Rear, transfer case and front differential oil change

Hey all,

im going to be replacing the gear oil in all 3 soon. I’m going to be installing sae80w-90 gear oil for the rear. Is this ok to use in the front diff and transfer case?

also, I have the 4wd off road package, so will I have room for the squeeze bottle to pour into the front diff fill hole?

thanks in advance

 

http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/2n...ront-diff-transfer-case-oil-change-howto.html

 

I just did this on my 99! I picked up this 75w90 for sale from napa. A $6 harbor freight transfer pump made filling the front diff a lot easier, the filler is a little more tucked up in there. You’ll need to remove the skid plates. The transfer case and rear diff were easy. Make sure you open the upper filler plugs *first*, as good practice. Pick up some crush washers from your Toyota dealer and you’re good to go!

 

cool! I was wondering how to get up in the front. Thank you! Toyota wants $40 a quart for gear oil lol it’s gear oil, not crude oil.

 

Forgot to mention: how many quarts of gear oil do I need for all 3? And is sae80w-90 ok for all 3? Thanks

 

I run Amsolil in the diffs and tcase and redline in the 5 speed.
If you get the amsoil oil bags you don't need a pump, it's a little tight up front but works just fine using the oil bags.

Be extra careful getting the bottom drain plug out because the Allen key type head will strip easily.
Measure out the amount of oil need for the front, if you put too much it will blow out the breather vent all over the place.
Don't fill the front diff till it starts coming out for the front, that's too much

The rear and tcase and manual transmission you do fill to just below the fill plug.

 

Assuming you don't do any severe towing or rock crawling 80W90 is totally fine for all 3

For severe usage I run 85W140 in the rear diff

 

I have used Amsoil, Redline, & Lucas in my '97 V6 Taco 4x4 hunting truck/mud machine. They have all worked very well. Here is a very interesting read about gear oil from a highly regarded diff. builder: ECGS Gear Oil Recommendation (eastcoastgearsupply.com).
The front and rear diffs. on the 1st gen Taco have factory installed magnetic drain plugs. Toyota sells both Hex and Allen head magnetic drain plugs for the R150F manual tranny/Tcase for just $3 or so each. They were not installed by the factory on our 1st Gen Tacos but were installed by the factory on the higher priced Toyota/Lexus vehicles & are very worthwhile IMO. In 56 years of wrenching, I have never removed a magnetic drain plug that did not have at least some gooey "fuzz" (aviation mechanic term for magnetic particles) on it.



EDIT: Below are some of the other standard and magnetic OEM drain plugs along with their respective gaskets. Pic is not mine and I don't know who to credit for this useful info.

 

The owner’s manual lists the quantities for all 3 also. If you have one.

 

That weight should be just fine, I used

$29 75w-90 Synthetic Gear Lube - 1 Quart (Pack of 2)

75w-90 but I doubt there'd be any practical difference with 80 (someone more experienced can chime in and correct if I'm way off), and I bought six total quarts and ended up having a +/- half a quart leftover after I was done.

 

Over the years stubborn me has always wrestled getting squeeze bottles up in there, last diff oil change I broke the bank with an under $20 bottle pump, turned to my younger self and asked "why you always bein' such a dumbass?" Now I keep a couple in the garage.

 

Thanks guys!

 

The squeeze bags are awesome for this!

 

If I'm using the plastic bottles, I stick a length of clear vinyl tube onto the end to make it easier to position.

 

do you know if there is also a magnetic drain plug that can be used on the crankcase oil pan drain

something like this at about the 10.17 timestamp

https://youtu.be/F-Q7lwxXP3Q?si=-GaTOF9_Ik59xfrt

 

Tcase too?

 

This is the first that I've heard of "squeeze bags".
When using a squeeze bag, how does one know when one squeezes too much oil into the front differential (or anywhere where else, for that matter)? And what prevents the tube from the squeeze bag from popping out of the differential fill hole?

 

This is what I’m talking about. I get them at Walmart for pretty cheap. These fills are “until fluid starts seeping out of the fill hole,” so just keep an eye for it to start dribbling out. The flexibility of the bag offers you pretty solid control of holding the nozzle in to the hole, it’s a piece of cake.

 

The reason I asked is because I just read in this thread that when oil starts running out of the fill hole of a front differential, there's too much oil in it.

I'll check my local Walmart for those bags and give 'em a try!

 

Ah, I didn’t catch that. That’s how I’ve filled mine and I haven’t had breather issues. YMMV though, so don’t take my word for it. I don’t have a service manual and just went off of posts here, YT videos, etc.