magnetic sump plug, are they worth it?
Trending Topics
#9
Scooby Regular
iTrader: (7)
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Leicester
Posts: 1,877
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I have 1 on mine and everytime i do an oil change arround 3k miles i always have to clean the sump plug, i can see very fine bits stuck on it. Its not as much atm as it was after the rebuild. I think for the sake of £15 i would have it.
#12
Ive got one coming to be fitted. Im due to do an oil change and thought I'd get one at the same time. Are they worth it?....I can see the science behind them but if they make a difference in the real world, I dont know.
That said, the plugs on the diff and gearbox are magnetic from the factory so Subaru must of seen the benefit/need to have that. Why Subaru didnt make the sump plugs magnetic too....god knows.
Was it worth £25? Probably not but hey, too late now.
I got a Zero/Sports one from Scoobyparts, Ive got a lot of time for Scoobyparts, they are a good company and have bought from them many times before.
That said, the plugs on the diff and gearbox are magnetic from the factory so Subaru must of seen the benefit/need to have that. Why Subaru didnt make the sump plugs magnetic too....god knows.
Was it worth £25? Probably not but hey, too late now.
I got a Zero/Sports one from Scoobyparts, Ive got a lot of time for Scoobyparts, they are a good company and have bought from them many times before.
#13
Scooby Regular
Join Date: May 2008
Location: Warrington
Posts: 632
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Nearly all gearboxes will have a magnetic plug or a magnet somewhere inside them this is because the gears are made of metal. These gears do wear with normal use but as Alcazar has said the engine block is alloy as are the bearings so no need.
If your magnetic sump plug is picking up bits of metal then I'd be worried there is something wrong with the engine.
If your magnetic sump plug is picking up bits of metal then I'd be worried there is something wrong with the engine.
#14
Administrator
iTrader: (2)
Join Date: May 2003
Location: Blackpool, Uk. Destination: Rev Limiter.
Posts: 4,464
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Nearly all gearboxes will have a magnetic plug or a magnet somewhere inside them this is because the gears are made of metal. These gears do wear with normal use but as Alcazar has said the engine block is alloy as are the bearings so no need.
If your magnetic sump plug is picking up bits of metal then I'd be worried there is something wrong with the engine.
If your magnetic sump plug is picking up bits of metal then I'd be worried there is something wrong with the engine.
#15
Scooby Regular
iTrader: (13)
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: Swansea
Posts: 4,008
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
The bores arent alloy mate, nor are the piston rings, valves, followers, cams, oil pumps, cam bearings, in fact, NOTHING in an engine that actually wears out is made of alloy. God knows where that rumour came from on ScoobyNet, its the only forum I have ever heard it on!
I fitted on simply cos it looks better than the standard one, and my standard one was rounded so much it was nearly round.
#16
Scooby Regular
Join Date: May 2008
Location: Warrington
Posts: 632
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
The bores arent alloy mate, nor are the piston rings, valves, followers, cams, oil pumps, cam bearings, in fact, NOTHING in an engine that actually wears out is made of alloy. God knows where that rumour came from on ScoobyNet, its the only forum I have ever heard it on!
#17
Administrator
iTrader: (2)
Join Date: May 2003
Location: Blackpool, Uk. Destination: Rev Limiter.
Posts: 4,464
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
My point being that the primary wear item on an engine is the big end shells which are steel coated in an alloy of white metals which is not magnetic and is much softer than the crank so will wear quicker. As said if your magnetic oil sump plug is collecting stuff then id be worried something was wrong.
Sadly, we cant remove carbon with magnets, thus making bad remappers the primary cause of advanced engine wear in the world. LOL
Last edited by Evolution Stu; 18 June 2012 at 04:01 PM.
#18
Scooby Regular
Join Date: May 2008
Location: Warrington
Posts: 632
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Hygroscopic means they attract moisture! Not sure what you mean by that.
The big end bearings are under a massive amount of load during each firing sequence hence why if the timing isn't correct it will eventually destroy the big ends.
These particles you refer to i agree do cause wear in the engine but i know of many cars that have done 250,000+ miles and still running strong without the need for magnetic oil sump plugs, the oil filter itself if replaced regulary should be all that is needed to prevent wear of an engine especially on modern engines.
The big end bearings are under a massive amount of load during each firing sequence hence why if the timing isn't correct it will eventually destroy the big ends.
These particles you refer to i agree do cause wear in the engine but i know of many cars that have done 250,000+ miles and still running strong without the need for magnetic oil sump plugs, the oil filter itself if replaced regulary should be all that is needed to prevent wear of an engine especially on modern engines.
#19
Administrator
iTrader: (2)
Join Date: May 2003
Location: Blackpool, Uk. Destination: Rev Limiter.
Posts: 4,464
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Hygroscopic means they attract moisture! Not sure what you mean by that.
The big end bearings are under a massive amount of load during each firing sequence hence why if the timing isn't correct it will eventually destroy the big ends.
These particles you refer to i agree do cause wear in the engine but i know of many cars that have done 250,000+ miles and still running strong without the need for magnetic oil sump plugss.
The big end bearings are under a massive amount of load during each firing sequence hence why if the timing isn't correct it will eventually destroy the big ends.
These particles you refer to i agree do cause wear in the engine but i know of many cars that have done 250,000+ miles and still running strong without the need for magnetic oil sump plugss.
The load the big end receives is actually critical to its operation as the journal moves through its high, fixed and hydrodynamic zones which is why detonation, as you rightly say, causes mass destruction of teh bearing material and then, as it breaks up, the bearing journal itself.
Its not the load itself that causes the damage, its the detonation pressure wave that causes sudden dissruption of the oil wedge that this type of bearing is designed to run upon. These bearings, under normal use, have virtually no wear whatsoever on a running engine. I would estimate that around 70% of crank bearing wear is caused during cranking and around 25% by foreign matter in the lubricant.
Nobody has suggested an engine wont last for a very long time without a magnetic drain plug in, but its a simple fact that they will likely last a lot longer with one in, for the very simle reason that a paper filtration medium can only filter down to around 35 microns, and the magnet will attract particles far less than that. With a good strong magnet in use, its normal to see a thin smearing of black paste around the magnet at oil change time. Those are largely the particles that a paper medium cannot filter, and they are the particles flyin around your engine at high speed and pressure, acting like fine lapping paste.
Anyway, I only pulled you on your odd suggestion that the engine was alloy and thus the wearing parts were not magnetic, not to get into a minor technical argument about bearing technologies.
the oil filter itself if replaced regulary should be all that is needed to prevent wear of an engine especially on modern engines.
Last edited by Evolution Stu; 18 June 2012 at 06:11 PM.
#21
Scooby Regular
iTrader: (10)
I have had one I'm my car for 2 yrs now and change the oil every 3000 miles. No metal filings on the plug , but a black paste like stu describes and engine is running fine.
I was skeptical at 1st after hearing a few stories about the magnets coming off when the engine is hot and going through the engine , but bought one all the same. Worthwhile IMHO as irrespective of how often you change your oil/ filter you will always get some engine wear.
I was skeptical at 1st after hearing a few stories about the magnets coming off when the engine is hot and going through the engine , but bought one all the same. Worthwhile IMHO as irrespective of how often you change your oil/ filter you will always get some engine wear.
#22
Administrator
iTrader: (2)
Join Date: May 2003
Location: Blackpool, Uk. Destination: Rev Limiter.
Posts: 4,464
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
The proper ones are all steel, so the magnet will never leave the steel sump plug even if its bonding process failed.
#24
Scooby Regular
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Ipswich
Posts: 123
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
on a different subject lol does anyone know what size the magnetic filler and drain plugs are on the gearbox and rear diff? ino theres no filler plug on the gearbox lol ? anyone? thanks mike
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post