Purchased a new 04 Rubicon two years ago and while reading the Maintenance Logbook the other day, noticed while Schedule B recommends draining and refilling the front and rear axle fluid every 12,000 miles, Schedule A makes no mention of even draining or refilling the front and rear axle fluid for the length of time of Schedule A which is 102,000 miles. I didn't buy my Jeep to go off road, and of this date, it has never been in 4 wheel drive. I'm 61 years old and not hard on my automobiles. I do feel that the motor oil should be changed every 3,000 miles, but just can't seem to understand the reasoning behind the axle maintenance in both schedules. Also, I drive it less than 12,000 a year. It was a retirement gift to myself. Just wanted something that didn't look like everything else on the road. Would sure like to hear from those of you that are more in the know than I am. I asked at the dealership and have emailed Jeep twice, no one seems to know. I don't feel that with the way I drive and take care of my autos that I need to change it every 12,000 miles (not concerned about warranty requirements). Thanks for your help.

with it not going off road and pretty much zero chance of getting horrible things such as water into your diffs, i see no reason to change the fluid every 12000 miles. i don't think i'd wait til 102,000, though. i change mine around 30,000. it's not a hard thing to do and i like to keep everything lubed well since mine's getting up there in miles.

I agree with khenderson, if all you are doing is using it on road, I don't believe that you need to do the diff change every 12,000 miles. I recently took apart axles from an old Wagoneer, probably from the late 70's, early 80's, and the rear diff oil was like tar, and the front axle diff was like brand new. Which would mean that the original owner never had it in four wheel drive. As khenderson said, I don't think you should wait until 102,000 miles. You could probably get away with every 50,000 miles. I would also recommend Chryslers top of the line synthetic oil, that is what I use.

Thank you for taking the time to reply. Just wondered why Schedule A of the maintenance log never mentions changing the front or rear axle fluid.

The reason behind it is no one has ever asked that question before and the people who write those books don't drive.