50,000 mile fluid change

poorboy · July 7, 2005

Gentlemen, I need some info on a small project this weekend. The 02, 5.3 has got 50,000 on her and I feel it's time for a full transfusion of fluids. The problem I am havining is finding out the quantity of fluids for the following.

front and rear axles.

Automatic Tranmission

I know the axles are no brainers...but what is the best way for a DIY guy to tackle the transmission fluid change?

I was just going to remove the filter and bring the level up to proper mark. There are about as many opinions about this as any subject I have found on this site.

So what am I up against this weekend?

BlueTahoe · July 7, 2005

I just did this same basic service to mine a few weeks ago. I think most everything is the same on the 02's and 03's

Front diff - just under 2 quarts. I used mobil 1. Easy to do. There is a fill and drain plug. I would recommend using a bottle pump to get the fluid in. I didn't get a pump and wore allot of fluid.

Rear diff - right at 3 quarts. I used mobil 1. I had to drop the cover but if I remeber correctly the 02's have a drain plug so you may not need to drop the cover. Again use a bottle pump.

Tranfer case - You didn't mention but I would do it if you are doing the rest. This is between 2-3 quarts of fluid that must be bought at the dealership. Again like the front diff. Has fill and drain plugs and I would use a bottle pump.

Transmission - I dropped the pan the first time and changed filter. Challenges I had was I had to buy a large torx bit to remove the shift linkage to get the pan down. It looks like it will come down but it won't unless you get the shift linkage out of the way. It is on the drivers side.

around 5 quart fill on pan drop

other notes on trans. I then got my drain plug loose at the next oil change so I went ahead and drain more fluid from the trans and topped it off. I plan to continue to freshen the fluid in the trans about every 10k and drop the pan every 50k to change filter. (again all mobil 1 in trans)

around 4 quart fill on drain plug only.

If you plan to get the drain plug loose I would plan on getting a good 6 point socket, cheater bar, and possiblely a bottle jack to apply very slight upward pressure on the rachet. Just so you can keep the rachet on and pull with both hands. These suckers are tight. If you search there was a nice thread on drain plug removal a month or 2 ago.

This is what I did and I believe yours will be pretty much the same experience except for the rear diff. The trans pan drop is the only thing that was a pain. Now that I know what I have to do it would be a little easier. Oh and with my drain plug loose now I can drain the pan before dropping to eliminate the atf bath. I didn't think it is too bad of a job.

asilverblazer · July 7, 2005

Rather than buying a bottle pump I used a straw with a flexible tip. Cut the nipple things on the bottles just a hair smaller than the straw for a nice tight fit. Then guided the straw into the fill holes. I was able to squeze the bottles to push fluid through the straw and into the diffs/t-case. Worked like a charm. Cheap and easy, and I didn't wear any fluid.

poorboy · July 7, 2005

Thanks guys, good advise.

99silveradoz71 · July 8, 2005

yes, good suggestion to add the t-case fluid change at this time as well. I'm not mechanically inclined, but most of those fluid changes are pretty darn easy. Good peace of mind.