Differential/Gearbox noises

[James_G]

Another day, another question for the good people of this forum.

Now that I am progressing well with the obvious works needed to my S2 (suspension and brakes), I have turned my attention to the list of other jobs from the last service. Apparently my main differentail bearing has gone, and indeed there is some whine from the back, although to my mind it increases with road speed. It hasn't got any worse in the 2500 miles I've had the car, but that's not a lot compared to the 150k miles it has already done.

Also my O/S drive shaft seal is leaking. Is it safe to assume therefore that the diff is likely to be low on oil. Presumably the diff/gearbox share oil or am I misinterpreting things?

Thanks

James

 

[sawood12]

The diff and gearbox do share oil though these transmissions do whine a bit so your bearings may be perfectly serviceable and have many tens of thousands of miles of life left in them yet. I wouldn't necessarily assume they were shot purely from a whining noise - they all do that. However the leaking seal sounds like it is a bit more serious. Not necessarily because you are loosing oil, but it is essential that gearbox internals be kept clean so if oil is leaking out then there is the possibility/opportunity for moisture and small particles to get in. Might be worth getting it checked out at a specialist.