So I bring my truck, which has 13,800 miles on it, into the dealer for an oil change today and they tell me I should get the 12,000 mile services which includes a new air filter for $60 (crazy!) and a fluid change in the front and rear diff for $300.

That just seems ridiculous too me, I didn't plan on touching the front and rear diff fluid till at least 30K! Is this really necessary now?

Also the real question is this. When I bought my truck I paid extra for the lifetime powertrain warranty, will I void that warranty if I don't do the fluid change or if I take it somewhere else to have it done?

Thanks.

btw the truck has low miles because I bought it as a left over in 08 and take the train to and from work.

 

What does your manual say? Mine says 30k.

 

the owners manual says every 15K, that seems excessive to me. especially since I don't tow or off-road.

I've searched through the forum and saw guys that haven't touched it until 70K and higher..

 

my manual says 60k if used as a police towing or severe use. 120k if normal......

 

Check your warranty paperwork to tell you about maintenance vs. warranty. In all probability, you'll have to abide by the owners' manual.

Funny, but my '04 manual states 15k for severe use, 30k for normal. I change my rear at 15k because I use conventional lube (Auburn LSD calls for dino oil) and 30k for the front diff as I use synthetic there...

 

Yeah, I would read the manual and bring it to their attention. I would hate to see them trying to take advantage of a new owner

 

My 08 says 15k front and rear in the manual.. I personally changed mine the first time at 12.5k.. mainly because it was summer and I new I would hit 15k over winter.. so I'd rather do the diffs in nice warm weather.

I just did the rear for the second time at 36k and shortly I will do the front.. Front is a slightly bigger PITA due to it's location and I have the skid plate package so takes a little extra time. but either way I am using MOBIL 1 front and rear full synthetic.
I have the factory LSD in the rear with 3.92's all around

 

thanks for all the advice guys.

the owners manual lists two schedules for required maintenance. Schedule "B" for vehicles operated under towing, snowplowing, extensive idling, heavy load, etc... Schedule "A" for vehicles not operated under those conditions.

Schedule "B" says change front and rear axle fluid every 15,000 miles.

Schedule "A" makes no mentions of changing front and rear axle fluid at all. Only to change the transfer case fluid at 120,000 miles.

So basically they tried screwing me...Granted even though I don't operate under schedule "B" I don't plan on going forever without changing the fluid but I definitely think I can hold off until at least 30,000 miles and find a shop willing to do it for less than $300.

Also as a side note from what I understand after reading through the warranty book and the owners manual I can't find it stated anywhere that the vehicle must be serviced by the dealer to remain under warranty..so from here on out I'll just take care of the maintenance myself. Someone correct if they know different though.

 

I believe by law, they can't specify that a dealer must do the maintenance, but they can void warranty if the vehicle has not been maintained. I know you can even do maintenance yourself, as long as you keep your receipts.

I do all my own maintenance (well, I did pay for the tranny fluid change because I was too lazy for the mess you get when you drop the pan) so I can't tell you the going rate. I will say that it takes about 30 minutes per axle. Just don't let anyone pump the old fluid out. Make sure they actually remove the diff covers. The gears and magnet really needs to be inspected any time you do a change...

 

thats good advice thanks a lot for the help.