Changing my rear dif fluid

[jnaut]

Well I finally got it done. It's doable but I think I'm gona have the shop do it next time. It sucked maneuvering around the gas tank.

I'm a little confused here, was all the difficulty in getting the bolts off? I've done a rear diff fluid change and it was one of the easiest things I've ever done, and I'm no experienced wrench turner.

Are you referring to filling the oil once you've put the cover back on? The gear oil I bought comes in a large bottle. Just get a rubber hose, fix it to the bottle and bring the bottle out and away from the gas tank. Hold the bottle upside down and squeeze hard until all the fluid goes into the diff. It's a pretty straight forward procedure.

 

[jnaut]

You should work out a bit more.

The hardest part of changing my diff fluid was putting on the RTV.



Or 15,000... Which weight did you use?

My manual says to just use RTV, but I recommend spending the extra couple of bucks and getting a gasket. I think it gives you a better, more guaranteed seal.

 

[tjkj2002]

My manual says to just use RTV, but I recommend spending the extra couple of bucks and getting a gasket. I think it gives you a better, more guaranteed seal.

From doing thousands of diff services I've only had leaks when a gasket was used as specified by the owner,never had a leak with RTV.

 

[loves_off_roading]

I think it was so difficult for me because it was first time. Next time should be a lot easier.

Liberty Or Death
Thanks for the warning. I should be okay the article says the issues were with the 85W-140 and 75W-140 gear oil. But I'll take your advice and buy Valvoline next time.

 

[draganjr]

What are yall using to scrap of the old RTV? A plastic scrapper?

 

[sharpy]

a razor blade works great 4 gettin the old rtv off

 

[yellocoyote]

a razor blade works great 4 gettin the old rtv off

(yeahthat)

 

[tjkj2002]

What are yall using to scrap of the old RTV? A plastic scrapper?

I use a angle die grinder with a 2" 3M "red" prep pad,run it off my CO2 tank if need be but I also have a IR cordless die grinder that works great.Takes seconds to get rid of the old RTV.

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[Spidey]

Gaskets should not leak if proper care is taken to clean everything(the surfaces) up before hand, the same applies with RTV. I've seen both leak, personally. The key is taking the time to do things right.

 

[jnaut]

From doing thousands of diff services I've only had leaks when a gasket was used as specified by the owner,never had a leak with RTV.

Really? What's the cause of that?

Oh, for the record, I put a thin bead of RTV on the gasket as well. Diff is leak free thus far.

 

[tjkj2002]

Really? What's the cause of that?

Oh, for the record, I put a thin bead of RTV on the gasket as well. Diff is leak free thus far.

The diff cover area on most diffs are not perfectly machined flat,plus under heavy use the case can warp ever so slightly and having just a gasket can cause leaks and why RTV is the only recommended way to seal a diff cover.The cover area on diffs will really get mess up(warped and such) most of the time when you have the rear end rebuilt,change gears,or install a full carrier locker/LSD since some cases require a case stretcher and tooling marks on that surface from correct orientation for the bearing caps tend to mess up that surface also.Gaskets will not seal right in those conditions where as RTV will.

 

[brucebotti]

I use a angle die grinder with a 2" 3M "red" prep pad,run it off my CO2 tank if need be but I also have a IR cordless die grinder that works great.Takes seconds to get rid of the old RTV.

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Your recommendation is ideal. For those without a die grinder, you can also use a scotch-brite pad after getting most of the RTV off with a razor blade.
Bruce