Well I figured it would be a good idea to change my diff fluid in the rear end since it's never been done on my truck. Since the cover was going to have to come off, I wanted to get an aftermarket cover with fill and drain plugs plus I wanted something that looks better than the stock piece.
After looking at a few brands, I decided to go with LPW. It's a stout piece, comes with everything you need (except gasket maker) and has load bolts so you can preload the main caps. Plus the price was cheaper than the basic covers other brands offered. I also bought the ARP studs to replace the cap bolts. I paid $229.97 shipped to my house.
All that is needed for the install is basic hand tools and some gasket maker. Took me about 1Hr and that was with a food break. Instructions are included and very thorough but one thing I will say is DO NOT TORQUE THE COVER BOLTS PER INSTRUCTIONS. I snapped the head off of one of the bolts. Just tighten them like you would the stock cover.
Here is everything that comes in the box:
Backside of the cover showing the load bolts:
ARP studs (sold separately but thru LPW)
Here is a comparison to the old cover:
ARP studs installed:
Before:
After:
Overall I'm happy with it. Filling the cover was super easy. No pump needed and there is plenty of room. No more filling it on the backside but you still need use the factory fill plug to check the level. The cover adds about 1qt more than the factory cover. They also offer a powdercoated black version if you want a different look.
After looking at a few brands, I decided to go with LPW. It's a stout piece, comes with everything you need (except gasket maker) and has load bolts so you can preload the main caps. Plus the price was cheaper than the basic covers other brands offered. I also bought the ARP studs to replace the cap bolts. I paid $229.97 shipped to my house.
All that is needed for the install is basic hand tools and some gasket maker. Took me about 1Hr and that was with a food break. Instructions are included and very thorough but one thing I will say is DO NOT TORQUE THE COVER BOLTS PER INSTRUCTIONS. I snapped the head off of one of the bolts. Just tighten them like you would the stock cover.
Here is everything that comes in the box:
Backside of the cover showing the load bolts:
ARP studs (sold separately but thru LPW)
Here is a comparison to the old cover:
ARP studs installed:
Before:
After:
Overall I'm happy with it. Filling the cover was super easy. No pump needed and there is plenty of room. No more filling it on the backside but you still need use the factory fill plug to check the level. The cover adds about 1qt more than the factory cover. They also offer a powdercoated black version if you want a different look.
