What fluid does the front differential on my o2' take?thanks

 

Ford calls this the "Transfer case", the recommended for (4WD) is MERCON-Multi-Purpose automatic transmission fluid, the same stuff used for Manual transmissions, and Power steering. It will take up to 1.5 quarts (1.4liters)

 

Actually on the 4X4's the front diff uses 75W90 gear fluid. The transfer case uses ATF. My wife had one and I changed the fluids on it. If you have the owners manual it will tell you the specs.

Whimsey

 

Does it use the synthetics like the rear?

 

It didn't come with synthetic like the rear diff., Ford called it "PREMIUM". But you can only help it by using a quality synthetic gear oil. I changed out the fluid in the 2002 Explorer and my 2002 F-150 front diffs with Schaeffer's 80W-90 synthetic blend gear oil. I believe Ford spec'd 80W-90 for the front diff of the 2002 Explorer while the F-150 was spec'd for 75W-90. They ran fine in our northern NJ winters where we can get single digit to below zero temps. The 2002 Explorer is gone, timing tensioner cassette problems and the expense to fix them with the same bad parts . I still have the F-150 with the same Schaeffer's 80W-90 synthetic blend in the front diff. and it runs just fine.

I would venture to say that many people never even bother to change the front diff fluid.

Whimsey

 

Typically there are not drains on the front (like my Bronco) so it is a pain to change.Did not see one on the Exploder.What is the tiiming tensioner problem?Have not heard that one yet.We have almost 150k on our 02'.Mainly wheel bearing problems.

 

Then you're lucky! It seems that the timing tensioner cassettes break apart, the plastic in them anyway. It allows the timing chain to slap around and can get the broken plastic parts into the oil possibly clogging things up. On our 2002 it started as a ping sound when the engine was cold and you accelerated up a slight incline at around 2000-2400 rpm. It gradually got worse. At first the dealer said nothing was wrong, we were still in warranty.Then 500 after the 36,000 mile warranty expired they all of a sudden said ..."yep it's those pesky timing chain tensioners, they're very prone to break". And guess what you're out of warranty! Depending if it was just the front tensioners it could run $500+++. If it was the rear tensioners you're looking at $2000++++++. And they would put the same crappy part back in as they did not have an updated one. So it could break again. Another side effect of the tensioner breaking and the chain slapping around was a huge spike in iron in your oil. I was doing UOA's on the Explorer at the time.

Ford covered the tensioners on MY 2000 but not after . We dumped the 2002 as a trade in, got a real good price, for a 2005 EB Explorer with the 4.6 V-8. A lot more pep and the mpg is only about 1 mpg less than the 4.0 V-6. Got it for the employee pricing they were doing during the summer of 2005. Actually paid less for the 2005 loaded EB than the 2002 basic, one option, XLT!

Whimsey

 

Now that you mention it I have had a slight noise which I think is a valve tap.It could also be the ping sound you describe.It has done this for acouple of years without getting worse and does not do it all that often.Could this be what your talking about?

 

If it happens when the engine is cold with a load on it and you hear what sounds like a faint ping between approximately 2000 and 2500 rpm then it's a good chance it is the timing chain tensioners failing or failed. You can get a used oil anyalsis done by Blackstone, a site supporter. This will tell you if you have unusual wear metals in the oil. I had high iron levels due to the slapping chain. It won't detect the broken plastic though. I've read where the broken plastic clogged the oil pick up screen. Though I can't say that is a given.

Whimsey