RacerJJ Posted March 11, 2005 Report Share Posted March 11, 2005 (edited) I'm all for doing things myself, but I was wondering if it would be easier to have them serviced by the dealer or a shop? I'm sure mine probably need it with the weekly racing and daily commutes to work (80 miles round trip). I've got 43k total on her now. TIA. Edited March 11, 2005 by racerbubba (see edit history) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hank Posted March 11, 2005 Report Share Posted March 11, 2005 i had my front done while at the dealer for something else with about 30k miles on it. ive got almost 39k now and im thinking its about time for the rear diff. and a fuel filter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BenKey Posted March 11, 2005 Report Share Posted March 11, 2005 I would do myself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve summers Posted March 11, 2005 Report Share Posted March 11, 2005 I've done them both. The front is fairly easy and straight forward with a drain plug and fill plug. I used the pump I have for my boat lower unit to transfer the fluid into the diff. The back was a different story, I took the inspection cover off and of course the gasket ripped. The local Autozone didn't have the gasket so I went to O'Reilly's. They didn't have a listing but they called their supplier who told them which gasket would work, and fortunately I took the cover with me to match it up. I used Amsoil as the replacement lube in both ends. On a related note has anyone replaced their rear diff cover with one that has a drain plug? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
misterp Posted March 11, 2005 Report Share Posted March 11, 2005 Hint draining rear diff - assuming that the gaket has not been overheated and become brittle -or- was double-glued with silicone: you can usually just back-off all the diff cover bolts 1/2-inch and then *gently* pry the bottom of the cover loose enough to allow the fluid/filings to escape, then tighten back up and refill. Just be careful not to gouge anything with the screwdriver, and do not over-tighten. I have always had good luck never had one leak, even after 4 fluid changes and 130K on my Ford Expedition... Mr. P. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leo67 Posted March 11, 2005 Report Share Posted March 11, 2005 just got mine done this past tues,, 19,250miles rear, transfercase, trans, and front diff. it may seem early but, I'll be driving down to fla. tonight,, thought it was the thing to do,, but one thing for sure never again will i be raped for fluids at a dealer $495.00,, I told the casheir u got the wrong car/invoice i came in here for fluids.. capable of doing the work myself (i preffer to do it myself, don't really trust mechanics, it's just way to routine for them) but under recent weather conditions, it's hard to do without a garage or at least dry ground Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve summers Posted March 11, 2005 Report Share Posted March 11, 2005 just got mine done this past tues,, 19,250miles rear, transfercase, trans, and front diff. it may seem early but, I'll be driving down to fla. tonight,, thought it was the thing to do,, but one thing for sure never again will i be raped for fluids at a dealer $495.00,, I told the casheir u got the wrong car/invoice i came in here for fluids.. capable of doing the work myself (i preffer to do it myself, don't really trust mechanics, it's just way to routine for them) but under recent weather conditions, it's hard to do without a garage or at least dry ground <{POST_SNAPBACK}> $495? Did they kiss you or just ride you like a bad dog? So was it $300 for the tranny and xfer case and $100 for each end? That is crazy. With only 19K miles you still had alot of miles left in the existing fluids. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leo67 Posted March 12, 2005 Report Share Posted March 12, 2005 just got mine done this past tues,, 19,250miles rear, transfercase, trans, and front diff. it may seem early but, I'll be driving down to fla. tonight,, thought it was the thing to do,, but one thing for sure never again will i be raped for fluids at a dealer $495.00,, I told the casheir u got the wrong car/invoice i came in here for fluids.. capable of doing the work myself (i preffer to do it myself, don't really trust mechanics, it's just way to routine for them) but under recent weather conditions, it's hard to do without a garage or at least dry ground <{POST_SNAPBACK}> $495? Did they kiss you or just ride you like a bad dog? So was it $300 for the tranny and xfer case and $100 for each end? That is crazy. With only 19K miles you still had alot of miles left in the existing fluids. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> no,, it was more like here's a free cup of coffee and bend over and squeal like a pig,, and hell not even an ounce of synthetic grease,, as for mileage don't really follow the book,, especially engine oil,, all my other trucks/cars/bikes i will usually do front diffs, rears, trans, transfer case every year,, regardless of mileage,, it's probably somewhat overkill to some,, but in my book it's not,,I'm not into keeping logs or looking into the manuals for when it's time to change what,, hell i think fluids are cheap enough that i can budget it once a year.. engine oil every 3k (and yes synthetic, don't like the 7.5k plan, and yes i did change the oil on mon. while waiting for fed-ex to deliver my speedstur lid which they screwed me on,, no lid only the hardware came,, anyway that's another issue that killed that sunny 60 degree day,, if i knew, i would of done the fluids that day, but had plans on installing the lid,, back to engine oil,, 2400 miles since last oil change, looked real dirty,, had to do it anyway because i'm about to put 2400+ miles on it.) and coolant i'll do every other year, not sure what to do with the dex-cool stuff yet I admit that the dealer was a mistake,, never went to a dealer for this type of service, not unless, it was free. I was pressed for time(work) and the weather just turned to s**t the next day.. one thing that i did notice is that, the little whining/groan when i slow down to make a turn has really toned down,, don't get me wrong it's still there, just alot less audible.. as for the price i don't recall the itemized stuff, but total labor was $295,, another thing that bothers me is that this was the first fluid service,, and i would of liked to see the condition, and to see if there was any clues to maybe premature failure... oh well Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BenKey Posted March 12, 2005 Report Share Posted March 12, 2005 Hint draining rear diff - assuming that the gaket has not been overheated and become brittle -or- was double-glued with silicone: you can usually just back-off all the diff cover bolts 1/2-inch and then *gently* pry the bottom of the cover loose enough to allow the fluid/filings to escape, then tighten back up and refill. Just be careful not to gouge anything with the screwdriver, and do not over-tighten. I have always had good luck never had one leak, even after 4 fluid changes and 130K on my Ford Expedition... Mr. P. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> My luck, I'd try this and it would start leaking. Then, I'd have to take it off and do it the right way anyway and risk losing the $15 in fluid I just put in. I don't have a big thing for shortcuts when it comes to autowork. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RacerJJ Posted March 12, 2005 Author Report Share Posted March 12, 2005 i had my front done while at the dealer for something else with about 30k miles on it. ive got almost 39k now and im thinking its about time for the rear diff. and a fuel filter. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Thanks...I do the fuel filter every 10k or so. I've heard that if you don't keep a clean filter on cheby's, the pump will go bad on you. They're easy and cheap so I do it more often just to be safe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RacerJJ Posted March 12, 2005 Author Report Share Posted March 12, 2005 Thanks for all of the info guys. Anybody have any idea on what fluid to use? I usually use Lucas Oil products in the truck. Is it just standard 90 weight for both diffs? Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve summers Posted March 12, 2005 Report Share Posted March 12, 2005 Hint draining rear diff - assuming that the gaket has not been overheated and become brittle -or- was double-glued with silicone: you can usually just back-off all the diff cover bolts 1/2-inch and then *gently* pry the bottom of the cover loose enough to allow the fluid/filings to escape, then tighten back up and refill. Just be careful not to gouge anything with the screwdriver, and do not over-tighten. I have always had good luck never had one leak, even after 4 fluid changes and 130K on my Ford Expedition... Mr. P. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> My luck, I'd try this and it would start leaking. Then, I'd have to take it off and do it the right way anyway and risk losing the $15 in fluid I just put in. I don't have a big thing for shortcuts when it comes to autowork. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> I feel the same way. After Autozone said the gasket was a nogo I almost came home and used silicon. I knew it would bug me te entire time it was there, and had this thought of all of the fluid leaking out while I was on a 200 miles trip somewhere. So I decided to do it right the first time..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
misterp Posted March 13, 2005 Report Share Posted March 13, 2005 Hint draining rear diff - assuming that the gaket has not been overheated and become brittle -or- was double-glued with silicone: you can usually just back-off all the diff cover bolts 1/2-inch and then *gently* pry the bottom of the cover loose enough to allow the fluid/filings to escape, then tighten back up and refill. Just be careful not to gouge anything with the screwdriver, and do not over-tighten. I have always had good luck never had one leak, even after 4 fluid changes and 130K on my Ford Expedition... Mr. P. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> My luck, I'd try this and it would start leaking. Then, I'd have to take it off and do it the right way anyway and risk losing the $15 in fluid I just put in. I don't have a big thing for shortcuts when it comes to autowork. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> I feel the same way. After Autozone said the gasket was a nogo I almost came home and used silicon. I knew it would bug me te entire time it was there, and had this thought of all of the fluid leaking out while I was on a 200 miles trip somewhere. So I decided to do it right the first time..... <{POST_SNAPBACK}> I do not cut corners. It's a good thing for you both that these trucks don't run BG Demon carbs, or else you would be spending a small fortune in new gaskets during jet changes. Gaskets are meant to be reused - ask anyone that has campaigned a race car for any length of time. Speaking from experience: gaskets do require care, but provided you get the right material for the job and don't ever abuse it (overheat or overtorque) then it is almost indefinitely reusable - head gaskets included. Mr. P. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RacerJJ Posted March 21, 2005 Author Report Share Posted March 21, 2005 Did them both yesterday. Very easy, finished in less than an hour. Just a tip for anyone who does the rear themselves...make sure you have a gasket before you start!!!! I thought I would try to reuse the gasket like some of ya'll suggested and it ripped on the top! So, I called every store around and no one had one so I had to silicon the S*** out of it. No leaks...yet! Plus, it looks way cool with the orange goop squeezing out everywhere! Gives it that old school feel! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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