Tranny, Diffs and Plug maintenance.
#11
10-05-2011, 04:49 PM
The Ram sits high and working on your back is perfect height so no lift is needed.
You either let the fluid go bright red or until you have drained about 17-18qts worth of fluid. You'll dump fluid, change filters, dump more fluid, then dump a little more but not all of it the 3rd go around unless you don't mind wasting an extra few qts? 7x3=21qts. 3rd go around only needs to be done half the amount of time.
Trans flush/filter change shouldn't take more than 2hrs total.
Rear diff ~45min. Front diff might take ~1.5hrs because you have to drop the skidplate and clearance is tight.
I've heard that the easiest way to change the plugs is to remove the inner fender liners. They are real easy to remove. There are only a few 8mm bolts holding them inplace and then you can pull them right out. Allows much easier access to the plugs, especially the rear cylinders that are the most PIA.
Diff fluid should be Full Synthetic. Friction modifier is generally in the better brands like Valvoline, Mobil 1 and RP already. You can add a bottle along with 2qts to the rear so that it's cheaper than buying 3qts and only using .25qts. The rear diff takes 2.25qts or 1/4"-1/2" below the inspection cover on the back plate. Front dif doesn't need additive. When I did my rear diff change, I used Mobil 1 and did Not use additive and haven't noticed any chatter or slippage in my rear diff and I've towed alot of really heavy loads, so there's definately enough additive already in them.
Total time is a whole saturday afternoon.
I would highly reccomend getting some large cardboard and doubling it up to lie underneath your truck while you are doing the fluid swaps. It will absorb most of your mess and make clean-up super easy. I've used carboard for years and it works like a charm every time. Just don't expect it to absorb several qts of trans fluid if you miss the bucket..lol
You either let the fluid go bright red or until you have drained about 17-18qts worth of fluid. You'll dump fluid, change filters, dump more fluid, then dump a little more but not all of it the 3rd go around unless you don't mind wasting an extra few qts? 7x3=21qts. 3rd go around only needs to be done half the amount of time.
Trans flush/filter change shouldn't take more than 2hrs total.
Rear diff ~45min. Front diff might take ~1.5hrs because you have to drop the skidplate and clearance is tight.
I've heard that the easiest way to change the plugs is to remove the inner fender liners. They are real easy to remove. There are only a few 8mm bolts holding them inplace and then you can pull them right out. Allows much easier access to the plugs, especially the rear cylinders that are the most PIA.
Diff fluid should be Full Synthetic. Friction modifier is generally in the better brands like Valvoline, Mobil 1 and RP already. You can add a bottle along with 2qts to the rear so that it's cheaper than buying 3qts and only using .25qts. The rear diff takes 2.25qts or 1/4"-1/2" below the inspection cover on the back plate. Front dif doesn't need additive. When I did my rear diff change, I used Mobil 1 and did Not use additive and haven't noticed any chatter or slippage in my rear diff and I've towed alot of really heavy loads, so there's definately enough additive already in them.
Total time is a whole saturday afternoon.
I would highly reccomend getting some large cardboard and doubling it up to lie underneath your truck while you are doing the fluid swaps. It will absorb most of your mess and make clean-up super easy. I've used carboard for years and it works like a charm every time. Just don't expect it to absorb several qts of trans fluid if you miss the bucket..lol