Oil plug washer really necessary?

don't jinx yourself.

 

Well they put one on at the factory so why not continue.

 

are they expensive?

 

Yes! Its commonly called a crush ring. Its designed to provide a seal between the oil pan and the plug. It is important to use a calibrated torque wrench and use the torque setting in the manual. If on over torque occurs serious damage can occur to the drain pan. That will cost big $$$$. It is recommended that every oil change should have a new crush ring, because it has already seen the compression. They cost like 1$.

 

They are like 10cents each, but I've never changed the original crush washer that came on my motorcycle, and after 40,000mi I've had no problems.

GT-N8013 ? 2

 

There might be one on there, firmly bonded to the underside of the bolt head. Next time you have the bolt off, see if there's something you can separate with a thin blade screwdriver.

 

Don't bother -- get yourself a Fumoto valve and never worry about that plug again.

 

HOLY CRAP!!!!

That washer is critical!!!
Your car won't last for a week without one installed.
You're going to wreck your motor and then you're going to have to replace your car with an earth-killing non hybrid....
Fossil fuels will be further depleted and ecologically tragic "oil wars" will be waged over the remaining dregs killing tens of millions....
Global temperature will rise causing disasters of biblical proportion....
Some bitter religion hater will see the word "biblical" in a non-FHoP portion of the forum and run screaming to one of the mods with tear stained cheeks...

Do you really want that on your conscience????

Of course.....since your car is an 05....

 

Basically any 12mm washer will do.

And, while Toyota recomends 28 ft. lbs. for the torque value, which is standard for M12x1.25 threads, 18 to 20 ft. lbs. is sufficient.

Tigntening the plug, which is a bolt, tensions it like a rubber band to hold it in place.

The washer provides both a sealing element and friction to hold the plug in place.

I prefer 18-20 ft. lbs., as it lengthens the life of the threads of the welded on nut in the oil pan.

 

I say, follow PJC's advice, go fumoto.

 

I've got ten, and to be honest I only replace them every four or five oil changes. If you PM me your address I can mail you a couple.

 

Some day, I suppose I should get a torque wrench. I know it helps to keep from crushing gaskets, etc.

 

Yep, it wouldn't be the first time someone thought that they weren't using a washer and it was just firmly stuck to the drain plug the whole time.

The washer costs about a dollar here, though I'm sure they could be had for less. And though you're supposed to change them each time, if you're reasonable careful with your torque levels then it's generally safe to re-use them many times. So yeah, there's no real reason not to use one.

BTW. The ones supplied by Toyota have a blue nylon coating, and if the coating still looks reasonably intact then I just can't be bothered to go get another. I've probably used the one currently on my Prius for about the last five oil changes. Never had any leak problems.

 

A washer is, what, 10-20 cents?

How much of your time ($$$) is wasted if you end up with an oil leak because you're too lazy to replace the washer?

If you're working for any more than 40 cents an hour, you're wasting money with your proposition.

 

Are you replying to me or the OP? If it's me then the precise amount of time I've wasted in 35 years of doing my own oil changes is 0 hours, 0 minutes and 0 seconds, because I've never had a plug that's leaked. Like I said, I only re-use the washer if it's serviceable and I have a 100% record of being able to judge that.

 

When I did mine, I simply followed the procedure in the manual. Verbatum complience. im a neat knick. Old school is fine for my dad, I like the satisfication of knowing I did the job as prescribed by the manufactor.
There are many ways to get a job done. I tend to be overly into perfection. Not always a good thing. However it's me. Example:
I run the engine to warm up the oil a little.
User the exact box socket, or box wrench,
wipe everything clean,
use a new crush washer,
torque to set point.
The old man grabs a crescent wrench, uses old washer, maybe even the right one, not sure about that. He's just is a getter dun guy. That drives me crazy, but you know what? I drive him crazy too. LOL

 

Good for you. You want a cookie?

It's like using a pogo stick in a minefield. Sure, some folks will make it through fine. But it's horrible advice to give to anyone.

 

No it's not rocket science. It's not something that only I can get away with but nobody else (because I'm a rocket scientist). If you look at the washers they're nylon coated, and as long as the nylon coating is intact then they're not going to leak. End of story.

And you're way overstating the risks of leak. Even if I took a crush washer and mangled it with a hammer or something, just the threads on a correctly torqued plug will ensure that the oil will at worst only drip out.

And finally I was giving that advise to the OP who claimed to not be using any washer at all. Trying to encourage him to put one on. Even if it's re-used several times it got to be better than none at all.

 

Even if the nylon coating is a bit ripped (up to a point) it'll be fine. It just needs to compress such that it forms a seal.