I just changed the differential oil in 98 xk8 the easy way. Didn't have to jack the car. Took less than 3 hours. And most of the time i was sitting in a chair. Here are also some pics of the aaahhaaaa moment for getting access to the fill plug.
I also got 4 videos on you tube.
I thought this DIY was awesome and had to post it. Thanks Chris



inside trunk, beside power distribution box 2" hole saw




Aaaahhhhhaaaa there is the fill plug



1/2" drive wobble extensions to remove fill plug

 

Good one! Thanks for sharing.

 

good!

 

The hardest part of the job is putting the fill plug back in. For fear of stripping threads, i used some modeling clay on a long screwdriver to get the plug started. The wobble extension couldnt get the plug straight. After it started it was no problem to tighten with the 1/2"drive wobble extension.
Next hardest was making the videos.

Note: in the last video, part 4, the beer sitting next to the chair.

 

So, if I understand correctly, the drain plug is easily reachable. So it is easy to drain and inspect the fluid. With your approach, the fill plug is now reachable easily, too. So, the diff can be filled back up. Would you mind sharing what you filled the diff with, and why? Thanks.

PS: Definitely not looking to add anything on my to-do list, but I might have to, now.

 

Since the shell spirax 90ts oil is not attainable, i went with valvoline fully synthetic 75w-90, with "extreme high/low temperature protection".

From reading another post, a redline rep said his product will be comparable to the shell oil. So, i ordered some redline 75w90 but it didnt get here in time. so now i have two quarts sitting on the shelf. it is also fully synthetic.

The car has 180k miles, the oil was dark gray/brown to blackish coming out. I took out almost two quarts with the hand vacuum pump. And put in the 1.9 quarts of clean oil with a funnel and hose.

Anyways if i screwed up with the oil and someone has two quarts of the shell let me know i can change it pretty easily.

 

The oil should be ok, although I used something like
85-140 Redline.

But just the other day, I stumbled on an oil that is very
close to the original Shell.

Fuchs Race 90. It used to be Silkolene Race 90.

 

holesaw 1 1/4" to 2 1/8" and drillmotor
wobble extension set-came with 1/2,3/8 and 1/4 drives,harbor freight $12
ratchet
hand vacuum pump- northern tools $40
1/4" and 3/8" tubing and funnel
modeling clay-(for starting fillplug)
flashlight
long screw driver
magnetic telescoping retriever-(plug is steel)
paint
sealer and cap or material for closing hole
two empty quart containers
new oil
papertowels
chair
beer

 

What a great idea, it's going to be my next job, thanks for that chrisgski.
I've been looking for the right oil that's recomended by Jaguar, and it seems quite difficult to find, but I went SNG Barratt with the part number JLM20255 and they had it in stock, it arrived today.

 

Thanks, guess i'll be doing the oil change again. I ordered two liters of the oil from sng barratt.

 

Made in Germany.

Bet you the supplier is Fuchs/Silkolene and same as their Race 90.

 

2 Rubber Grommets Without Hole - Rubber Plug - Solid Grommet 1 1/2" Diameter
Chris, This might be a better idea for the hole. You can have easy access again and a little sealer will water proof it. I'm sure a larger one is available.


Wayne

 

Yup -I've been doing this way on both our XJ8 & XK8 for yrs- on our '98 & '00 there were actually access holes already there covered with color matching patches, grind those away , then to make it easier use knibbler to make access openings larger for hand, then once done treat & seal it back how ever u see fit ( I use aircraft quality tape cause here in Phx it dont rain or snow much!)

Cheers!

 

Would this also work on the later 4.2 models?

 

Wow...yes please I would like to know if it'll work for MY 2005

 

Right, just tried to change the diff oil, trying to work out where to drill access hole, it seems a later car is slightly different, so jacked the car and had a look and there's a support plate holding two stays/ struts blocking the filler plug, so you'd have to drill that one to, but I'm not sure about that because it make a bit weaker.

 

well i finally got the oem correct differential oil from SNG Barrat. Ordered on July 30th recieved aug 20th. Changed the oil again. Piece of cake, took less than 2 hours. And 1.9 quarts means 1.9 quarts. Had to clean up the floor of .05 quart. LOL.
The oem "final drive thermal 90" oil is a lot thicker than the valvoline 75w90. I noticed the slower pour rate in the funnel. So i recommend the thicker viscosity oils like mentioned in the above post. (90-140s) Also the valvoline oil after roughly 1000 miles turned from nice yellow color to a colbalt gray black color. It kind of surprized me how dark. Which may be it just mixed with some of the dirty oil and gears inside. Dont know.

Nevertheless, i have the correct oil in it now, and hopefully it will last another 180k.

 

I did this today, my fluid was disgusting milkshake after 18 years. After trying different methods for putting the plug back in I came up with the perfect solution. I used a 1/2 adaptor to put it in a drill (you can get a set of 'em for all the drives at harbor freight for like $2). Instead of putting it on a drill I used a 1/4" socket and then a 1/4" extension. This allowed the plug to go straight on as you could lower it against the bracket that somewhat hides the plug hole. It went on the first try.

 

So did anyone figure out if there is the same access on later cars? The brace shown above is where I locate the jack to raise the rear. Don't think I would want to drill a hole in it.

 

Jandreu, I don't think its strong enough to jack up the car from! But I'm still going to try and change the diff oil using that method, it's just that you've got to be more precise with the second hole, cut a bigger one in trunk to make it easier.