i have a 2002 ford explorer i brought it in for an oil change and told them to drive it because it has been acting funny. they said that my gears were slipping and that they changed the differential fluid in the f r axels. transmission fluid was very much broke down...can anybody tell me what this means. i have about 85,000 miles on it
What is differential fluid?
It is the oil that goes in the rear end of rear wheel drive cars (the back axle is called a differential) and it has gears inside it which are immersed in the fluid(80/90W gearoil) You see differentials when following behind dump trucks.
What is differential fluid?
Your tranny is one place where gear meets gear and need lube (oil).
The differential is another place where gear meets gear. Look under the car (at the rear). Between the rear wheel, there a huge round metal %26quot;ball%26quot; where the tranny drive shaft meets the wheel axel. That round ball is the differential.
On front wheel drives and 4WD, there's a differential in the front.
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Like all oil they need to be change from time to time.
Good Luck...
Diff. oil is oil used in the rear axle housing. Cars that are rear wheel drive have a differential, which you have to have because one tire turns faster than the other in a turn. I never heard of gears slipping unless they are broken, maybe the clutches were slipping if you have a limited slip differential
