drain and refill diff oils - handy hint

[knicko]

I have just drained and refilled all three diffs on my vehicle. The rear and centre (transfer box) diffs have 24mm plugs, while the front diff has a hexagonal drive style filler and plug that, in my case, were both 10mm.

I had read on here that one was 10mm and the other was 12mm and I know that my old Hilux Surf front diff filler/drain had different sized hex drives. The replacements that I ordered from Toyota prior to doing the job were both 10mm though, so I wonder if Toyota changed these at some point so that both were the same size? I would say that the ones I took out of the front diff were not the originals, so perhaps that's why they were both 10mm too?

Anyway, my previous experience with the same type of 24mm plugs on my old Surf prepared me well for doing this job - the six sided nuts are not very 'tall' and are also not made of terribly hard steel. They can be tight and are easy to round off. This is exacerbated by the fact that the 'business end' of your 24mm socket will most likely be sort of chamfered inwards, so that the sides of the socket don't contact with much of the flats of the 24mm plugs.

To help get the old plugs out with the best chance of not rounding them off, I got a six sided (avoid the 12 point type) socket and used an angle grinder to remove the chamfered part of the socket face. By grinding off a couple of millimetres of the socket face (make sure you grind it off nice and square), you will get a much better contact on the 24mm plugs. I have kept this adapted socket for future diff oil changes.

I don't think I can post photos, but I'm sure you get the idea.

 

[Chris]

We do this for the 54 mm sockets too for the hubs. But generally in the lathe. It's a little more precise

 

[Beau]

Good tip. A bit of heat normally helps as well.

 

[V8 or be Late]

Yes, this is a good tip,! i had no problems with the 24 mm plugs.! i had the problem with the 10 mm hex Filler plug on my front diff.! was dificult to get into weld it so i eventualy tack welded a 10 mm 316 Stainless steel nut to get it removed, then at a bech and vice removed the stainlees nut an cleaned the plug and then fully welded a 10 mm short bolt into the old hex slot and grinded it neat so a 17 mm spanner fits with ease now.!! far better job, and no problems for future removal.!! I used the 316 Stainless nut to tack in the beginning because its softer than normal steel and i didnt have to use very high amps to tack it .!