Front/Rear Differential Fluid Change Technique

[Boaring1961]

I've changed the front/rear diff oil in two of my trucks regularly over the years, which was always done by removing the cover and then cleaning things up and reinstalling the cover and refilling with oil.

Is it possible to just loosen the bolts on the diff cover to drain the fluid and then tighten them back down without even fully opening the diff? I'm not having any issues or weird sounds from them so I'm not sure what there will be to see. My only concern is cleaning the face of the cover and diff so it gets a clean seal.

 

[Crunch]

You can do it that way. But in general it's always good to actually see and inspect the gears and the O-ring, and also look for metal shavings in the differential that would indicate excessive wear. The Dodge dealers are supposed to completely remove the cover for that reason, but if you take it to a small shop they frequently just pump out the old fluid and add new fluid with no inspection whatsoever. I think there is also a magnet inside to collect the metal shavings, and it's a good idea to clean them off of it when doing the inspection.

 

[seafish]

On my 2005 front and rear differentials, during my first fluid change, I drilled and tapped a 1/8" ip hole into the lowest part of the housing and then used a primary case oil drain plug with a builtin magnet from Harley Davidson to plug the hole. Now I can drain the fluid first without making a mess and then remove the cover for inspection if and when needed. The Harley oil plug is Harley Davidson Part #739A and only costs 6$ or less.

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