpision is that when i picked up the car yesterday evening, the plug was loose, then fell out at some point during the commute home (along with the oil). what doesn't make sense is the amount of oil showing on the dipstick.
I would like to know what really happened. I don't think the drain plug is missing, like everyone said, the oil will not hold without a drain plug!? And it will definitely not show full on the dipstick either.
I'm guessing you somehow mistakenly think that the drain plug is missing, and the leak could be from accidental spillage when they were filling up with new oil. Sometimes it takes a while for the spillage to drip down. Have you noticed any more drips? Or was that it?
It's just hard to believe any decent technician could mess up by simply leaving a loose drain plug or filter cover on.
Thanks Kenny. I didn't think the drain plug was there as there is a sizeable (to me) hole in the drain plug where the hex key goes. in any event, after consulting with my brother, who is much more mechanically and automotively inclined than I, and based on your collective comments and the pictures, it appears the plug is there. So, any guesses as to the cause? And any idea where I can drive?
Also, if it helps the analysis, the oil was changed and the old oil was bled. I believe I recall the shop owner telling me he used 8 to 9 quarts in light of the bleeding.
Probably a missing washer or a loose plug. As you admit to not being mechanically inclined, call the place you had the work done and have them either come look at it or tow it. It is not worth the risk to do anything else.
You're welcome, Jack.
I would tighten the drain plug if you have the appropriate tool. Then, look around the leak, and trace the oil drip path, see if you can trace it to the source of the leak. From the pics, it looks like the mess was caused by the rushing wind during your drive. If the oil drip doesn't seem to come from a "source" like from up top the engine bay, etc, then it could be a loose plug.
I think if the dipstick shows the oil is full, it should be fine to drive, now that we have determined that your drain plug is not missing!
Thanks to everyone for all the assistance and comments. I left several messages and sent an email to the shop this morning. This will have to wait until Monday.
Thanks again and good night.
Jack,
I've attached a photo of my drain plug, fully tightened. Look how deeply your plug is recessed compared to mine. My guess is your mechanic missed the crush washer and you have a slow leak.
Stripped threads perhaps? GL on the repair and try to get them to compensate you for the heart attack I would have suffered if it were me. Perhaps ask they clean the engine or detail the car.
Got to ask yourself... what shop would forget to put in a crush washer?
Then, if it was not deliberate, then if they skimped 2c on a crush washer, then what else?.....
Not somewhere I would go back to.........
Hope it works out OK for you.
Cheers
Phil
I agree on both accounts. When I used to do my own oil changes, I'd always keep a few new crush washers on hand and I ALWAYS put a new one in with an oil change. It's unforgivable that a Porsche mechanic would neglect this simple but important thing.
did the OP say if this was an INDY or Dealer???
IMO be nice, and be pissed at the same time.... ask them what they think is fair comopensation for thier F'up.... get something in return, that is 100% bullsh*t to forget that AND not check after filling....It should have leaked right away, they just never evan looked.
IF they offer nothing, let them know you are a member on several well known Porsche forums AND there is an outrage of people who keep asking you to disclose the dealers name so they can avoid going there
(PS - I would also mention that your driveway and garage floors are now oil soaked and in need of professional cleaning as it IS an enviornmental hazardous spill that cannot simply be washed down the street into the drain system)
Thanks for all the additinoal comments and photo. The shop is an indy in SoCal with a very good reputation on all the boards. I've left several messages for the owner and hope to hear back before the end of the day today. If in fact the crush washer is missing, is the car driveable? I know all of our first impressions is to not drive, but if push came to shove...? Also, the puddle of oil increased over night.
I don't know what to say about driving without the crush washer since I don't know how badly and quickly it's leaking. As far as the garage floor, I'd put something down to keep it off the floor, maybe some kind of pan. No sense making any more of a mess than you need to. It will just be that much harder to clean it up.
Please let us know the final outcome. Good luck.
If it is still leaking oil, I would not drive it at all. My 30 year old truck hemorrhages oil, and I know that and I know how long I can go before needing to add oil. Since this is your first oil leak, who knows if it is getting worse or what. You might drive it and drop the oil level too much before getting back to the shop or the dealer.
I can tell from your posts you are hard pressed to drive it, but since you may be pushing for some sort of compensation or at the very least remedy from the shop I would err on the side of caution and let it sit. If you drive it and end up causing damage when you know it's leaking oil the only person that will be paying is you.
The shop should come get it, at least if their reputation is that good they will. If it costs them a few hundred dollars in towing and cleanup of your drive and making things right it's far better than dealing with the brunt of internet grudges. Of course you will be getting another oil change out of it as well it appears.
If the shop were around the corner I would say go for it, but I believe you said it was about 20 miles away? That is just too far to risk. That's at least 20 mins behind the wheel, I'm guessing more, with the motor running and oil leaking.
Good luck and hopefully it will all be resolved quickly. One thing to keep in mind, everyone makes mistakes. The important part is, are lessons learned and are the people impacted by the mistake righted.
1. The shop should agree over the phone,
to pay for your tow charges to bring the car back.
2. Depending on their attitude, if you ever use them again,
next oil change should be free.
3. If you are simply not sure, do not drive the car as is.
The shop owner came to my house Sunday night, appoligized for the error, tightened the drain plug and cleaned the oil from the floor of the garage. I took Fr�ulein out late at night for a run, and she was dry as a bone this morning. All appears to be good. MANY THANKS to all of you for your helpful comments this past weekend.
Somebody watched Leno last night....
Glad the shop owner took care of things and at least it was as simple as tightening the drain plug. Granted it should have been torqued right int eh first place, but he did the right thing.
