changing diff/gear oil

I know I need to change this; I know nothing about the service that's been done to the car, and I'm worried it's never been done. But, I know hardly anything about it!

 

There's definitely rear diff oil, but is there also front that needs to be changed, or is that part of the oil/transmission system?

Where are any of these drain plugs?

Where are the fills?

What kind of oil should I put in?

 

I haven't found a good DIY on this either, so anyone that has a good run-thru is more than welcome to lend a hand. Thanks guys!

Rear Diff oil - SAE 80w-90 Gear Oil.

 

Thats what I hav in mine.

Rear Diff oil - SAE 80w-90 Gear Oil.

 

Thats what I hav in mine.

 

The bottom is the drain plug. And the top is the filler hole. You will to hav a 1/2in socket extention to get them off.

 

Put the drain plug back in. And fill the RD till it comes out top. Then plug.

 

I hope that helps out.

 

P.S. Gettin the oil in sucks. I don't know of an easy way. If you find one. let me know. LOL.

If you have an automatic, the front differential has its own fluid, separate from the transmission. If you have a manual transmission, the front diff will share the same bath as the tranny gears.

 

Auto Front and Auto(Manual) Rear Diff: GL-5 75W-90 (Mobil 1 will work well, and should outlast the car if you change it this late in the game.)

 

Manual Front Diff: GL-5 is recommended, but be careful which type, as some use extreme pressure additives that are corrosive to yellow metals, such as are used in your synchronizers. (Mobil 1 is a good choice for this, too.)

 

You can get fancy with your oil, but it's really not worth it, IMO.

 

Most gear oils come in a container with a spout designed for the purpose, but getting the last .2-.3 liters out is still tough. I went to Walmart and bought a syringe with a long, bent tip. This seemed to work well - suck it up and pump it into the diff : )

My buddy has something like this [ame=http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000BQW5LK/ref=pd_lpo_k2_dp_sr_3?pf_rd_p=486539851&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe-1&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=B000CPIOBA&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=1AKG5T87E55Z03Z19690]Amazon.com: Plews/ Edelmann #55001 Quart Lubrimat Fluid Pump: Automotive[/ame]

 

He bought it at a local parts store. Basically it screws on in place of the lid and you just pump it into the diff. When it comes time to change my diff fluid I am going to pick one up with the oil.

Ok. Nice.

any pics on where the front drain and fill plugs are?

Drain plug should be directly under where your front axles go into the transmission, as far as the fill tube, if its the same as the 08 4AT then it would be located on the passenger side above the right axle, toward I guess you would say the back of what would be the "bell housing" since its one whole cast part.

 

This is info I got from the 08 Automatic diff fluid changing guide, so I'm not sure if its the same as your 98.

 

Its a T-70 bolt if that helps you find it.

ive heard of people using mustard containers and such anything with a spout to get the last bit of oil filled up

A syringe with an extended nozzle from Walmart works and is cheap!

just drain plug fill and then good to go?

Exactly! Make sure you get the fill plug off first! I had a lift and a really long breaker bar, so both of my plugs came off very easily, but I read all the time about how hard they are for some one only on jack stands.

 

1. Fill plug off.

 

2. Drain plug off, with container to catch.

 

3. Drain plug back in, torqued.

 

4. Squeeze bottle until you can't get any more out - it's tough to get it all, since it's such a weird angle (for the rear diff)

 

5. Syringe out the rest and inject it into the fill hole until you see it start to overflow from the fill hole.

 

6. Fill plug back in, torqued.

 

Done!

should you change front and rear diff fluid? aswell as transmission or only the two and do you use the same oil in all for a manual transmission?? sorry this stuff just confuses me.

I just purchased a 2006 Legacy 2.5i SE LTD and started to change the rear differential fluid because I noticed some seepage. On my vehicle both the drain and fill plugs have a 17mm head and when I removed them they both had aluminum washers they look in pretty bad shape and maybe this is why some fluid was seeping. I've noticed some of the other posts/photos show a different type of drear diff plugs. Should my 06 have 17mm plugs and washers or could the previous owner have switched to aftermarket parts? Is a washer even needed?

I used a pump I got from a marine dealer witha hose to fill outboard lower units. A bit slow to pump it all in but it worked.