[baglenn]

Hi, I recently bought a 1997 nissan XE pickup with only 45,000 miles. It was owned by an older person. He did all the maintence like oil changes and air filter etc. The last time the auto trans fluid was flushed was @ 30k back in 2003 and the spark plugs was done around the same time. The previous owner used 10 - 40 w oil in the truck. The truck had the orginal tires and belts and hoses. I went to nissan and I got these items done: 1. belts replaced, 2. hoses replaced, 3. auto trans drain and fill, 4. radiator fluid flush, 5. fuel injection cleaning service, 6. Oil change to 5 - 30 oil. 7. state inspection. I also got new tires and alignment balance done @ firestone. I asked them about replacing the other fluids like power steering, brake & differential & the service advisor said those r fine they are sealed from the elements.

My questions are: Is it true i dont change differential fluid because its sealed? Is there any other maintenance that I missed? What do yall advise me to do to keep this truck running for a long time?

Thanks

 

[Oldnissanguy]

Neither the brakes nor the differential are completely sealed. Brake fluid will absorb moisture over time which contributes to the deterioration of the braking system. I would certainly flush the brakes.

You should service the differential for the same reason you change the oil, to remove contaminates and metal wear particles which flush out with the old oil. Because there's normally little contamination going on, as long as you keep it above water and out of sand, it doesn't need to be serviced as often. With everything else you’ve done it wouldn't hurt to service the differential too.