Well, I bought my ford premium gold coolant this PM and got my distilled water and was going to start my flush this PM. I watched Bill Hewitt's video on changing a water pump and he emphasizes not to wrench too hard on the drain nut as it's plastic. I thought I was being careful and as soon as I put the 3/4" wrench on it and tried to turn it, it snapped right off. It is so brittle. Do I have any reasonable options?

Thanks, Wayne

 

I had that happen to me too. I had a set of easy outs from Lowe's so I drilled a small hole in the piece still in the radiator & then used the easy out. It is basically a reverse thread bit that allows you to ease the broken piece out. It worked like a charm.

 

Which part broke? The plug or the petcock? I've always been able to loosen the plug with my fingers so using tools hasn't been necessary (yet).

 

You can get a replacement one from napa for a couple bucks.

 

Thanks guys for the info.
It's the white plastic nut that screws into the housing.

I'll have to try the ez out and get a replacemnet from napa.

 

As it turns out, there is a 5/16 hex recess in the nut, extending in the part that screws in. Simple answer, use a allen wrench to screw out the piece in the housing. Works like a dream.
I did buy a new one from ford, but they had to order it.

Wayne

 

Er.. from ford? Go to any auto parts store and get one. Mine broke two weeks ago when I did a flush. Autozone sold me one for $3 I think.

 

What's wrong with getting it from Ford?
I've priced some of thier products before and they are pretty close to aftermarket.
Most of it costs more, but don't ever assume, call first.

 

If the original part is that fragile, I think I would be looking for a metal replacement, or at least buy two and keep one as a spare in the truck.
Nick

 

I would much rather break the plug, then the radiator. It gets brittle over time, with all the heat cycles. The plug is cheaper to replace, and also easier. Our radiators do not have the brass petcock style drains.

 

Well the whole thing is plastic. I bought one from napa and it was plastic as well. I opted to buy one from ford because I knew it would work and I probably won't have to fool with it for a 100k miles as I'm using the elc coolant. I've flushed it real good and am putting on a new water pump, hoses, thermostat and housing, and coolant temperature sensor and serpentine belt. If I had used the 5/16" allen wrench in the first place, it wouldn't have broken.
I do appreciate all the thoughts and comments I got on it. I over reacted to the problem because it was late and I couldn't really see what was going on, and I guess I was tired as well.

Wayne

 

Glad you got it fixed up right.

 

Thanks a lot!

 

Adding this since this thread came up in google search when looking for info on a broken drain plug for the 2002 Ford F250 7.3L diesel:

The OEM plug is FOAZ-8115-A and is around $10-15 at your local Ford dealer

Dorman equiv plug is part number 61127 and is around $8 in '26

Most local parts houses will have the Dorman which has a wing nut style end rather than the nut style of OEM.