request for 2wd rear axle fluid type and amount needed
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Samm25
New member
Just changed my rear diff fluid a few weeks ago and used Mobil1 Full Synthetic. https://shop.advanceautoparts.com/p...9-P?navigationPath=L1*14924|L2*15038|L3*16157
It took about 3 quarts from draining it to empty. Be sure to get a fluid pump as well, makes the job a lot easier.
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It took about 3 quarts from draining it to empty. Be sure to get a fluid pump as well, makes the job a lot easier.
Sent from my SM-G965U using Tapatalk
thanks, i use mobile one in just about everything i changed so far so im glad to hear i can use it for this too
i just wasnt sure if toyota had anything "special" for the fluid they use
we arent talking about a transmission here, its the rear axle on a 2wd vehicle, most people drive 500k miles if they can and never ever change theirs
Inv4drZm
Senior Member
Toyota recommends 60k intervals for rear diff, and obviously less if you drive through water, lots of interstate or towing. It's the easiest oil to change by far and costs basically nothing to do so. BTW Toyota says the transmission fluid is 'lifetime'.
2WD has nothing to do with the change interval, its the same rear axle.
Samm25
New member
Yeah, it's worked like a charm so far. Have about 1,000 miles on it. Actually convinced my dad to change his the day after I did mine. He's got about 50k less miles than me and his fluid wasn't in terrible shape. But Mobil1 does wonders! Switched from original gear oil to full synthetic.
Didn't notice much of a difference as far as smoothness goes and such but it's a good peace of mind that it's at least clean fluid.
Good luck!
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follow up post:
well i just replaced the rear end fluid and i used mobile one full synthetic
it took 3 and 3/4 quarts so just shy of a full gallon so be sure to buy 4 quarts if you are planing to do this job
it was super easy and as you can imagine after 185k miles, mine was really dirty, but overall it still looked fairly good and healthy. i have no clue if, or when, it ever got changed before, but im just assuming never, since no one i know has ever put this item on any maint list of things to do.
i also replaced my alternator today and that was no fun at all, the whole intake system and radiator hoses must come off so the power steering pump can be moved out of the way to replace it, then the skid plate must come off to get access to the alternator bolts. man someone spent a lot of time in the design room making it literally as hard to access and replace as humanly possible.
well i just replaced the rear end fluid and i used mobile one full synthetic
it took 3 and 3/4 quarts so just shy of a full gallon so be sure to buy 4 quarts if you are planing to do this job
it was super easy and as you can imagine after 185k miles, mine was really dirty, but overall it still looked fairly good and healthy. i have no clue if, or when, it ever got changed before, but im just assuming never, since no one i know has ever put this item on any maint list of things to do.
i also replaced my alternator today and that was no fun at all, the whole intake system and radiator hoses must come off so the power steering pump can be moved out of the way to replace it, then the skid plate must come off to get access to the alternator bolts. man someone spent a lot of time in the design room making it literally as hard to access and replace as humanly possible.
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another follow up:
i am getting much better gas mileage with it now
i replaced the rear axle fluid and also did a tranny fluid flush and replace through the aux cooler at the radiator so i dont know if its a combination of both or one or the other that had the most impact.
the tranny shifts much smoother now after the fluid flush and replace and
the rear end no longer has that notable whine it had to it like before at around 25-30 mph
trips that used to burn 1/3 of a tank now only use 1/4 tank of gas :banana:
i am getting much better gas mileage with it now
i replaced the rear axle fluid and also did a tranny fluid flush and replace through the aux cooler at the radiator so i dont know if its a combination of both or one or the other that had the most impact.
the tranny shifts much smoother now after the fluid flush and replace and
the rear end no longer has that notable whine it had to it like before at around 25-30 mph
trips that used to burn 1/3 of a tank now only use 1/4 tank of gas :banana:
its still too early to tell i think (im starting on the second full tank after fluids were changed) but just on the dash display average mileage estimates it shows a jump up from a constant long term average 15.6 mpg, it rose to 16.4 mpg and im going to assume its still creeping up a tad on the average so maybe it might go another .1 or .2 higher
not earth shattering number increase by any means but i'll definitely take it and it adds up over time even if its just 1 mph more im getting
Samm25
New member
I never trust my dash display for my MPG. I always just reset my trip ODO and then divide it into the amount of gallons it took on my next fill up. Always more accurate.
My dash display showed I was getting 18.6 MPG one time and I calculated t manually and came up with 14.3. Never trusted that thing again haha
if it is not coming back out of the fill hole, when its on flat level surface then its not over filled lol
i filled it until it started coming back out and then let it stop coming out before putting the fill plug back in
Drunner97
New member
It's over filled. It's really easy to have the axle leaning one side or the other where it'll fill up the axle tube with extra oil before it begins to spill out of the fill hole. That's why you have to do it on a level surface. Hey, it's your seals that you risk blowing out eventually because too much pressure in the axle. Especially since the manual clearly states 3.05 quarts.
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yes i totally agree, the dash is just a rough guide and can be way way off since its an "average" and each time you drive it can vary wildly if you are driving aggressive or pulling a boat. a good example is when i bought the truck it was reading something like 17.5 mpg average because it was just being driven slow around the town on test drives. when i drove it home 300 miles from the dealership it showed i averaged 17.3 mpg and i was doing 80 mph the whole way lol. it dropped to 16 mpg once i started driving it "normally" and 15 mpg when pulling the boat.
i was just using it as a rough guide to see what type of difference it made after i noticed i didnt burn as much gas after the fluid change.
with my last fill up the "average" says im getting 16.5 mpg now so its still creeping up a little. that is pretty much on par with the math if i figure it out manually. the dash estimates are very close on this 4runner but you are right about not trusting it because i found on most cars its a joke and not even close. the newer the vehicle the more off those dash gauge mpg estimates are
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AuSeeker
Elite Member
Just an FYI, you're reading the capacities incorrectly, the 3.05 is in liters not quarts, hince the L, and in the parentheses it is qt (quarts) 3.22 and Imp. qt (Imperial quarts) 2.7, so it's really around 3 1/4 quarts and he said he put in 3 3/4 quarts and it started coming out the fill hole and he let it flow out until it stopped, so he is most likely around the 3 1/4 quarts and even if a 1/2 quart didn't come out before he put the plug back in he's not that much overfilled.
That being said, I'm guessing if you change your own diff fluid and only put in 3.05 liters, then you are most likely about 1/4 quart low in your T4R diff! :scared:
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Drunner97
New member
3.05, 3.2, close enough. Almost 4 is overfilled regardless. I usually shoot for 3 and I use Lucas 85-140 per ecgs. It's thick enough to handle missing .2
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AuSeeker
Elite Member
I wouldn't call 6 to 8 ounces close enough, better to have a touch to much than to have it way under filled, IMHO, but it's your truck.
Drunner97
New member
3 quarts = running out of the fill hole on an even stable driveway. I'm from under filled. Lucas 85-140 is thick and clings better than that water (Mobil 1) everyone else uses. Out of 104 ounces I would be missing 8 ounces. I wheel my rig hard, I drive it hard, I change my rear fluids every 3-4 months regardless of mileage and it's usually black and nasty. Regardless, I'd still rather be underfilled with a quality gear oil than overfilled and risk blowing out my seals. To each their own, go find someone else to argue with.
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