ThunderTruck Posted October 14, 2020 Report Share Posted October 14, 2020 Reading through the forum and my service manual it recommends changing the rear differential oil. I had my coolant and PTU oil changed but they said there was no drain plug on the RDU. How are people changing this out? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WWWPerfA_ZN0W Posted October 14, 2020 Report Share Posted October 14, 2020 There is no recommendation in North America for RDU fluid change except if there is water intrusion/extended severe service. There are intervals for PTU fluid in hot climates such as South America and the Middle East tho. But yeah, use the fill plug for both drain and fill, just like the PTU in earlier gen MYs. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThunderTruck Posted October 14, 2020 Author Report Share Posted October 14, 2020 (edited) 7 hours ago, WWWPerfA_ZN0W said: There is no recommendation in North America for RDU fluid change except if there is water intrusion/extended severe service. There are intervals for PTU fluid in hot climates such as South America and the Middle East tho. But yeah, use the fill plug for both drain and fill, just like the PTU in earlier gen MYs. Funny, the dealer told me there was no way to drain the RDU, looks like I need to crawl underneath and see for myself. You're right in that there is no requirement in the service manual (unless water intrusion) but I have peace of mind replacing the fluids for longevity. Thank-you for the reply. Edited October 14, 2020 by ThunderTruck 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WWWPerfA_ZN0W Posted October 14, 2020 Report Share Posted October 14, 2020 oh yeah, no doubt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaMiFo Posted October 15, 2020 Report Share Posted October 15, 2020 I haven't done an RDU on the 2nd gen Edges, but they're probably fairly close to my '17 Fusion. I just used a fluid extractor to suck out the gear oil, then filled to the leveling hole. Was actually fairly easy. I've seen tons of people say dealers mention things are "not serviceable" or not possible, but that usually means Ford just doesn't tell them to so they don't bother to look/think about it. Changing your fluids is cheap insurance especially if you DIY! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThunderTruck Posted October 31, 2020 Author Report Share Posted October 31, 2020 On 10/14/2020 at 8:02 PM, DaMiFo said: I haven't done an RDU on the 2nd gen Edges, but they're probably fairly close to my '17 Fusion. I just used a fluid extractor to suck out the gear oil, then filled to the leveling hole. Was actually fairly easy. I've seen tons of people say dealers mention things are "not serviceable" or not possible, but that usually means Ford just doesn't tell them to so they don't bother to look/think about it. Changing your fluids is cheap insurance especially if you DIY! I agree, seems if it doesn't show up on a computer their lost. I'll be going to friends who has a lift and check for myself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
enigma-2 Posted December 16, 2020 Report Share Posted December 16, 2020 My dealer did mine this last summer. He uses a machine that pumps the old fluid out through a hose (also pumps in fresh) through the fill plug. Uses the same machine pump to change the PTU. The pump is a professional unit designed for these type of maintenance areas. Big hunkerer. They didn't say how much it costs, but looked expensive. On my 09 MKX the recommended change interval is at 105k miles (for DANA units). Also at 3k miles if trailer towing above 70° F with speeds above 45 mph and not using non-synthetic fluid. Personally I feel all fluids should be changed at least by ~100k miles. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
14AWD3.5 Posted January 17, 2021 Report Share Posted January 17, 2021 (edited) On my gen 1 2014 I had it serviced at appx 70K at 6 years old. Gear oil still looked fine. Used synthetic gear oil. Reason I did it was age and a bit of U-Haul towing. Tiny rear end punkin' though... So it's probably good for another 100K now. Just how much does the rear end ever engage anyways? Edited January 17, 2021 by 14AWD3.5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaMiFo Posted January 17, 2021 Report Share Posted January 17, 2021 19 hours ago, 14AWD3.5 said: Just how much does the rear end ever engage anyways? Any time you accelerate from a stop, or at any speed when you are fairly heavy on the throttle. Also whenever slippage is detected, of course. Even if it's in FWD mode, the rear gears are still spinning whenever the car is moving. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1004ron Posted September 18, 2021 Report Share Posted September 18, 2021 (edited) Today I did the second RDU oil change and this time I extracted more of the old oil than the previous time. I attached a section of flexible silicone tubing to my oil extractors tubing with about 12" of coat hanger wire inside the tube, so that I could form a shepherds hook. The look of the oil each time I've changed it, I'd say you can safely follow the owners manual, and forget about changing the RDU oil. Edited September 19, 2021 by 1004ron 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cerberus Posted September 19, 2021 Report Share Posted September 19, 2021 20 hours ago, 1004ron said: Today I did the second RDU oil change and this time I extracted more of the old oil than the previous time. I attached a section of flexible silicone tubing to my oil extractors tubing with about 12" of coat hanger wire inside the tube, so that I could form a shepherds hook. The look of the oil each time I've changed it, I'd say you can safely follow the owners manual, and forget about changing the RDU oil. because of the variable power distribution to the rear diff, the fluid there is almost never worked in any appreciable way, so yeah it was in near virgin condition when i did mine. PDU fluid was similar for the same reason. Even though the gears are always turning, they are almost never under any load. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThunderTruck Posted September 19, 2021 Author Report Share Posted September 19, 2021 An update since I started this thread, I just traded my 2016 (145,00kms) for 2021 Titanium AWD. The 2016 was amazing, zero issues. I know need to figure out the best service schedule for the new one (yes, using the manual as my starting point). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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