Rear differential help needed!

How often do you guys change the fluid of the rear gear ⚙️ . And when you changing do you have to open the cover and clean the gears. or can I just drain and refill it ?. Thanks

 

Not sure what Toyota recommends, but I do mine every 100k, which is about every 4 years. I use Redline syn 75w80 (5lug w/MT). Last change was at 200k, and fluid still looked, felt & smelled fine, with minimal sludge on the plug.

No need to remove cover unless less fluid looks/feels suspect or pieces of metal come out.

 

Per Toyota, every 30k, or for severe use, every 15k. As far as what we actually do, that’s all over the place.

It’s relatively easy, easier than an oil change IMO. I plan on doing mine every 30k.

 

drain and fill with the closest weight to spec. Toyota spec weight is not common, but sits very close to what is common on the shelf.

 

Loosen fill plug first before you remove the drain plug and drain the fluid.

 

Hardest part for me on the rear differential and transfer case was scraping my useless butt under the truck on my back then rolling over just enough to manage the plugs/wrenches.

The rear differential and transfer case plugs need a 24 MM socket ... get a 6-point instead of a 12-point to avoid stripping. I bought Valvoline squeeze bags for differential fluid to just push new fluid in.

Assuming 4WD ... I used for 1-liter transfer case fluid the Toyota-brand (best price I think I saw was $100/liter) instead of "other". For the transfer case fluid use a manual fluid pump and the last final bit of expensive transfer case fluid may need a turkey baster to get in ... no joke about the turkey baster. For the front differential you can buy Lexus parts 90341-18060 and 90341-24016 as replacements that have hex heads instead of 10mm holes that can strip.

 

Towing every 15k, normal 30k for me. Cheap and easy. I also flush trans every 50k because i tow

 

A 15/16 socket works as well. Seemingly identical to a 24mm.

 

No cover to remove, these are third members diffs, not like traditional American diffs with rear covers
60k miles or so change it out

 

I had neither 15/16 nor 24 mm ... I had larger and smaller but needed to purchase. Still ... 6-pt instead of 12 pt is advisable.