2017 GSW 4motion 6spd w/IS20 w/ APR tune @ 30,000 mi
An independent VW specialist installed the following at 29,000 mi
IS20
new rear brakes/rotors
Haldex Service (Change Fluid + Clean Screen)
Around 30,000 mi, while driving on the highway I heard a whining sound coming from the rear of the car, intermittent loud scraping noises, and the rear suddenly felt sluggish. I thought some debris had caught in the brakes and set an appointment the same day to have it checked out. I scanned my car via OBDEleven but got no error codes. I got the vehicle over to the specialist who got under the car.
The specialist said the left axle boot was torn and possibly an issue with the differential and suggested I take it to the VW dealer to see if they would possibly cover it.
VW denied warranty (wasn't expecting them to due to IS20+APR) and conducted an inspection per my request. They diagnosed the issue as failure of the rear differential and rear left axle. I was quoted $5,800 for the repair. They inspected the Haldex system and said it was fine.
Cost Breakdown
$3,409.16 - Final Drive (Rear Differential) - 0CQ525010S
$ 632.86 - Left Axle Assembly
$1,757.98 Labor+nuts/bolts
The VW tech said he had never seen the rear differential just fail out of the blue, especially if it was able to go 30,000 miles. The car ran perfectly fine before the Haldex Service, and VW said they did not see any damage, scoring, or any external physical damage, ruling out any accident.
I've researched across the forums and found there had been multiple rear differential failures, primarily on Gold R's, that failed due to Haldex service error. There were two main errors that I found:
1. Tech accidentally drained differential fluid instead of Haldex fluid (The drain bolts are near each other), then topped off Haldex. Lack of diff fluid causes failure.
2. Tech accidentally drained differential fluid and refilled differential fluid with Haldex Fluid (which is thinner/lighter than the 75w90 gear oil for diff) The lighter fluid eventually burns off and eventually causes diff failure
I re-contacted the specialist who said he was sure he did the Haldex service correctly. However, given what was found by VW, the only "change" in the vicinity of the failed differential is the Haldex Service he performed. I'm waiting to go back to the VW dealer to get some pictures and any additional information they might have.
I've found used diffs on ebay around $5-600, and axles for around $1-200.
Any suggestions/recommendations as to which route to go, or if you had experience with this problem, are greatly appreciated. Most of the information I dug up was a few years old, with nothing too recent popping up. A lot of the pictures and videos have expired.
An independent VW specialist installed the following at 29,000 mi
IS20
new rear brakes/rotors
Haldex Service (Change Fluid + Clean Screen)
Around 30,000 mi, while driving on the highway I heard a whining sound coming from the rear of the car, intermittent loud scraping noises, and the rear suddenly felt sluggish. I thought some debris had caught in the brakes and set an appointment the same day to have it checked out. I scanned my car via OBDEleven but got no error codes. I got the vehicle over to the specialist who got under the car.
The specialist said the left axle boot was torn and possibly an issue with the differential and suggested I take it to the VW dealer to see if they would possibly cover it.
VW denied warranty (wasn't expecting them to due to IS20+APR) and conducted an inspection per my request. They diagnosed the issue as failure of the rear differential and rear left axle. I was quoted $5,800 for the repair. They inspected the Haldex system and said it was fine.
Cost Breakdown
$3,409.16 - Final Drive (Rear Differential) - 0CQ525010S
$ 632.86 - Left Axle Assembly
$1,757.98 Labor+nuts/bolts
The VW tech said he had never seen the rear differential just fail out of the blue, especially if it was able to go 30,000 miles. The car ran perfectly fine before the Haldex Service, and VW said they did not see any damage, scoring, or any external physical damage, ruling out any accident.
I've researched across the forums and found there had been multiple rear differential failures, primarily on Gold R's, that failed due to Haldex service error. There were two main errors that I found:
1. Tech accidentally drained differential fluid instead of Haldex fluid (The drain bolts are near each other), then topped off Haldex. Lack of diff fluid causes failure.
2. Tech accidentally drained differential fluid and refilled differential fluid with Haldex Fluid (which is thinner/lighter than the 75w90 gear oil for diff) The lighter fluid eventually burns off and eventually causes diff failure
I re-contacted the specialist who said he was sure he did the Haldex service correctly. However, given what was found by VW, the only "change" in the vicinity of the failed differential is the Haldex Service he performed. I'm waiting to go back to the VW dealer to get some pictures and any additional information they might have.
I've found used diffs on ebay around $5-600, and axles for around $1-200.
Any suggestions/recommendations as to which route to go, or if you had experience with this problem, are greatly appreciated. Most of the information I dug up was a few years old, with nothing too recent popping up. A lot of the pictures and videos have expired.
