First Gear Oil Change Done on the New 74Weld Setup

[Big Dawgs Toyota Tuning]

I knocked out the first gear oil change on the new setup. For anyone wondering, the recommended break-in period is about 300 to 500 miles, and after that you do the first fluid service. Since I drive a lot, I got through that break-in mileage pretty fast. I was already making a trip from Nashville to Knoxville for a Big Dawgs Toyota Tuning event, and that round trip alone was enough to knock it out in about two days.

One of the biggest assumptions I had before really looking into the 74Weld portals was that the maintenance would be a pain because of how often people mention servicing them. After spending more time researching them and now doing the first fluid change myself, I can honestly say that assumption was wrong.

Once the initial break-in service is done, you are generally looking at 3,000 to 5,000 miles before the next fluid change. Of course, you still want to inspect everything regularly and make sure all your hardware is tight and secure, but outside of that, it is honestly pretty simple.

I’m a firm believer in 5,000-mile oil change intervals, especially on a turbo engine. So to me, it makes perfect sense to just handle the portal gear oil at the same time as an engine oil change. The job itself is easy: two plugs per portal, drain it, then fill it back up. That’s all there is to it.

I really do not know where the whole “they require too much maintenance” idea came from. Even cost-wise, it’s very reasonable. A gallon of gear oil runs about $75, and each portal only needs 10 ounces. That means one gallon gives you about three changes per portal, which works out to around $18.75 every 5,000 miles. That’s not bad at all.

You can see the metal shavings in the last few pictures. Nothing excessive, and honestly about what I expected after a long trip during the break-in period. I just had to stay mindful of how I was driving and stop a few times along the way.

Unfortunately, I didn’t get pictures of the front two during the fluid change because the stupid funnel broke in my hand while it was full of gear oil. It made an absolute mess. At that point I was just pissed off I had oil everywhere, and even more pissed I only got two portals done with a new funnel, especially since it came from AutoZone and the quality was dog water.

Overall, the first service ended up being very straightforward, and keeping up with maintenance on these portals has been a lot easier than I originally expected.

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