While changing the oil in my front differential, the plastic cap on the oil bottle popped off and shot inside the fill whole. Do I need to pull the differential case or not worry about it since it is plastic? I am not set up to do that level of maintenance. Thanks
Jeff B

 

i certainly would not leave it, no. time to drain and remove the diff cover to retrieve it.

 

Agree with resharp.. get it out.. not that difficult to remove the Diff cover.. The time consuming is cleaning off the sealant, waiting time on install with new sealant (designed for Differential gear oil.. put the bead on the cover, wait for it to set up per instructions, the install bolts finger tight - real finger tight..wait 1 hour then torque - if memory is on .. 30 ft.lbs and then wait 24 hours before putting in the 75-90 gear lube).. Not hard to do, just patience to complete.& I add messy..

 

Just to elaborate a bit. There are channels inside the diff that will feed oil back to the pinion bearings. On the off chance that piece of plastic got lodged in that you'd start starving the pinion bearings of oil. So, though it is plastic it could still cause issues. You can get some RTV that sets pretty fast and doesn't require long before refilling and driving off. You can also pick up a LubeLocker if you have something like a 4WP around you or can order one. Those are nice reuseable gaskets. I've used them for years. No more scraping RTV for me.

 

Great advice above. Don't leave it.

 

Thanks for the responses. I flushed the Diff several times and it did not come out. Stripped the plug trying to get the cover off, So...I left it. Can't find a plug locally and the dealer is back ordered, imagine that. I will probably wait until I get a new plug and open and inspect it then. Made it to OBX and the 4X4 Beach with no issues. Thanks again. The community is the best part of owning a Jeep!

 

Good freagin' grief! How can a drain plug for a diff be a backordered item?

 

The drain plug is just an 1/2" NPT thread pipe plug which you can get in allen key fitting or square set for a wrench. Use that until the right one arrives