Rear Diff

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mickmonk

Active member
Joined
Feb 6, 2010
Messages
40
Hi all, Just changed my rear diff oil for the first time, oil came out very dark grey. on the drain plug magnet there was a few shards of metal mixed with grey sludge. I have not had a problem but decided to gradually change all the oils, the cars done 92,000 miles and I only have history to 46000. judging by how hard the filler plug was to come out, the oil may have been in there since new. not sure if the grey sludge is some sort of additive or just normal.

Thanks:confused::confused:
 
I have just bought the oil to do mine :)

did it make a difference ?
 
I've been for a drive and no it did not. I used comma lsd, I'll run that for a couple of thousand miles to remove the sludge and then change to a synthetic as I do a lot of caravan towing i figure that will help.I used to run a Disco and synthetics in the drive train and engine saved fuel and made it better to drive all round and even better from cold
 
I've been for a drive and no it did not. I used comma lsd, I'll run that for a couple of thousand miles to remove the sludge and then change to a synthetic as I do a lot of caravan towing i figure that will help.I used to run a Disco and synthetics in the drive train and engine saved fuel and made it better to drive all round and even better from cold

If you're happy but don't think thats necessary TBH.....plus the manual makes a big point of speccing only standard LSD oil, such as the Comma product.......

Its a clutch mechanism so any sludge in the system would not have helped....it also means that the viscosity is key....hence the need to stick with normal LSD
 
If it was proper manky I'd run it for 1000 miles, or a couple of months then change it again to flush all the cr*p out.
I did my 05 with 34k on the clock and it made a noticable difference - esp when reversing round sharp corners :thumbs
 
Thanks, I can see that, the disco never had lsd diff so I had not thought about the clutches. The oil I drained out looked to me like it had molyslip or some graphite based product. although I went for a 15 mile spin and did not notice any more noise on new oil
 
Thanks, I can see that, the disco never had lsd diff so I had not thought about the clutches. The oil I drained out looked to me like it had molyslip or some graphite based product. although I went for a 15 mile spin and did not notice any more noise on new oil

Shouldn't be any additive in it whatsoever.....probably just sludge product from very old oil - its typical! You wouldn't notice any more noise, it usually has the opposite effect as old LSD oil produces some very odd symptoms ranging from weird noises to poor handling.

Your reversing should be A1 normal, nothing untoward at all....:thumb2
 
Many thanks, will change again after a couple of months
cheers
 
you know that flush stuff some people put in their engines to flush out old engine oil ....... would it work in a diff ? :nenau
 
not sure, I'd rather let the proper oil do the work, a bit more expensive but it should get rid of the sludge. I keep changing until sludge has gone and lsd is hopefully working
 
bigblack, what happens when reversing round sharp corners


With mine the rear wheels felt like they were locking up.... it was the diff winding up - occasionally would get a grind too and you would have to go forwards a little to 'loosen' things up again.
Changed oil for LSD ran it for 1k, drained and changed again (again for proper LSD oil) and no probs at all now
Prob a garage who'd changed it at some point and not put the right stuff in!!! :doh
 
you know that flush stuff some people put in their engines to flush out old engine oil ....... would it work in a diff ? :nenau

no way to flush it effectively really and its too sensitive to use anything else in while its running...hence the usual procedure of refilling after a few weeks once any shite has worked its way into the new oil....
 
Just thinking out aloud

Looking at this thread got me thinking..
As I tow a caravan ocassionally with my Maverick 2.7 td "N" reg and also do a lot of 4wd greenlaning and 2wd road driving,in other words its in 2wd HI and 4wd LO and 4WD HI all within the space of 6 hrs is changing the rear diff oil a yearly job, also what about gearbox,transfer box oil and front diff etc do they require a yearly change because at the moment I only change the engine oil and fuel filter on a yearly basis (yearly mileage is 10/11 k) I know its terrible but just remember the "if it aint broke then dont try and fix it" Does anyone know the intervals and correct lubricate specs for my vehicle. Monty :naughty :naughty :naughty
 
Looking at this thread got me thinking..
As I tow a caravan ocassionally with my Maverick 2.7 td "N" reg and also do a lot of 4wd greenlaning and 2wd road driving,in other words its in 2wd HI and 4wd LO and 4WD HI all within the space of 6 hrs is changing the rear diff oil a yearly job, also what about gearbox,transfer box oil and front diff etc do they require a yearly change because at the moment I only change the engine oil and fuel filter on a yearly basis (yearly mileage is 10/11 k) I know its terrible but just remember the "if it aint broke then dont try and fix it" Does anyone know the intervals and correct lubricate specs for my vehicle. Monty :naughty :naughty :naughty

http://bebrs.pie-dabas.net/Webs/Terrano/R20/ma.pdf
 

with the diffs etc briggie has posted the intervals for those and on a truck of that vintage I'd say the more the merrier frankly.

When it comes to engine oil 10,000 miles is too long. Original engine oil intervals were 6,000...mainly because the turbo has a tendency to contaminate the engine oil with carbon that accelerates the wear process if left in the mix.....thats why the oil turns black fairly quickly.

With proper care and regular oil changes these engines will outlast the bodywork by a factor of about three.....the truck that Extreme is now driving covered nearly 180k miles in ten years from new and has a stack of service bills to prove that I never scrimped on things....but ask him, it sounds like a bloody sewing machine.....:thumbs
 
Old LSD Diff oil does look a graphite colour, it is contaminated with material from the small clutches that are in the LSD. This is normal. Always use LSD oil, Comma LSD is what I use. If it has not been changed for a while then use new LSD oil for say a thousand miles as suggested and re-fill with New LSD oil. Oil is then good for 40 k miles.
Try and keep the same type of tyre on the rear axle with the same depth of tread, it saves wear and tear on the rear diff.
Regarding engine oil changes, you must change the oil every 6000 miles or 12 months whichever is soonest, I guess if you want to save a few pounds and effort... you could change the filter yearly, (ie every other oil change). But is it worth it?
Why do Nissan give you the quantities for engine oil, with and without oil filter unless some people do this..
Best regards, Rustic
 
Thanks, I thought at first when I saw the colour of the oil that I had a major problem, I'll change after a 1000miles with comma lsd.
 
What's the story with gearbox and front diff oil? How often to change them? If I open the window I can smell what seems to be gear oil of some type,usually only on a long drive. Closing the window I get the normal interior smell, takeaway food,cow dung,sweat, last month's pizza,half empty coffee cups etc etc.:augie
 

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