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How much oil does the rear differential take?
Posted: Tue Jul 23, 2013 7:24 am
by barclay
Hello Bongoliers
How much oil does the rear differential take?
I had its oil changed when the Bongo was in the garage a few weeks ago, but since then I've been experiencing diff judder on tight corners after a long journey.
I wonder if the garage used an incorrect grade of oil. I'm going to replace it with Castrol Syntrax Limited Slip 75w-140 as recommended by someone on this site, but need to know what quantity to order.
Re: How much oil does the rear differential take?
Posted: Tue Jul 23, 2013 7:48 am
by Simon Jones
See my comments here:
http://igmaynard.co.uk/bongo/forum/view ... =+Diff+oil
I found it was less than 2 litres for the rear and just about 1 litre for the front (if fitted). As you can't get all the oil out in one go (due to its viscosity), you may want to consider getting enough so you can refill it, run it for a few days and drain / refil again. This is probably going to be expensive if you are using fancy oil, but I got 5 litres of Comma stuff to do front and rear which was better value than buying it by the litre.
The factsheet says it's 1.4 for rear and 1.2 for front:
http://www.igmaynard.co.uk/bongo/member ... ential.pdf
So you're looking at 2 litres to change it or 3 to flush it.
Re: How much oil does the rear differential take?
Posted: Tue Jul 23, 2013 8:23 am
by mikeonb4c
Hi Barclay. No idea on diff oil volume but i'm still keen to buy those rear wheel arch trims you were going to sell me some while back. Have pm'd several times but no reply so thought I'd try on this thread in case they're not getting through. Please get in touch and let me know either way, and thanks

Re: How much oil does the rear differential take?
Posted: Tue Jul 23, 2013 11:09 am
by mikeWalsall
May seem irrelevant .. but from experience some years back (not on a Bongo though) it is now my policy to remove the filler cap .. before .. removing the drain plug ..
Not only will it allow the thickish diff oil to exit a bit quicker .. but if you drain the oil .. then find the plug needs a 'special' removing 'key' (which you don't happen to have) or worse .. filler plug is knackered .. then you are stuck with a motor with a 'dry' diff. and maybe no transport to sort it out ..
Re: How much oil does the rear differential take?
Posted: Wed Jul 24, 2013 7:01 am
by banjoboy1
I have posted re a juddering problem that maybe related to the diff oil.I have read the post you refer to, re the castrol syntax oil.I have asked for more info from the poster but so far no reply.Could you tell me more about your juddering problem and whether it is definitely related to the wrong oil being used?I have refilled my diff with the recommended lsd type grade
there is some improvement but not a complete cure.You may want to read my first post under[ RWD Differential problem]Please tell me whether if you try the Castrol oil whether there is a cure to the judder prob .If anyone reading this is knowledgeable enough to explain the role of the oil in a lsd diff and the cause of the judder I would be very interested to learn.