Finally have a chance to get this Aussie for the D30 installed today. Planning to give it a run on Sunday over at "Dishpan Springs" near Big Bear, San Bernadino, Ca. area (but, might settle for Miller Jeep Trail about an hour north of LA). I use synthetic gear oil in the front and rear diffs, now, and have some Mobil Synth for the install.
Only trick I've been having is finding a shop to do the work. The two 4x4 shops I checked out in the Valley (San Fernando Valley, where they shoot most of the Porn videos out there :) are both installers and parts retailers. That means that these guys want to sell you their limited selection of parts and install them for you, too. You walk in with an auto locker that you picked up online for low price and that kind of screws up how the way they do business. These guys are willing to do the install, but start quoting ludicrous install prices like it was some kind of revenge for not buying your parts through them (guy quoted me $300...I was like, "have a nice day, man" :)
Frankly, that model of doing business -- doing repair/install and dealing in parts, too -- needs its own sort of "modification." Consumers just have too many choices online; a smart shop would just say, "we can't compete with the choices you can get online for parts or with their price, either...so, we'll just specialize in doing custom install work...bring us the parts you buy online and we'll install them for you." Or they should do some kind of kick-back referral fee deal, where the shop directs the customer to buy a part from a certain low-cost online retailer and then gets a fee from the internet retailer for the business. Also, the Tire Rack-type system seems to work well, too, for local tire installers -- I bought my tires and Tire Rack shipped them to an approved local retailer who then did the install.
Anyway, probably going to a truck transmission/rear-end shop to get the install done. If I had a garage, I'd DIY
