Tranny/Diff Leak ('02 tiptronic quattro)

[Thrawn]

A friend is have issues with her A4. She found a leak, and also noticed a harsh vibration at idle after warm up. The vibration is similar to putting the car in "D", but imagine that feeling repeating for a 10 seconds plus...

I jacked her up and took some pics of the front diff...











Did a seal go bad? Looks like it's leaking from the bolts. Is the vibration and leak related? Too much of a coincidence of they are not... Please advise... Thank you...

[JohnnyG]

yes sirrr........it is called a propshaft seal. It isn't leaking from the bolts but the seal between the driveshaft cup (propshaft) and trans housing. Common concern. The fluid you see is gear oil for your center diff. Most likely not related to the vibration.....

[Thrawn]

Thanks for the reply! Is there a Technical bulletin for this, or is it just plain bad luck?

Is it an easy fix for a DIYer or is it time to go to a mechanic?

If gear oil is leaking, wouldn't that affect the tiptronic conponents? I would guess that about half a quart has already been lost...

[WhiteA4]

I had this same leak about 4 weeks ago in my audi 03 a4 quattro...
It's definetely a job to a local mechanic.... The part is not that expensive
its just a seal... worth about 45 bucks dealer price.....

Differential oil will be needed just to top off what was lost.. I used Mobil 1 Gear oil

THe labor is not that much. too.. Paid about $130 for the part and labor..