transfer case rust?

[tjnick]

hey gang. in another pickle. opened up my transfer case to sort out my speedo and found a bit of a surface rust in there and i'm going to take out the chain to give it a good old scrub. is there an easier way to take the chain out other than taking out the whole inside of the transfer case?

[bonza]

are you sure it's rust?

it is filled with oil whirling around so shouldnt rust unless it has been contaminated by water ingress for ages. besides the casing is aluminium alloy

if it is contaminated I would fill it to the correct level with atf and run it for a week then drain and refill with fresh atf

[tjnick]

yeah it's definately surface rust. we used the right oil to, so i don't know why it's there. is ATF just a brand of transfer case oil? or is it special rad shit? i'll give that a go, cheers

[bonza]

ATF = auto transmission fluid

the Jeep book says use ATF#3 or #4 but that is so you dont get confused with the auto transmission

for the transfer you can use any ATF you like, Dexron III is about the most common and can be bought anywhere

[tjnick]

oh sweet. thanks for that, yeah we'v been using dexron 3. do you recon the rust could be cause from not being used? cause i don't have it on the road yet. just fixing it up etc and we did the oils a far while ago n it's just been sitting in the garage.

[bonza]

oh sweet. thanks for that, yeah we'v been using dexron 3. do you recon the rust could be cause from not being used? cause i don't have it on the road yet. just fixing it up etc and we did the oils a far while ago n it's just been sitting in the garage.

if it has been sitting around for ages, probably condensation. drive it a few Ks and drain and flush then give a good run and refill.

[bonza]

just checked the service manual and you also would want to make sure the vent tube isnt blocked so it can breath

[tjnick]

oh true true, yeah will sus it out. thanks a heap

[Wooders]

I'd suspect condensation.
Be careful if you choose to clean the chain - you don't want residual that might not be compatible with the ATF.
If it's just a light surface "dusting" I probably wouldn't worry about it other than change the fluid a few times over a shorter time period.