[matt_d82]

I've been fighting with this stupid frost plug for a few days now. I've drilled a small hole, screwing in a screw and reefing on it. no go. Tryed a bigger screw... the screw just comes flying out with no frost plug attached. I've tryed prying it out with a screw driver. I have a slide hammer but no good attachments will work, and there isnt much room to use it in there anyway. I've even tryed freezing it by spraying it with some of that canned duster stuff (you know how if you spray it sideways, it shoots out freezing liquid instead of air), and then reefing on it. No go.

I'm out of ideas and left with an ugly looking hole in the middle of the frost plug. And I'm getting pretty darn frustrated. Please help!

Matt

 

[mullenc525]

Is it an engine block or tranny frost plug?

As long as drill shavings dont matter, drill a bigger hole, get a screwdriver in and start mangling. Once its mangled it wont fit tight anymore.

If drill shavings matter, stick a rare earth magnet to the plug before drilling

 

[matt_d82]

Its in the engine block on the intake side (the middle one).

So just keep drilling and mangling it?

 

[Faded87T]

Don't drill out the plug. Just take a punch and place it in the corner of the plug. Then whack the S out of it with a BFH. The plug will flip on its side. Grab it with pliers and pull it out. When re-installing the new freeze plug. Coat it with a thin layer of gasket sealer (I use that stickey brown S that comes in a white bottle with a brush). Drive the new one in flush with a proper sized socket or something similar.

Dale H
87T

 

[matt_d82]

Don't drill out the plug. Just take a punch and place it in the corner of the plug. Then whack the S out of it with a BFH. The plug will flip on its side. Grab it with pliers and pull it out. When re-installing the new freeze plug. Coat it with a thin layer of gasket sealer (I use that stickey brown S that comes in a white bottle with a brush). Drive the new one in flush with a proper sized socket or something similar.

Dale H
87T

I thought of trying something like that but I was worried that will just push it into the block :doh:

 

[Faded87T]

It should just flip on its side if you hit down on it at a steep angle. In other words, placing the punch like this \ not this _

Hope that helps.

Dale H
87T

 

[mullenc525]

^that works for big ones, not small ones.

 

[matt_d82]

So uh.. yeah.. all that did was punch a hole in the corner of the frost plug. I don't have any bigger punches.

This sucker's comin out tonight.. let the drilling begin.

 

[matt_d82]

Drilling is getting nowhere fast................... I'm about ready to shoot thing thing with a shotgun and put it out of its misery. How the hell can this thing be stuck in there so tight if it was leaking?

 

[p5150]

heat it up with a propane torch and try to pull it out after it cools.

 

[matt_d82]

Problem solved. I got a mechanic friend over who pulled the "punch" method.. I don't know what he did different, but it worked. Thanks everyone for the help!

 

[lagged]

i had the one all the way towards the back of the block on the intake side blow out on me after my rebuild.

boy was it a PIA to replace it with the motor in the car.

 

[Faded87T]

Yeah, its kinds of hard to explain how to replace those freeze plugs, it jsut takes practice. But I was in your shoes once and tried everything in the world to get the GD plug out. I could not get it to budge. Finally I said f it, picked up the whole motor and took it to my machine shop. Before I could even tell the guy what the problem was, he had whacked the living S out of it with a BFH, had the thing flipped on its side, removed it, and drove in the new one all within about 30 seconds. No joke. I almost think he was going extra fast to make me look like a douche hat.

Dale H
87T

 

[Zach90Turbo]

I thought the douche hat look was in? :scratch: