A Lot Of Questions

[Victory Red]

Long time lurker, now a member. I can't tell you how much info I've picked up over the last few months of just reading the messages. Thanks to all.

Quick intro to myself, replaced my 00 gasser 1500 ext long bed with a crew cab shorty. Biggest reason was I have a 15yr old, 13 yr old and a 9 month old. The extend cab just didn't cut it anymore. The diesel seemed a better option than the 6.0 gasser. I've always loved the oil burners(not sure why).

Anyhow I've got a ton of questions but I'll leave this first post short.

I'm closing in on the 7500 mile mark. Rather than just checking the fluids and replacing the trans filter, I've decided to drop the factory fluids.

Not sure what I'll replace with just yet, but recommendations are welcome. Not so much by brand name, but just to make sure that I replace what's in there with equal or better quality fluids. Since GM lists mostly their part numbers, I'd like to be pointed in the direction of aftermarket equivalents.

On one other note, if there's anyone in SE WI area that has done the pyro/boost and/or an exhaust on their D-maxes I'd sure appreciate to a look over and first hand pointers on any issues or tricks you learned(i.e. if I did it again, I'd have saved myself some time by...)

Thanks

[dmaxalliTech]

Victory... Welcome friend.

Everyone in here may be partial to different brands of lubes etc so I will only speak for myself and my opinions. Note that all opinions should be taken into consideration before you decide...

Starting with fluids. Gm uses 80/90 dino oil in the front diff. It is considered acceptable by the General, not by most DP'ers. I have switched mine to BGproducts 75/90 synthetic. I chose BG because the dealer I work for sells there stuff and BG gave me a 250,000 written warr on lubricated parts. Regardless of what you choose, if you go synthetic, you are advised to replace the vent cap on the diff with the white replacement. Black is oem and not compatible with syn.
Rear axle is am using same oil. 75-90 grape juice is factory. I am using BG due to the written warr.
Transfer case is about the only thing I would leave to the Generals recomendations. It uses a fluid called AutoTrakII. I have not seen/heard of aftermarket fluids being able to do all it does.
Trans fluid oem is atf, nothing fancy here. A popular upgrade is to Transynd, its the sythetic fluid available from Allison dealers, made by castrol IIRC. runs about 35$ per gallon. Usually a stock allison pan is installed (gm uses a shallow pan on there trucks for groud clearence) it will add approx 3 quarts capacity to your trans, dont forget to install deep pan filter if you go this route.
Engine oil varies from dino to amsoil and everything else, I personally use Delvac-1. Just besure it has CI-4 or CH-4 rating.
As far as gauges and exhaust go, Check out Kennedy's website (kennedydiesel.com) I am not sure where you are compared to Kennedy, But you might want to get in touch with him in regards to gauges/exhaust purchase and installation assistance. His prices are competive but his customer service is second to none :D :D

[Victory Red]

Dmxalli,

Thanks for the reply.

I'm not too concerned about the engine oils. I have most brands readily available to me at my local fleet farm. I'm more concerned with the trans and axles. The white vent cap you referred to has me puzzled though. I haven't climbed under the truck yet, so I'll take to take a look and see what you're referring to. This is more a family truckster than a heavy hauler. 80% I wanted it, 20% need the capacity. So I guess I've got some followup questions

Where do I get this replacement vent cap your referred to?

In what is basically a light use, occasional heavy use, is the deep pan a better way to go?

I've seen some guys make road emergency packs for their trucks. I've got everything but the spare bleeder screw. Can anyone point my to where I can get my hands on one?

JK is a 4 hour ride for me. My company has a customer in the general vicinity of him, but as of yet i haven't had the chance to swing by and check out his shop. I did get a case of Total Power from John though.

Before I buy some aftermarket toys I'd just like to see some first hand. While I've seen tons of pics from posters here and a few sound clips, a real life experience is preferable to buy and try. So before I make some changes to my truck I'd like to see how they look/sound installed. So I'm still hoping for a guy in my general area before I invest in some aftermarkets that I may not like the look of after I purchase and install.


Thanks again for the reply

[ 04-15-2003: Message edited by: Victory Red ]</p>

[jbplock]

Dmaxalli Tech,

The transfer case on my 2500HD 4WD has a label near the fill plug that says to use Dexron-III fluid. I thought AutoTrakII fluid was for a different transfer case used on the lighter trucks (?) :confused:

VIctory Red,

The white vent cap P/N is 12479296 (list price is about $20). For more info see
http://service.gm.com:8083/gmtechlink/images/issues/feb03/TLFeb03e.html#story13

DIS (http://www.dieselpage.com/) has the OEM plastic Bleeder screws and I think Greg Landuyt (http://www.lubespecialist.com/) has the SS version.
smile.gif

[ 04-15-2003: Message edited by: jbplock ]</p>

[dmaxalliTech]

JB,sorry about the confusion, you are correct, the specification IS for atf, however, we are installing autotrak fluid in all t-case's. We are installing it in the HD models to combat against questionable shift noise when changing ranges and it does help. But, you are correct that atf is oem fluid.

Victory, I bought my truck on 95%want and 5% need. Deep pan is not really important IMHO if your not working your rig hard. I installed it cause it was off anyways and more fluid is better in anyones eyes. ;)

[dmaxalliTech]

better clarify, we are not installing autotrak in all trucks, only those which have a concern or the fluid is drained for another reason. We are not just changing it over to change it over...

[Victory Red]

Jpblock

Thanks for the tech bulletin and part number. I found it at gmpartsonline for just under 12. I'll have to inspect the truck and see which vent I've got.

Dmaxallitech

I may go the deep pan route at some point when I've gotten some of my other goodies, but for the moment it's not really a priority. Any tips or tricks for getting as much of the oem trans fluid I can out of it in one shot?

[dmaxalliTech]

There has been much discussion regarding flushing fluid out. For best results, use search function and use transynd as keyword, read on.... smile.gif