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Dealer wants $660 to change differential fluid

The Pointer

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I learned the hard way by waiting many years before changing the differential fluid in one of my vehicles. Those bolts were a bitch to get loose. Finally used some fluid and a breaker bar to get them loose.
Now I loosen and tighten the bolts when the vehicle is new so it’s not so difficult when I am ready to perform the service.
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wibornz

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The important part here is that it really does not matter in which order you remove the plugs. It makes zero difference at the end of the day. With that said, if your plugs are all fucked up, take the fucked up one out first. This is now 16 pages of over thinking complicated nothing. It is two plugs. Pull the plugs, let the fluid drain. Refill the diff with the recommended fluid. If you have to be told to put the bottom plug in before you put new fluid back in, maybe you shouldn't be doing your own service. Some of you are acting like this is re-gearing the differential. It is just not that deep. Call up the Jeep rental places in Moab, they may very well tell you that they drive the Jeeps for months with blown axle seals and occasionally top off the fluid......
 

Vinman

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So let me get this right, you are comparing a vehicle that someone obviously fucked up and is many years old to a new plug that was installed at the factory on a new Jeep. Got it. Of course if I climbed under my Jeep to do some maintenance and found that something was ruined, I would address that problem first. This is not an apples to orange comparison. And after you welded a bolt onto the plug, did it take more than 1400 ft lbs of torque to remove it???? Is the plug torque specs the same on the transfer case as it is on the diff? Does the transfer case use the same fluid? Is the transfer case process even what this thread is about? In reality, I could go on and find hundreds of bolts and screws that have been messed up and they like this post has nothing to do with changing the diff fluid on a newer vehicle.
Well, that particular Jeep was less than 5 years old with 70k miles on when I bought it, so it’s not too far fetched to see a newer Jeep with similar problems.


An example is an old boss of mine had a new Chevy Blazer and during the second oil change it was discovered the drain plug had been cross threaded and stripped during the first change.
 

DanW

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It is still a VERY simple and wise piece of advice to take out the fill plug first. We can debate that all day, but it isn't like it takes extra energy. You are going to have to take it out anyway, so it adds zero additional effort.

But hey, nobody's forcing anyone to do anything, so we can all do it as we see fit. The good part is that we are all taking good care of our machines, so if one of us sells one to another, we know we got a good one!
 

Rhinebeck01

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It is still a VERY simple and wise piece of advice to take out the fill plug first. We can debate that all day, but it isn't like it takes extra energy. You are going to have to take it out anyway, so it adds zero additional effort.

But hey, nobody's forcing anyone to do anything, so we can all do it as we see fit. The good part is that we are all taking good care of our machines, so if one of us sells one to another, we know we got a good one!
@DanW

Reality is... friggin common sense alone, dictates that you always loosen the fill plug first.... before you remove the drain plug.. Kinda goes along with the saying an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure....

I'm still worried about this...
Jeep Wrangler JL Dealer wants $660 to change differential fluid Image1
 
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rockadile

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@DanW

Reality, is friggin common sense, alone, dictates that you always loosen a fill plug first, before you remove the drain plug.. Kinda goes along with the saying an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure....

I'm still worried about this...
Image1.jpg
Uh, not really. Those of us who have never done it lack that "common sense". As soon as I read it, it made absolute sense. But I probably never would have thought about it otherwise. It is more something that comes with experience rather than common sense. Since this thread is about those who were considering paying a dealer for a service that turns out to be quite simple, learning from others experience is EXACTLY the focus.

BTW, yeah, I see the rusted ratchet...take it off and your problem will go away.
 
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BWWJL

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You do not need friction modifier (though some oils have it by default).

Three quarts is enough to do both axles with no problems.

I highly recommend Amsoil as it is arguably the best on the market. I used 75W-110 in the front and 75W-140 in the rear.
Any harm just using 75w-140 for both?
 

CarbonSteel

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Any harm just using 75w-140 for both?
No; not at all. 75W-140 will afford better protection overall than a thinner viscosity in all operating conditions. I would rather have it and not need it instead of vice-versa.
 

Rhinebeck01

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Any harm just using 75w-140 for both?
@BWWJL

What many here do, is buy 2 bottles of 75W140 and 1 bottle of 75W90.

Now, you do your rear differential first and you will have left over 75W140.

Now, you do your front differential with the 1 bottle of 75w90 and also use what you need of the left over 75W140 to fill / top off the front differential.

Doing the proceeding saves you $..... saves you having leftover gear oil lying around...

For the record, gear oil companies state that there is no issue mixing the 75w90 with the 75w140 but to keep in mind how it impacts viscosity.

I just bought a case of this https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08KB5LTJM/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 (4 containers in the case) and also 2 bottles of this https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002HQGCVG/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1
These 2 orders, will give me what I need to do the 2 differentials twice. I save LOTS, going this route. In the end, it costs me about $55.00 total, to do the fluid change on both differentials.

Also, with the Flexfill packages, getting the oil in the diffs is easy easy.. And that single bottle, I'm using that is not in a Flexifill package ......, Well, I will pour that bottle into one of the empty Flexifill packages and squeeze that in also....

By the way, Royal Purple and Valvoline, both have the necessary additives, so no need to add Mopar additive.
 
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wibornz

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Good habits are good habits. If we're giving tips to people who may have never done the job before, why not give them some good helpful habits? Maybe they do it on they nice shiny new JL and see it's a simple job, so they go and help their friend to it on their TJ which may not be so pristine.
True.
 

wibornz

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Well, that particular Jeep was less than 5 years old with 70k miles on when I bought it, so it’s not too far fetched to see a newer Jeep with similar problems.


An example is an old boss of mine had a new Chevy Blazer and during the second oil change it was discovered the drain plug had been cross threaded and stripped during the first change.
So far fetched, you mean like 1 in 10, 1 in 100, 1 in 1000 or 1 in 10,000. I would bet that there are not 50 people on this site the have fucked up diff plugs. I am thinking that it is far feched. There is always going to be an exception to the rule. Kind of like the marathon runner in their thirties that die from a heart attack. Anyone asking how to change the diff fluid is probably doing it for the first time on a new vehicle that has never had the plugs removed.
 

BWWJL

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So far fetched, you mean like 1 in 10, 1 in 100, 1 in 1000 or 1 in 10,000. I would bet that there are not 50 people on this site the have fucked up diff plugs. I am thinking that it is far feched. There is always going to be an exception to the rule. Kind of like the marathon runner in their thirties that die from a heart attack. Anyone asking how to change the diff fluid is probably doing it for the first time on a new vehicle that has never had the plugs removed.
Jeep Wrangler JL Dealer wants $660 to change differential fluid 1610715443241
 

wibornz

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Yes there is a chance that if you fucked up your fill diff plug on your new vehicle and then over tightened it and then forgot, and then pulled out the drain plug first because you forgot that you fucked up the fill plug, you could very easily have a situation.
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