Dealer wants $660 to change differential fluid

[CarbonSteel]

grr.... lol

is chatter bad? or just a nuisance?

thanks for your input sir

Chatter is bad over time because in essence the wear of the clutch disks will be accelerated and require replacement sooner than they should. On other forums, I have seen where Amsoil was used in LSD axles and there was no chatter.

Note this from Amsoil Slip Lock friction modifier description (https://www.amsoil.com/p/slip-lock-adatb/#pills-home_0):

NOTE: AMSOIL synthetic gear lubes do not require this additive. However, not all differentials respond the same and the addition of AMSOIL Slip Lock will eliminate chatter in mechanically sound differentials.

Sponsored

 

[RocketScientist]

Just to confirm what everyone else posted.... Changing fluids on the JL could not be easier. Save yourself some money. I confirmed local dealers wanted ball park $600 for both differentials. Almost as much again for transfer case and transmission...

You can do them all yourself on a Saturday morning - including oil - in about 1.5 hours with common tools. Except 3/8" hex driver for transfer case, might not be in everyone's tool box. And for the DIYer, you really should have a torque wrench in your toolbox.

At 35K, rear fluid was black, and smelly. I have the D44 LSD. Minimal shavings on magnet
front was clear amber, and probably fine
Transfer case - same, bright pink, fine
Transmission - a little darker pink, some minimal shavings on magnet

Under $150 total...

4 qts ATF4, $35
5 qts OW-20, $27
1 qt 75W90 - $12
2 qts 75W140 - $20 (on sale!)
LSD additive $7
Oil filter $6
High temp thread sealant $5

$122

Maybe another $10-$15 for a couple of bottle pumps, if you don't have those. Get one with a metal tube on the end bent like a coat hanger. That way you can just hang it in the fill hole, and don't have to hold the tube in place/worry about it falling out and spewing oil everywhere!

Most time consuming aspect: pumping the fluid back in.

Always remove fill plug first!

For the transfer case, if you have the factory skid plate, just remove all but one bolt. Loosen the last one and swing out of way. You can make a tray/funnel, but the fluid comes shooting out pretty fast. I just opted to get the skid completely out of way. Takes about 5-10 minutes extra.

 

[RDiddy]

Take that $660 and you can get yourself some nice new diff covers, some Royal Purple gear oil, and tools to do the job yourself and still have beer and pizza money left over.

I get the rest of your post, but why do we want to swap our diff cover(s)?

Edit: I reread your post. Do you mean a skid plate that surrounds the pumpkin, or the actual bolt on face of the rear diff that has the drain plug in it? I am going to assume I misunderstood the first time and that you mean change out the skid plate for a new one

 

[Dan S]

I get the rest of your post, but why do we want to swap our diff cover(s)?

Edit: I reread your post. Do you mean a skid plate that surrounds the pumpkin, or the actual bolt on face of the rear diff that has the drain plug in it? I am going to assume I misunderstood the first time and that you mean change out the skid plate for a new one

He's referring to getting an aftermarket differential cover. Literally replace the entire half with the fill plug of the differential "pumpkin". They can be much heavier duty than the stock ones, and some allow it to hold more fluid.

 

[SecondTJ]

Just to confirm what everyone else posted.... Changing fluids on the JL could not be easier. Save yourself some money. I confirmed local dealers wanted ball park $600 for both differentials. Almost as much again for transfer case and transmission...

You can do them all yourself on a Saturday morning - including oil - in about 1.5 hours with common tools. Except 3/8" hex driver for transfer case, might not be in everyone's tool box. And for the DIYer, you really should have a torque wrench in your toolbox.

At 35K, rear fluid was black, and smelly. I have the D44 LSD. Minimal shavings on magnet
front was clear amber, and probably fine
Transfer case - same, bright pink, fine
Transmission - a little darker pink, some minimal shavings on magnet

Under $150 total...

4 qts ATF4, $35
5 qts OW-20, $27
1 qt 75W90 - $12
2 qts 75W140 - $20 (on sale!)
LSD additive $7
Oil filter $6
High temp thread sealant $5

$122

Most time consuming aspect: pumping the fluid back in.

What ATF did you find that is 68218925AB equivalent for less than $9 ?

I’m surprised changing the transmission wasn’t the most time consuming. The directions and temperature sensitivity make it look like it’ll take quite some time to do

 

[mwilk012]

What ATF did you find that is 68218925AB equivalent for less than $9 ?

I’m surprised changing the transmission wasn’t the most time consuming. The directions and temperature sensitivity make it look like it’ll take quite some time to do

He said ATF4, which I'm sure is shorthand for ATF +4, which is wrong and will do bad things.

Also what most are missing here is that simply popping the drain plug and refilling is not what is being quoted by the dealership, unless they are lying slimeballs. You must remove the diff cover and inspect gear teeth for proper wear patterns, check for larger pieces of debris, and clean it out. the drain plug is great for the DIY'er that needs to do a quick and dirty after fording a stream or something.

 

[RocketScientist]

68218925AB

He said ATF4, which I'm sure is shorthand for ATF +4, which is wrong and will do bad things.

Also what most are missing here is that simply popping the drain plug and refilling is not what is being quoted by the dealership, unless they are lying slimeballs. You must remove the diff cover and inspect gear teeth for proper wear patterns, check for larger pieces of debris, and clean it out. the drain plug is great for the DIY'er that needs to do a quick and dirty after fording a stream or something.

"Which is wrong and will do bad things" ?

"We recommend Mopar ATF+4 Automatic Transmission Fluid"

 

[RocketScientist]

What ATF did you find that is 68218925AB equivalent for less than $9 ?

I’m surprised changing the transmission wasn’t the most time consuming. The directions and temperature sensitivity make it look like it’ll take quite some time to do

You mean the gold infused MOPAR ATF, for use with MOPAR transmissions which are forged from unobtanium alloys by magical dwarves deep in the bowels of Lonely Mountain?

I could not find anything equivalent to that. I used Hersey's strawberry syrup instead, it was onsale for $1.99.

 

[mwilk012]

You mean the gold infused MOPAR ATF, for use with MOPAR transmissions which are forged from unobtanium alloys by magical dwarves deep in the bowels of Lonely Mountain?

I could not find anything equivalent to that. I used Hersey's strawberry syrup instead, it was onsale for $1.99.

lol, obviously you have the manual trans. Not all fluids are created equal.

 

[txj2go]

I went to our local quick oil change place last week, their sign on the wall says $60 for differential oil change, front or rear. (I was there for yearly safety inspection, I do my own oil changes.)

 

[txj2go]

Relatively simple jobs, like brakes, are "dealer only", $2000 ( that's 3 zeroes)

Wait until you need to have your JL air conditioner serviced. Or anything else with the new 4-digit refrigerant. No more $8 cans at the local store.

 

[JLJeeper]

I recently changed the diff fluid, transfer case fluid , and manual transmission fluid in my 01 TJ and 2012 Tacoma. While I had to remove the diff covers off the TJ, the Tacoma was a piece of cake - as your LJ should be. Bottom line. Do it yourself. It’s definitely worth it.

 

[Gadgettr1]

My local off-road shop charged $40.00/each to put my new Next Venture diff covers on and refill them (while they were mounting my winch).

 

[mwilk012]

Wait until you need to have your JL air conditioner serviced. Or anything else with the new 4-digit refrigerant. No more $8 cans at the local store.

The “$8 cans” have never been the true cost of A/C service. It’s all labor. 1234-yf is $60-100/lb, the JL takes very little. $400 or so for a Freon charge is nothing. The cost to replace the leaking component is guaranteed to be higher.

 

[txj2go]

The “$8 cans” have never been the true cost of A/C service. It’s all labor. 1234-yf is $60-100/lb, the JL takes very little. $400 or so for a Freon charge is nothing. The cost to replace the leaking component is guaranteed to be higher.

What I mean is that on top of the labor, and the more expensive machine used for charging, you will have to pay another $200 for the new refrigerant.

I replaced a leaking hose on my wife's Acadia a couple of weeks ago. The hose cost $60 plus a small tip to my nephew for using his shop and his machine. Total cost $150. He hasn't bought a machine yet for the new refrigerant. He says the machine for that refrigerant is much more expensive than the big machine he has now for 134 so that extra cost would be passed along to the customer.

We sold our house a year ago and moved into a smaller house. While on the market the AC in that house started acting up a little bit. I called our service and told them to fix it and check the second unit too. They topped off both units with R-12, 9 lb. total at $100/lb. The AC in our current house is 25 years old. When it goes we will likely be replacing it all rather than whatever it would cost for refill. Someday down the road I wonder if that 1234 will get much more expensive to deal with.

Sponsored