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Copper Vs Aluminum Crush Washer For Oil Plug

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8.4K views 1 reply 2 participants last post by  partsman  
#1 · (Edited by Moderator)
This thread might start and response storm. LOL

I plan on doing interim oil changes on my new 2014 XC90 between the scheduled 10,000 mile intervals. Doing some research, I ran across a couple of statement or theories on copper vs aluminum crush washers. And some statements.

Copper:

+ Has heat properties more similar to steel for steel oil pans.
- Copper is denser than aluminum meaning there is a risk of stripping threads in an aluminum oil pan, because copper needs more torque to start the crush.

Aluminum:

+ Crushes easier than copper and seals better being less dense.-
- May react more strongly with other chemicals and materials than copper.

I'm curious as to what you all think is the better crush washer for the oil drain plug.

I haven't done my first oil change yet, so I don't know if the oil pan on the 2014 3.2L 6 cylinder engine is aluminum or steel. You might comment on that. I can figure it out real easy when I get around to doing my oil change when I drop the splash shroud off.

Thanks in advance for any input on this subject.