I think you made the same mistake as I did (which I quickly edited out of my post, LOL): This is the drain plug, not the fill plug. It's in the axle housing itself.

 

There are also repair kits such as the that can restore large thread sizes.

 

This is a good, last resort suggestion. For years we drained diffy's by pulling the screws loose on the cover, prying it open, and letting it drain into a pan. Also, some aftermarket diffy covers come with their own drain bolts, so in the future if you want to fix this, you could just ensure that your new covers include drain bolts.

 

Facepalmmyself.jpeg

 

You could also pull the axle shafts out and drive the Jeep in 2WD (rear axle). This will let you get it to a machinist, if you prefer a pro to work on it (if you have no experience with this kind of work, I'd recommend it). It will also give you experience at pulling the shafts, which is good knowledge for the trail.

 

Personally I would get that plug back in however you can and have it welded up tight then get an arb diff cover for your draining. If you can repair the threads you still may end up with a slight leak in a tough spot. Threads are never your friend lol


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

I would pull the front driveline too if going this route.

 

Agreed, pulling the axles won't keep the R&P from turning, do both to keep unoiled parts from moving. In the rear at least, in the front axles should be enough


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

Why? If in 2WD, there isn't anything up front turning. Pulling the front DS is an unnecessary task because it is disconnected from the engine in the transfer case. I would agree if it was his rear axle.

 

My bad your right.