I mean while in 3rd, steadily apply the throttle more and more, until maximum RPM is acheived, then shift to 4th.



That sounds about right; older is usually better.



No DRAIN-PLUG on a Dana, UNLESS it has an after-market cover that employs one; there is only a fill-plug.

Minus a drain-plug, you loosen all the bolts about 1/4-inch, then carefully pry the bottom of the cover loose from being stuck, the fluid will pour out the gap.

 

Right. It has been a long time. There is probably a gasket needs replaced as well. What kind of gear oil do you put in your Differential ?

With any luck I'll get to that today before I go tomorrow AM. That, grease the U joints (is there a nipple on them for the grease gun ?) and some extra Synchromax in the Rag just to be sure. You can't hurt the Rag if you wind up with like 5 1/2 or 6 quarts, right ? Like blow a seal ?

Well, time to check up on that ultra black RTV on the freeze plug

Thanks....

 

Do not put more than 5 quarts in. It will leak out of EVERYWHERE .

I put 5 qts. of 5W-30 synthetic mobil 1 in our getrag and it now has a leak at the TAILSHAFT where it meets the transmission "gearbox". which is labor intensive so we're just gonna swap in a better trans since it has the 4th gear/3rd gear groan anyways, It leaks a good 9" diameter puddle whereever you park it.

synthetic fluid brings out every leak possible my Dad said. something to do with softening seals?

 

I think I'm just going to drain the entire tranny and put 5 fresh quarts of Synchromax in. I bought 3 for the trip, why not go all the way ? It's been like 7 months since I changed it, and the oil that had been in there before I got to it, looked like it had for years.

Yeah, and change out the Differential oil while I'm at it. A trip up to the store will tell me if that Ultra Black RTF does any good on the leaking freeze plug, too. It's been, oh, 18 or 19 hours since I smeared it in there.

My gut feeling is to change out that freeze plug, though. They don't suddenly pop out or anything, do they ?

Thanks again to everyone here, for helping with my racing mind and paranoia before this 2300 mile tow !!!

I saw that I-80 has a "no light trailer advisory" up through much of Wyoming. I-5 to I-40 is sounding better and better...

 

Depending on your readiness to change it out (I would), you could probe it to see just how corroded it is. If you can easily put a screw driver through, it can easily fail. They are not that hard to change, if you can get at it...Mark

 

Corroded what is ? The freeze plug ?

Yeh, that RTV sealant idea was a good idea in theory, but not a good idea in practice. It still leaks, right out from underneath the dried silicone. I just went for a 4 mile tow up to NAPA and back...it doesn't leak as much, but it leaks nonetheless.

And now I've made more work for myself, scraping the RTV off of there so I can get at the freeze plug. And I have to wait for the coolant to cool down. And I'm losing light. And, eventually I'll wear out my welcome at the place I am staying at while I do all this...I was out of my place on the 1st.

So.

Now that I'm back to square one with the freeze plug, what is the easiest way to remove them without specialized tools ? Is it possible to deform the hole by prying it loose with a big screwdriver ?

My reverse drillbits and drill and regular drillbits are all buried deep in the U Haul, as I didn't expect this on the eve of my move.

Also, several people have said to use a socket to pound the new one in with.

What size socket is best for this ?

I mean, thanks for the advice with the RTV and everything but I just lost a lot of time and made more work for myself with that stuff.

 

If your block heater doesn't work, you should replace the leaking freeze plug with a new block heater. Or if it works and or you have a spare non-working block heater, you can use it.

IMO now is the time to change it. If you blow it out, most likely it will be at the most inopportune moment. Pulling a long grade with the engine at governed rpm and operating temp or slightly above then all of a sudden your engine pukes all of it coolant out the side of the block. How fast can you get over to the side of the road and shut the engine now asap before you overheat it? Not to mention now you had to shut down a hot engine/turbo without cool down.... Then if you're lucky and you could get it shut down and off to the side, now you're replacing a freeze plug on the side of a grade on the side of the road.

The Cummins book calls them Cup Plugs. Shows using a hammer and punch, driving the plug in towards the block off to one side of the plug. Then with a pair of pliers, grabbing the part of the plug that's now sticking out and pulling it out. Apply Loctite 277 to the OD of the plug, drive it in until the outer edge is flush with the counter sink in the block.

 

Thanks !!!

Block heater works fine. No time or second vehicle to go order and pick up new or second block heater.

Pull out the side of the plug that's now sticking out after it's been driven in on the other side with a punch?

Are you talking about removing the old one or installing the new one here ? Sounds like procedure for removing old one to me. Has to be.

No "Loctite 277" available at my shop, which at the moment is a muddy gravel road on a downward grade in front of a friend's house. Maybe 7/11 has it. Naw, seriously, any idea what could be used as a substitute for "Loctite 277" in a pinch ?

Drive the new plug in how ? With a 2x4 ? With a socket that fits neatly inside the "cup" of the new plug, I think is what someone else said.

You're **** right I don't want that plug to pop out on the side of a mountain. Well, I'm going to drain Getrag and Rear Diff while I wait for the coolant to cool so I can drain it without burning my fingers...these freeze plugs look to be located pretty low on the side of the block, in that a great deal of the coolant needs to be drained first.

Should the engine be hot or cold when new plug is driven in, or does it matter ?

 

Yes pull out the plug where it's sticking out, it will be self explanatory. Loctite 277 looks to just be high strength red threadlocker. I'd probly use a flat piece of wood or metal to drive the new plug in straight. Maybe start it with a socket that fits.

 

Man, my little adventure gets better and better. Went to drain the Getrag, and stripped out both the square hole on the drain plug and the 1/2 to 3/8 adapter from my breaker bar. Well, now it matches the fill plug. As in frozen shut. Doesn't appear to be leaking, I mean it didn't even move 1/8 of a turn before it stripped the adapter. I'm glad you can drain these from the bottom PTO bolt hole, that's for sure.

Funny thing. I was all worried about those 4th Gear Getrag Groans. The old RP oil came out clear as the day I put it in there last September. Good to know (?) nothing's being ground up in there by that sound, I guess.

I'm really glad I took a look in the pumpkin, too. That fluid was the color of nasty, gray-brown oil paint, and thick as mud. Like it had never been changed. Tons of little shavings on the magnet. Well, it has 3 quarts of the nice yellow synthetic high-range differential oil in there now, the really expensive stuff. 75-140, I think. Made sure the inside was as clean as I could possibly get it, too...I sprayed it out with PB oil, let that drain, then wiped it out with a series of rags. I wanted to see the bare metal under all those years of gunk.

How can people go through life doing things half-assed like that ? Had I known the P.O. had never changed the oil in the pumpkin, I would have attended to this from Day One, but as he made his living towing with my truck, I assumed he knew to do this from time to time. I guess that corny old saying about "ASSUME," you and me, applies, right ?

Yeah, I guess the freeze plug is tomorrow's adventure...this city won't let me go !!!

 

Forget about using wood to drive freeze plug in never seen one go in that eazy just use a socket that fits in side the plug ken

 

The drain-plug on a Getrag is plain old 1/2-NPT thread (providing my memory hasn't gone out on me ).

Once you do manage to get the original plug out, replace it with a different plug that has the big EXTERNAL square drive, or better yet, sometimes they can be found that will accept a normal six-point wrench; the hex-headed ones are often found at hydraulic suppliers.

Also, to prevent the plug siezing up the next time, and also prevent leaks, wrap it good with Teflon tape.


One would think that being threaded under all that synthetic oil, often very hot, easy to find a leak, that no way could that plug sieze up.

What causes most problems with drain-plugs and such are idiots with air-guns; never ever use an impact-wrench to install a drain-plug.

 

Funny thing is, I just tightened it in last time with a normal ratchet. That drain plug won't budge *at all*, I mean it barely turned a millimeter or two, then promptly broke my steel 1/2 to 3/8 adapter. Think it's safe to go ahead and tow with, or do I pay someone to come out here and remove it ?

The nearly identical filler plug on the Dana rear end just unscrewed nicely, too, which is weird considering it was in there for so much longer. Maybe the constant vibration of the rag is what seized it, who knows ?

 

So long as it isn't leaking, keep a weather eye on it, but leave it alone until you get to where you are going.

Your experiences read like you have decided to do a lot of last minute preparations with not enough time to properly address them.


It is best to keep your horse well-shod AT ALL TIMES, and therefore always be ready to roll on a moment's notice.

 

Yeah, losing your job and your room-mates in the span of one week, in a city with some of the highest unemployment in America can cause one to make sudden unforeseen plans for a long tow.

The best part was where one room-mate just packed his stuff and quickly split, leaving me to totally empty and thoroughly "deep clean" a 2000+ sq ft house from attic to basement, in addition to shoehorning about 2000 pounds of my own belongings from a basement into a U haul and selling a whole catalog's worth of other belongings in order to finance the whole ordeal.

We are talking 17-18 hour work days every single day for a good while there...so yeah, some basic truck maintenance was overlooked until the last minute. Believe me, I don't normally travel this way.

At least the having-the-injectors-rebuilt part and semi-new tire hunt went well.

Thanks for all the advice, this forum is invaluable. Well, it's off to find Loctite 277 and get the freeze plug done...man o man am I glad I looked inside the differential last night. Real horror story stuff in there.