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For anyone contemplating doing their own gear oil change take a look at Mobil Delvac 75w-90 gear oil. It's one of the best you can buy, designed for big rig trucks with heavy loads and long use in the differential. It meets lots of manufacturer specs and it does not include LSD additives (good). I have personally used this in my LS430, Sienna and Ford vehicles with great success. I will be draining and refilling the LS460 differential with this as well. The OEM 75w-85 has the same cold viscisity but is thinner at operating temps to give slightly better fuel economy. Most people will not notice a change in fuel economy going from a 75w-85 to a 75w-90.
I do not use Amsoil or Redlne because these products are not certified/tested to meet various specifications even though the gear oil manufacturers claim they do.
It was time to change the differential fluid on my '08 LS. The maintenance schedule calls for replacing the fluid every 64k kms (about 40k miles). I got a quote from my Toyota dealer of 105 dollars all in. At first I was tempted, but I thought, "nah...I'll tackle it myself and post a DIY for my LS family here at CL". Doing it myself only saved me about 60 bucks, but I had fun doing it and it was pretty darned simple. I considered using Red Line 75W85 diff fluid, but I read some bad reviews and tests of the stuff and decided to stick with OEM. Since the Toy fluid is only a couple bucks more, it was a no-brainer. The Toy fluid comes in two different types - LT and LS. The LS is for limited slip diffs, and the LT is for regular diffs (like mine).
Also, BE SURE YOU CAN REMOVE THE FILL PLUG BEFORE YOU REMOVE THE DRAIN PLUG!! Otherwise, you'll be stuck with an empty diff and no way to re-fill it if the fill plug strips or is seized on.
So, here we go:
Tools needed:
Hex wrenches
Ramps or jack stands
PB Blaster or similar spray lube
Drain pan
Fluid pump (cheaply obtained at Harbor Freight or Walmart)
2 Liters/Qts of Toyota LT 75W85 GL-5
1. Back your vehicle onto the ramps or jack up and support the back end with jack and stands.
2. Spray the drain plug and fill plug with lube and let it sit for a bit.
3. Place a drain pan under the diff.
4. Before removing the drain plug, loosen the fill plug at the top of the diff:
5. Remove the drain plug and allow the fluid to fully drain:
6. While the fluid drains, you can clean the drain and fill plugs. The drain plug has a magnet attached to pick up any metallic sludge, as seen in the pic:
FWIW, the old fluid looked pretty good. I've seen nastier fluid from other vehicles I've changed the fluid on.
7. When the fluid has fully drained, replace the drain plug after cleaning all the sludge off.
8. Pierce the can of diff fluid with a large screwdriver and insert the suction end of the pump into the can:
9. Insert the dispensing end of the pump into the fill hole and pump the entire first can into the diff. Then, with the second can, begin pumping that one until fluid begins to leak out of the fill hole. A total of approx 1.4 liters of fluid will be pumped in. Remove the fill hose and allow any excess fluid to fully drain out of the diff. When it stops dripping, replace the fill plug and tighten. Lexus spec is that the fluid be 0-5mm from the bottom of the fill hole, so no need to worry about not having enough or too much fluid, so long as it stops dripping when you replace the plug:
10. Crack open a beer, or pour a nice glass of Dreaming Tree Cab Sauv and admire your handiwork.
After a few miles of driving, be sure to check that the drain plug isn't leaking.
Hope this proves helpful for some of you.
can I use 75w 90? I was going to buy Amsoil full synthetic 75w 90
What type of fluid should I use for my car? Does anyone have long term experience using a non toyota kind? It is a 2010 LS460L AWD. My fluid was changed at the dealer at 120k and I now have 197k. Is there a front diff too because on the lexus service history they said they changed the front diff fluid along with the rear.
What type of fluid should I use for my car? Does anyone have long term experience using a non toyota kind? It is a 2010 LS460L AWD. My fluid was changed at the dealer at 120k and I now have 197k. Is there a front diff too because on the lexus service history they said they changed the front diff fluid along with the rear.
From my 2014 owners manual:
Front: Toyota Genuine Differential Gear Oil 75W-85 GL-5 LT or equivalent (0.79 qt / 0.75 liter)
Rear: Toyota Genuine Differential Gear Oil 75W-85 GL-5 LX or equivalent (1.42 qt / 1.35 liter): very hard to find and pricey too!
Transfer case: Toyota Genuine Transfer Gear Oil LL80 or equivalent (0.74 qt / 0.7 liter)
Automatic transmission: Toyota Genuine ATF WS (11.3 qt / 10.7 liter)
I am in the process of buying these to get the service done at my independent mechanic. I am also exploring other suppliers: Redline, Mobil, Lucas.
