Bought a new 2012 3500 diesel about 6 months ago and saw some oil or something on the driveway recently. Upon investigation, I found that plug in the front axle was loose. It took a quart of fluid to bring it up to the level of the plug hole. I read that the capacity is only 2 quarts or so and am wondering if driving at this level is likely to have damaged the gears. I only have a total of 3300 miles on the truck but have no idea when this started. There was about 1/8 inch of thick grey material on the drain plug that I removed but have no idea if this would be considered normal wear or not. Any thoughts?

 

You're probably fine, wouldn't sweat it (but I wonder if you should report it to your dealer so they can document it in case you have rear diff trouble down the road, since AAM was probably the last one to touch the drain plug).

You might have over-filled it. The "FULL" mark on my last three trucks has been 1/2" below the bottom of the plug. I'd suck some out if that's the case on your truck. Don't want it foaming up. That's most of the quart you added right there.

 

I took your helpful advice and I did contact the dealer about this situation. Am waiting for a response.

 

Sorry, I thought it was your rear diff- same should apply to the front though (I think).

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