I recently purchased a 2012 Durango with a 3.6L Pentastar and AWD. It was certified which was not a requirement, but was nice since was about out of warranty and that would allow for 4000 miles of warranty.

After about putting 1000 miles on it, I noticed oil in the garage. It appeared to be coming from the oil pan drain plug. I unscrewed the plug with my fingers. I had searched for the torque spec on the drain plug and couldn't find it, but did notice mention that it is tightened with a 13mm wrench. Mine uses a 16mm wrench to tighten.

A few questions:
Should I be concerned that the oil pan may have been stripped previously and has replacement plug and female threads?
If the pan was repaired is this acceptable for a certified vehicle?

I haven't talked to the dealer yet, but am trying to understand whether I have any recourse if it was really stripped. May have to drain oil to verify before going back to the dealer.

 

Very lucky, I'd notify them. My certified 08 had several serious issues I called them out on and threated to call Chrysler.

3 Goodyear's and a Michelin
Bad hardirve in Radio
Bad window switch in door
bad button on climate control
But the kicker was they dismounted and remounted a tire so the 3" gash was on the inside.

Central Dodge Norwood Mass.


Take pictures and document.

 

I would most definitely take it back in and have them replace the pan. That's a disaster waiting to happen.

 

Cyclonebaxters,

Congratulations on your purchase and welcome to the Dodge Forum!!

I would talk to your selling dealer and have them look at the vehicle before changing anything yourself.

If you have any questions regarding the warranty or would like assistance reviewing the concerns with your Dodge dealer please PM me and I'd be happy to help.

 

Thanks. I will follow up with response I get from dealer.

 

Dealer confirmed that the normal wrench size is 13mm. Service manager thinks it came from factory that way, but I think someone replaced it with an aftermarket plug. It is confirmed it was not oversized threads so they installed a new Dodge plug with the 13mm wrench size. They changed the oil for free in the process. I'm very satisfied with the dealership and the outcome.

 

That's good to hear. I would still be checking the garage religiously for new oil spots though. At least for a couple weeks.

 

Cyclonebaxters,

Thank you for the update. I'm happy to hear of your satisfaction with the dealer.

If you have any questions in the future please PM me and I'd be happy to help.