I took the car in for her 2nd oil change today. I decided to include changing the differential fluid with it. The car has 5000 miles on it and is 1.5 years old.

The tech said that the oil from the diff. was pretty dirty for 5000 miles, and the magnet contained a lot of small shavings. He described it as "creamy", but said it was normal. He did say however that it was a good idea to change it. So, if you've been debating spending the money on changing it before the recommended interval, I would say do so. To me it was worth the 50 beans.

 

While the shavings are probably not ideal, the darker oil is actually quite normal. The factory oil (either engine or diff) seems to be darker than normal even if the car is brand new.

 

With metal shavings in there that would mean that it is skipping teeth and the alignment was not right from the factory(pinion and ring gear).

Justin

 

It depends on the sixe of the shavings.
Most of the diff services I do have them, It looks liketiny glitter in the oil. This is normal, If you can feel "grit" in the oil when you rub it between your fingers you should investigate further.
The first diff service always has the most. Because of the gear mesh area break-in

 

The glitter in the oil appears in a brand new engine with delivery miles as far as I can tell. Has anyone done an analysis to see what it is?

 

Many people, including me, have commented on the differential fluid change. I've changed mine at 10k and 20k. The 10k change contained the same metal shavings that are stuck to the magnetic drain plug. The 20k was much cleaner. I would second the motion on changing your fluid the next time you have your car serviced.

The "search" should give you more info on this topic from others who noticed the same thing.