Hi Scotty, I recently purchased a 2004 Nissan Frontier XE with a manual transmission and a 2.4L engine. The truck has about 275,500 miles and it still drives and shifts like a dream. My neighbor who was the previous owner took great care of this little truck but he doesn't remember if the manual transmission fluid and differential fluid was ever changed. Would you recommend I change these fluids now or should I leave it alone due to the high mileage?
Please don’t double post, thanks.
Changing the fluid in those won't hurt anything. Make sure you have a regular, open differential and not a limited slip. Those have clutches. Be aware that the gear oil in the rear end smells kinda funky and it can be a pretty messy job to change. Find out ahead of time if the differential cover has a pre-made gasket or if it needs to be sealed with a gasket maker so you're prepared. Filling it is straightforward. There's a plug where a 3/8" drive stud fits in to unscrew it. Fill it until oil comes back out of the hole. Make sure it's level.
The transmission itself is similar to the differential. There's nothing hydraulic inside there that wears out like an automatic, and there's no bands, etc. that shed material. It's a set of 3 shafts and metal gears. They're splash lubricated, so you just drain and refill in a similar manner to the rear end.
leave it alone due to the high mileage?
I don't understand why when Scotty gave very specific advice, about one particular condition, with one particular component, people suddenly think they can stop maintaining EVERYTHING on their vehicles.
