Axle Girdle (Cont'd)
Once you have drained the differential completely, continue to pry the pan away until it is free. Remove it completely by lifting it up over the rear sway bar. Use the scraper to remove all the excess silicone sealant from the mating edge of the pan, and clean any fluid gunk from the pan itself.
Re-direct your attention to the mating surface of the differential housing and clean it with the scraper as well. There is always some differential fluid that does not drain out completely. Take some throw away rags or paper towel and clean the bottom of the housing.
Chasing the threads will require a little bit of patience because of the limited space. Take some time and carefully cover the guts of the differential with a rag, tucking it in where ever possible. This will stop any small particles of threads from getting into the gears while tapping the upper bolt holes. If you are unfamiliar with how to tap a hole, do some research before you attempt to bottom tap the holes. When you are near the bottom of a hole, be careful not to break your bottoming tap as it will be very difficult to get this out. Once all the hole are completed, use a can of computer compressed air and clean all the crap out of the holes. A couple of short bursts of air is all it takes, and it will blow back into your face, eye protection is essential.
The new girdle will now need to have the RTV (Room Temperature Vulcanizing) sealant applied to it before mounting it to the differential. We also need to apply some sealant to the bearing support bolt threads.
Carefully maneuver the new axle girdle into position being careful not to touch the silicone surface to anything. Any contamination could be a source for a leaky rear end. Replace the existing bolts with the new socket head cap screw provided and finger tighten as much as possible. With your socket, slowly tighten each bolt using a criss-cross pattern. This will ensure a good flat mating surface between the pan and the housing. Once all the bolts are snugged up, torque each one to 25 ft/lbs using the same criss-cross pattern as before. The 2 bear support bolts can now be tightened against the bearing cap. These require very little pressure to provide support, too much will cause the caps to distort. Tighten them until they just make contact with the bearing cap inside, and torque to 3-4 ft/lbs max. Place the aluminum tags over the ends of these bolts. We had to snip the ends and open them up a bit so that we could fit them over. Add the 2 jam nuts to the bolt threads that are exposed. Restrain the bolts so that they don't tighten any further and secure the jam nuts.
If time permits, it is best to leave the pan for several hours or over night to allow the silicone to cure completely. This really diminishes the possibility of leaks.
When the minimum time specified has elapsed, a socket driver with an extension will be required to remove the filler plug on the front side of the differential. This is on the drivers side, just above half way. Cut the end off of the spout provided on the differential fluid and empty 2 quarts/litres into the differential. Now add the 2 bottle of friction modifier and the housing should be full. If it does not already start running out, you should at least be able to stick you finger into the hole, and touch the fluid, this is adequate. If not, you may have to add a portion of another quart/litre of differential fluid.
Replace the plug and tighten. Over tightening can strip the thread and lead to a costly repair and a pile of wasted fluid. I had the transmission in neutral, which allowed me to turn the drive shaft a couple of revolutions, making sure the gear surfaces where covered and to help mix the fluid and the friction modifier. Check all you bolts and plugs are secure, slowly let the car down off the jack stands and you are finished.