2013 3.5, 50k miles. took it to my local guy to have him change all the fluids for me (trans, tc, diffs, oil, brake, cooling) as i do quite a bit of towing and prefer cheaper maintenance vs expensive repairs, and apparently a special machine is needed to flush the trans due to the internal thermostat. everything went fine (ph balance was pretty low on the coolant so they did that for me too) until we got to the front diff. apparently one can't get to the cover easily to remove it and there is quite a bit that is required to move to get to it, so they did a drain and fill. when it came out it had a ton of water, to the point they filled it and drove a little, then drained and refilled a second time. one more run to get up to temps and came in and drained it for the 3rd time and it still had water in there, so much so he asked me if i had recently submerged the truck or power-washed the engine bay (vent tube is there), neither of which i had done.

it's covered under the extended service warranty and my appointment with a loaner at the dealer is for 1/3/20. i was wondering if anyone else has ran into this before. seems odd to have so much water in there. fwiw i only use 4wd 5-10 times a year but that shouldn't have an effect on it like this.

 

Have you ever had it submerged? I’ve actually driven my truck through a river deep enough to cover the diffs but I didn’t let it sit in the water. I changed the rear differential and didn’t see any evidence of water. I’m not changing the front myself, I need to take it in soon to get that done.

 

nope. my truck is an on-road vehicle only. use it a few times a week for daily driving but most of it's use come by way of towing a car to the track. closest thing to being submerged would be driving in the rain for me.

 

Did you buy the truck new or used?

 

used w/ 10k miles. based upon the amount of water that came out, if it was there from 2016 when i bought it, my front diff would have exploded long ago when using 4x4.

 

I had mine changed at around 25k. Had water in it as well. Never submerged.

 

Ok this is concerning.

 

My understanding is that because the front differential internals are not moving (unless 4x4 engaged), there's a humidity build-up. I replaced my front diff cover with one that has a drain plug for an easier fluid replacement and my fluid started to get milky (at 90k km). What I'm saying is, try to engage your 4x4 once a week and drive for 20-30km in order to warm up the internals and eliminate the humidity in your oil and everything will be fine.

 

I wonder if a person has the IWE system disengaged and has turned the front axle into a live one would there be a build up of moisture like mentioned? Would the movement now keep the moisture at bay?

 

In theory, that would work...