Front Diff and Transfer Case Oil Change Howto

Thanks for the writeup, and good pics! I've been meaning to do this to mine, but had trouble finding a "how-to" I'm not the most mechanically inclined, so this helps a lot

Thanks man.

 

Yeah... I changed all my diff fluid soon after the North AL mod meet, because it was nearly time (28,000 miles), we got into some mud, I wanted to make sure my rear diff didn't drown. Still a bit of dirt leftover, obviously. But if it isn't dirty you aren't using it!

Gimmeh rep if you liked it!

Try some PB Blaster next time (and let it sit overnight.) Like I said in the writeup, I've begun to hit any bolt I'm going to touch on something the night before with a good dose of the stuff, and I have way fewer headaches wrenching on my truck

 

ten four

 

Sub'd - Nice writeup.

 

Vote for sticky.

 

I acquired two new 10mm hex sockets, one Kobalt and one Craftsman. The Kobalt 10 mm is full size all the way into the socket, but still 3/8 drive. Went out two nights ago and used the 10" bar and it came loose without too much of a fight. I'm guessing the combination of WD-40 soaking for a day or two and it being hot from being driven home helped. The head of the drain plug had rusted to the counterbore it sits in and I believe that's why it was stuck.

I did end up having to run a tap through the skid plate mounting hole. I'm going to get some stainless screws tonight to replace the originals with.

 

Yikes, you had a crazy amount of rust for a 3-4 year old truck. Glad you got it worked out.

Ah, you're in Indiana. Down here we don't have salt (or much snow)

 

I want to do my front differential this weekend, is it going to be a pain to loosen up the bolts? i dont have a torque wrench, do i really need to torque it to the specs, i mean, I'm going to tighten the best that I could.

 

I'm not going to recommend not using a torque wrench.

However, these bolts are like your oil pan drain plug, in that they just have to be tight enough to not leak. Torque wrench actually keeps you from overtightening, at least on the transfer case and front diff fill plug (they're only 27-29 lb-ft)... don't put too much pressure on it. I mean, as long as it doesn't leak. Don't go totally apeshit.

Also, just so I can edit this post 5 times: Harbor freight has a torque wrench that is probably "good enough" for like $15.

Just hit the bolts with pb blaster if you have it, wd-40 if you don't. Soak them really good the night before. It'll help oodles getting them loose.

 

Personally I have never had issues with getting bolts off so I would just give it a try. You don't have to use a torque wrench. You need to understand the basics of tightening these drain and fill plugs though. Basically you want them tight, but not too tight. The reason for this is that the metal you are screwing the plugs into is softer than the bolt itself so if you tighten too much you will strip the hole in the diff. This is not good! I have a torque wrench but have never used it for stuff like this. As you tighten the bolt stop when it gets tight, then give it a slight nudge tighter. Remember that you can get a lot of torque from a 3/4 inch ratchet so slide your hand up the ratchet (was going to say shaft but for obvious reasons decided not to) closer to the head where the socket attaches--this will give you less torque for the final nudge and thus you won't overtighten. Good luck with it. BTW, I used royal purple in my tcase and it got rid of the "bump" feeling I had after coming to a stop and then taking my foot off the brake. It also made the truck feel much smoother. I would recommend that fluid for the tcase and redline 75-85 for the diffs.

 

super sub'd to this cause i super need to do all three.

 

SUB'D for later use. Good job!

 

i got off work tomorrow, so i'm going to work on that...I guess the copper washer for the drain side, and and the regular washer for the fill side??

 

I just did my 60K service last week. Kragen O'Reilly's was out of Mobile 1 so I bought Royal Purple at $18 a freakin quart!!!!

That's true that the front diff oil is a bit milky.

I didn't need to remove the skid plate to get to my front diff drain/fill plugs.

Great write up!

 

tag

 

Thats how mine was. You only need to buy the copper crush washers..which I beleieve there were only two of...front and rear diff drain. The silver washers in the fill plugs and both plugs on tcase are fine to reuse.

 

epic failure today... I can't unscrew all 4 bolts bolts... 2 were stuck, and the drain and full plug were all rusted, if i go tot toyota,,it will cost around $120!! why does it have to rust?!?!?

 

You soaked it with PB Blaster?

 

good write up man

 

u mean i have to soak the bolt for my engine plate too? I didn't use PB blaster but they are $60 a CAN!!!! I was like HOLY SHIT!