XJ/K 'diff oil change
Discussion
Lots been written about the sealed for life gearbox and 'diff on the XJ and XK and the general conclusion seems to be it's a pretty crap idea - a real triumph of Marketing over Engineering.
I've seen several articles about changing the gearbox oil but as far as I know nothing has been written about the procedure for changing the 'diff oil. Just done mine for the third time and took some pictures - apologies for the poor quality but they will give an indication of what's involved.
Before you start make absolutely sure the car is safley and securely raised. The premature demise of anybody stupid enough to work under a car that's not supported and chocked properly won't linger on my conscience for too long, but the world is short enough of Jaguar enthusiasts as it is...
If you've got sports suspension the anti roll bar will have to come off. Chances are the nuts and bolts will be half siezed so a good spraying of WD40 is the first thing to do. Undo the 4 13mm bolts holding the brackets on and the two 19mm nuts at the bottom of the drop links.
Even with the anti roll bar off access to the filler hole is awkward. Before you even try to undo the filler plug make sure the plug and surrounding area is spotlessly clean. Solvents and a blast from an air line does the trick. The filler plug is a half inch square - you'll need a good selection of flexible joints, short extensions and a mixture of three eights and half inch drives to get the plug out. Beg, borrow or steal all you can get your hands on.
Once the plug is out suck as much of the old oil out as you can through the filler hole using either an industrial vacuum cleaner and a set up like the one pictured or buy an oil extract pump from a yacht chandlers. It'll be easier and quicker to extract if the oil is warm. Obviously the extract pipe needs to go to the bottom of the 'diff casing which is a bit fiddly as there's not much room. A small piece of metal pipe bent into a gentle curve in the end of the tube like the one pictured helps.
Once all the old oil is out - and yes, you'll get nearly all of it out with this method - simply refil up to the bottom of the filler hole. I use a funnel tied round the petrol filler cap and another length of tube down into the'diff. Warming the oil in a bucket of hot water speeds up the fill - last time I did this I used a larger diameter hose which helps too.
Once you've filled up, replace the plug tightly and replace the anti roll bar with a smear of Copperslip on the nuts and bolts and that's it.
This is the crappy oil that came out. Just 15000 miles old
I've seen several articles about changing the gearbox oil but as far as I know nothing has been written about the procedure for changing the 'diff oil. Just done mine for the third time and took some pictures - apologies for the poor quality but they will give an indication of what's involved.
Before you start make absolutely sure the car is safley and securely raised. The premature demise of anybody stupid enough to work under a car that's not supported and chocked properly won't linger on my conscience for too long, but the world is short enough of Jaguar enthusiasts as it is...
If you've got sports suspension the anti roll bar will have to come off. Chances are the nuts and bolts will be half siezed so a good spraying of WD40 is the first thing to do. Undo the 4 13mm bolts holding the brackets on and the two 19mm nuts at the bottom of the drop links.
Even with the anti roll bar off access to the filler hole is awkward. Before you even try to undo the filler plug make sure the plug and surrounding area is spotlessly clean. Solvents and a blast from an air line does the trick. The filler plug is a half inch square - you'll need a good selection of flexible joints, short extensions and a mixture of three eights and half inch drives to get the plug out. Beg, borrow or steal all you can get your hands on.
Once the plug is out suck as much of the old oil out as you can through the filler hole using either an industrial vacuum cleaner and a set up like the one pictured or buy an oil extract pump from a yacht chandlers. It'll be easier and quicker to extract if the oil is warm. Obviously the extract pipe needs to go to the bottom of the 'diff casing which is a bit fiddly as there's not much room. A small piece of metal pipe bent into a gentle curve in the end of the tube like the one pictured helps.
Once all the old oil is out - and yes, you'll get nearly all of it out with this method - simply refil up to the bottom of the filler hole. I use a funnel tied round the petrol filler cap and another length of tube down into the'diff. Warming the oil in a bucket of hot water speeds up the fill - last time I did this I used a larger diameter hose which helps too.
Once you've filled up, replace the plug tightly and replace the anti roll bar with a smear of Copperslip on the nuts and bolts and that's it.
This is the crappy oil that came out. Just 15000 miles old
Edited by Jaguar steve on Monday 7th December 15:13
Straight6DOHC said:
Just did this job today, but I didn't need to remove the ARB. There was also a drain plug on the bottom of the diff. Car is a 1995 XJR. Hope that helps.
95 would make it an X300 and therefore designed to last!Edited by Straight6DOHC on Wednesday 27th January 19:20
a8hex said:
Straight6DOHC said:
Just did this job today, but I didn't need to remove the ARB. There was also a drain plug on the bottom of the diff. Car is a 1995 XJR. Hope that helps.
95 would make it an X300 and therefore designed to last!Edited by Straight6DOHC on Wednesday 27th January 19:20
The X300 had sensibily scheduled 'diff oil changes at 30000 mile intervals IIRC and had much easier access too.
The X308 used exactly the same spec. Shell Spirax 90 oil that was suddenly meant to last forever.
Work that one out...
I did this job lastnight.
Great how-to Jaguar_steve.
It was made so much easier with 12v Oil Extractor Pump and this Evacuation Dispensing Pump
It sucked out 1800ml of oil while I changed the fog lamp bulbs
Great how-to Jaguar_steve.
It was made so much easier with 12v Oil Extractor Pump and this Evacuation Dispensing Pump
It sucked out 1800ml of oil while I changed the fog lamp bulbs
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