Re: Loss of diff fluid

From: Jason Bleazard (jason.dml@bleazard.net)
Date: Tue Mar 25 2003 - 07:40:26 EST


----- Original Message -----
From: "Mr. Plow" <adam_is_mr_plow@hotmail.com>
Sent: Tuesday, March 25, 2003 12:06 AM

> Well, obviously you're not going to get anything out of the dealer, even
if
> it was totally their fault, you know as well as i do what sort of fight
that
> would entail.... ;-)

Exactly. I can see it now... "can you *prove* that it was our fault? Isn't
it *possible* that the earth's magnetic field momentarily reversed itself,
causing your truck to shift its position in your driveway, at the exact same
moment that a freak weather front moved through, causing thermal expansion
in the differential cover? Isn't that *possible*?"

> Anyway, is the plug threaded, or does it just "pop" in?

It's one of the rubber pop-in kind.

> If it's threaded, then i could see some vibration shaking loose over a
long
> period of time, but if service was done in Nov. why was the plug still
found
> on your vehicle? Albeit on the skid plate, but you'd think it would even
> have fallen off of hat given the amount of mileage you put on it in a week
> ya know?

Good point, although I didn't drive the '95 much over the winter. From the
end of November to the end of February I only put 2000 miles on it, usually
I'm well over 3000 over that span of time. I guess I preferred to drive the
Quad because the heater works better :-).

> As for inspecting for damage, if you see metal shavings in the bottom of
the
> diff., that's an obvious sign of damage. Checking the teeth for any
missing
> chunks, and if they still mesh well with the other gears.
> You know this stuff Jason, so i think when you take a look at it you will
> likely be able to determine fairly easily if you've gotten any damage or
> not...

I know a little bit about gears, but it seems like there's always something
involved that I hadn't ever thought of. I probably won't be able to get a
really good look until I can get it up on Jon's lift. Guess about all I can
really do at this point is go with my original plan of just fixing whatever
breaks, and keeping up on the maintenance in the mean time.

Even before this incident, I was planning on changing to fully synthetic
fluid in all 4 diffs (both trucks) to comply with the trailer towing
recommendations in the owner's manuals. It's just made it so that I want to
get that done even sooner than I was originally planning on.

--
Jason Bleazard  http://www.bleazard.net  Toronto, Ontario
his:  '95 Dakota Sport 4x4, 3.9 V6, 5spd, Reg. Cab, white
hers: '01 Dakota Sport 4x4, 4.7 V8, Auto, Quad Cab, black

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