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I found this on the end of my magnetic oil drain plug doing my last oil change. Does anyone have any idea where this came from? I thought it might be from one of the bearings but it doesn't seem to be the right shape. Pics of the screw next to a dime for scale. I've had the car for the past 3 years (it was bone stock when I imported it - pic of engine when I got it, and one of where it sits now for reference), but this is the first oil change with the magnetic plug (which means the screw could have been in there a while, or not long at all).
The car is a JDM 1999 Type R. The car runs well (still on the twins). The screw seems to be completely undamaged, and there was absolutely nothing else at the end of the magnetic drain plug (no hints of anything else metallic in the oil).
Last edited by Joker's93; Sep 25, 2019 at 10:33 AM.
That is the set screw for the oil pump. Without it the internals of the pump will freewheel and you will lose oil pressure. Stop driving the car immediately. You will need to pull the motor and point the front up to safely remove the eshaft bolt and front cover to get to the oil pump. I would also pull the stationary gears one at a time and inspect bearings for wear/damage.
Really appreciate the help identifying this. Was afraid the answer might be something like this, but glad to know what it is - this at least lets me formulate my plan of attack. I'll probably park the car for the winter at this point, since we're getting colder weather now. This will also give me a little project for the winter. Thanks again!
Wow. That is scary.
For anyone looking for a magnetic drain plug, I worked with these guys years ago to create the one for the RX7 and Miata. There's a thread on here somewhere... They are a veteran owned business. Or at least they were back then. https://www.drainplugmagnets.com/cars/mazda/
IRP is dead right on this. Also, I would just plan on replacing the oil pump - good used pumps are a dime a dozen. It's possible that the oil pump has further damage and it's not worth dorking around with trying to fix it.
The hard part will be getting to the pump since you have to pull the front cover. You are WAY ahead of the game to pull the motor out, trying to do it with the motor in the car is a HUGE pain in the butt. As IRP stated, you want to have the motor on an engine stand so you can point the nose of the motor straight up - when you reassemble the front stack it will prevent the needle bearing from being pinched and causing a LOT more pain and suffering.
It's not good news but it's much better than having the motor spin a bearing - when that happens nearly all the motor parts are junk.
It's also a good excuse for "while you are in there" stuff - may want to go ahead and rebuild the motor, change the clutch, etc. If the motor is healthy and you're happy with it you can actually do this job on an engine stand without having to remove the turbos and intake manifolds which is a plus.
Excellent advice. I'm exploring the idea of a rebuild given that the history of the motor is a bit of a mystery to me prior to my ownership. Might be a good time to get some porting done too
Also, I'm glad i picked up the magnetic drain plugs. I bought the Greddy ones for my FD and my STI. The magnets are quite strong, to the point where they were a bit of a pain trying to line them up with the threads without them pulling to stick to the pan before I could thread them. Not sure how long I might have driven the FD with that screw out without the magnetic plug holding onto it for me to find.
Last edited by Joker's93; Sep 25, 2019 at 02:30 PM.
