Exploding rear differential on T5 2012 California 180BHP 4 Motion. 50,000 miles

Mearsfamily · Nov 21, 2020

Whilst driving down busy A1, there was a bang that felt like a tyre blow out . Pulled over and oil was pouring out of rear differential. Towed back to garage and they sent this picture. Differential casing completely broken in 2 . Anybody had any similar problems and what were your solutions. We are told that a factory new one from VW is £5,649 !! The van has only done 50,000 very easy miles and none off road .

WelshGas · Nov 21, 2020

Mearsfamily said:
Whilst driving down busy A1, there was a bang that felt like a tyre blow out . Pulled over and oil was pouring out of rear differential. Towed back to garage and they sent this picture. Differential casing completely broken in 2 . Anybody had any similar problems and what were your solutions. We are told that a factory new one from VW is £5,649 !! The van has only done 50,000 very easy miles and none off road . View attachment 69684

Do you have the Mechanical Diff Lock?

Not something I’ve seen posted on this Forum or the T5 Forum.

I had something similar on a Land Rover Defender. It had a small oil leak and the Dealership said No Problem. They booked it in and cancelled 3 times and each time said I could continue driving. On the way to the garage, Big Bang and a hole in the centre Diff. Fortunately under warranty.

Drpps · Nov 21, 2020

really sorry for you.
No experience I'm afraid, and can't say I have heard of it before.

As mentioned, do you have a diff lock and could that have been on by mistake?
It does look like it might have suffered an impact so could it have hit anything?
Has it had the Haldex system serviced/oil changed? - I would have thought if it was upto date with the recommended inspection/changes there should be an element of goodwill as that is a catastrophic component failure. Someone will know the consumer bit but not sure how many years for a fit for purpose. That should not be a wear and tear component!
You could ask for an independent report if you don't get any further.

Lightning · Nov 21, 2020

Does it have a full service VW service history?
That is so expensive, at such a low mileage.

briwy · Nov 21, 2020

Could be wrong but I think the diff lock disengages over a certain speed. Never tried it and never driven over about 25mph with the lock on. Do all your tyres have the same specification and tread depth. Irregular diameters can cause the diff to "wind up"?

Mearsfamily · Jan 6, 2021

Mearsfamily said:
Whilst driving down busy A1, there was a bang that felt like a tyre blow out . Pulled over and oil was pouring out of rear differential. Towed back to garage and they sent this picture. Differential casing completely broken in 2 . Anybody had any similar problems and what were your solutions. We are told that a factory new one from VW is £5,649 !! The van has only done 50,000 very easy miles and none off road . View attachment 69684

briwy said:
Could be wrong but I think the diff lock disengages over a certain speed. Never tried it and never driven over about 25mph with the lock on. Do all your tyres have the same specification and tread depth. Irregular diameters can cause the diff to "wind up"?