I believe Swedes, Germans and Japanese spec thinner oil pans in order to
save weight. The thin metal can't withstand too much torque, so a crush
washer is required. This is also why you don't want to take your fine
Swedish, German or Japanese auto to the local quicky lube where the, uh,
mechanic, will use his trusty impact wrench to tighten the drain bolt.

I get my Nissan and Honda crush washers on the web for $0.20 to $0.30 each.
I buy them about a dozen at a time, along with the filters.

Pep boys sell them fairly inexpensively. Measure the ID and OD and see if
you can find something similar. The ID needs to be very close, but the OD
can be larger.

I don't understand why a felt or rubber washer wouldn't work. The oil pan
isn't under pressure. At most you'll leak a few drops.

Another option is one of those quick release valves from Futomo, Fram, etc.

"Ron DeBlock" wrote in message
news
Any auto parts store will have them for less than the dealer charges - I
think I paid about $1 for a three pack of them (I also have a Subaru). I
dunno if you can substitute a simple copper washer for the crush washer.
My Volvo and other cars I've owned use simple copper washers, they are
slightly cheaper. However, my Pontiac doesn't have any seal/gasket/washer
on the oil drain plug, and it doesn't leak - those clever American
engineers must know something that the Swedes, Germans and Japanese don't.

--
Ron DeBlock N2JSO
If God had meant for Man to see the sunrise,
He would have scheduled it later in the day.