Help, I just broke-off one of the (14) bolts ssecuring my oil pan. It broke-off slightly below the head when I was re-attaching the pan (didn't take much). It's slightly recessed into the threads. How do I get it out???!!!

You need:

A center punch

A 3/32nds lh drill bit

An easy out

Safety glasses,

a very steady hand

A good drill motor

An afternoon and work area devoid of distraction. (it won't take that long, but having all afternoon to geter done will keep you from rushing and breaking off the easy out-and making the problem worse.

Make sure the car is highenough off the ground to get the drill with the bit in place where it needs to go comfortably, and that the car is safely supported with jack stands or ramps..

Put on the safety glasses.

Clean the break, and center punch it to get a good starting place for the drill bit.

Drill the hole straight into center of the bolt-following the path of the bolt(don't get the bit off center and drill out of the bolt.) The remnant of the bolt may well come out while drilling-if you used the left hand twist bit.

If not line up the easy out and carefully feed it into the hole as per its instructions.

If all goes acording to plan-you will get the piece out of the hole with no new damage.

The key here is know what you are going to do, and how you are going to do it. If you feel frustration sneaking up on you-get out of theree-if you break off the easy out, or get the bit into the bolt catywhompass-the problem will get worse fast. Go slow, and be patient , if you feel you need to force something, force yourself to take the car to a mechanic and let him deal with it!

Will

If you screw up while doing method above you can always drill and tap a slightly oversize hole/ next thread size up. As HLS30 mentioned a left handed drill bit might eliminate the need for an easy out. 90% of the time the LH drill bit will get it on small stuff like this. There are lots of posts with diff methods for broken bolt removal too.

You may be able to notch the head of the bolt and turn it with a small screwdriver. (If it is one of the bolts shown in the pic below) When there is enough to grip with vise grips you'll be set. Take it out through the bottom in case the shank provides interference.

2c

Jim

Thanks guys! Guess I'll go looking for a 3/32" left-hand twist bit and an "easy out." Probably won't be the last time I'll need one...