Member Since: 14 Aug 2014
Location: Worcestershire
Posts: 35
D4 Front Diff Woes
2010 D4 130K miles Front Diff Broke - check your breathers - now !
Had noticed a faint 'whine or scraping' sound for the last 5K miles, ever since I changed the front Discs/pads. At first i thought the pads were rubbing, as the pistons were a little reluctant to 'relax' in the calipers due to them using the full bore length again. But the whine got worse over time, and worse again after I had the lower control arms replaced.
Indy LR mechanic said my front diff was on the way out, which sounded plausible although a shock for what is supposed to be a robust SUV capable of long and hard service life !
Did a lot of reading and saw the early D3 diff issues where the paint inside the casing got into bearings , and the breathers became blocked, effectively 'cooking' the diff / blowing the seals. I would have hoped that by the D4 launch, landrover would have sorted this out after early issues.
The whine turned into a grind, and then it sounded like cutlery in a waste disposal unit, so I decided I would get the diff sorted !
I found the diff breaker pipe which popped up behind the front grille by the water bottle, and to my amazement (read disgust) it was the old style from the D3 with a very narrow aperture. I took the cap off the filter, and the hole was about 3mm with a white foam filter that was hard, solid and refused to pass air either way when i blew / sucked. I assume that the failure of this £5 part was responsible for my £700 repair bill.
Thanks Landrover for;
1) not modifying the breather for what was a known issue at time of manufacture
2) not issuing a dealer service check for the condition of the breaker (up to 2016 the car was full main dealer serviced)
3) not issuing a recall to fit a £5 modified breaker
Now, I have had the diff replaced with a recon unit, however the car appears to be fighting itself to pull off the line, grinding from the front, MPG fallen off the scale, tugging steering when pulling off the line under power, grinding on the overrun/slowing, feels like I am towing 3500KG (which i have done) etc etc.
I have concluded that the wrong ratio recon diff has been fitted !!!! yet to be confirmed, going back to the garage.
Reading around, seems there were 4 different ratios depending if it was petrol 3.73 / manual 3.07 / 6 speed Auto 3.54 / 8 Speed Auto 3.21
I believe mine should be 3.54 being a 3.0TDV6 Auto 6 Speed. and I don't think that's what the garage have fitted, so the back wheels are fighting with the front, with the centre diff as the referee!
I think something in the middle will break If I drive any further ?
Any one else had their D4 Front diff go ? as mine is one of the first (Sept 2009) it could be a sign of many more to come ?
Too old to put a manufacturer claim in ? i guess
17th Mar 2017 5:14 pm
Fitzy73
Member Since: 09 Feb 2014
Location: Truro
Posts: 2407
Sorry to hear about your troubles and hope you get it sorted very soon.
The faint noise you mentioned, is that most noticeable when setting off slowly from cold?Andy
17th Mar 2017 7:21 pm
Pigscovery
Member Since: 14 Aug 2014
Location: Worcestershire
Posts: 35
No, the noise was constant, but louder when cornering left. like a wheel bearing, but they were previously done.
When I asked the garage if the new diff had the LR part number on so we could check the ratio, he said no, as the recon people take all the labels off and repaint the casings. This sounds alarming, as I assume the different versions all come in the same casing, so how do they identify the correct ratio diff from the outside ?
Perhaps they cant which is why I have an incorrect one.
I am wondering while I'm waiting for a slot to go back in, whether I could support on 4 stands, start it up in drive and check the wheel rotations per minute front/rear on tickover (with Stability control off as that would sense the different speeds and assume I have lost control) ?
17th Mar 2017 7:49 pm
Pigscovery
Member Since: 14 Aug 2014
Location: Worcestershire
Posts: 35
Wrong Diff replaced
It has now been confirmed. local garage fitted the wrong ratio recon diff.
My 6 speed TDV6 Auto should have had the 3.54:1 front diff replaced, however It has been fitted with a recon 3.21:1 diff that is for the 8 speed Auto.
The car has just gone back in to correct this, but I am now concerned that damage may have been caused to the transfer box. I know those things are meant to take a fair bit of stick from opposing ends of this 2.7 ton car when in low ratio over rocks etc, but having the driven wheels on different final rations front and rear surely must stress the transfer box beyond design tolerances ?
By the time they drove (not on flatbed) the car back, it will have covered around 50 miles on tarmac. Anyone with experience of transfer box failure got any advice about checking the unit out, as I'm sure I could persue the responsible parties for the mistake ?
20th Mar 2017 4:06 pm
Fitzy73
Member Since: 09 Feb 2014
Location: Truro
Posts: 2407
That doesn't sound good. At least they have admitted the problem, but as you say, what is the potential damage.
Afraid I can't answer that, but hopefully a little bump might bring along those with greater knowledge.Andy
20th Mar 2017 5:47 pm
JksD4
Member Since: 31 Mar 2015
Location: Highlands
Posts: 100
Pigscovery - Thanks for posting this - I have a very early Sept 2009 D4 (2010 model) 3.0TDV6 and mine has the same old style breather. I have only just done 100k miles though. Hopefully no damage so far
Your right, land rover are very poor at acknowledgement of faults and implementing fixes - I don't trust the dealer network either: used Disco Mikey for recent work MY2010 D4 3.0 TDV6 HSE Stornaway grey
20th Mar 2017 8:48 pm
Disco_Mikey
Member Since: 29 May 2007
Location: Dundee, Scotland
Posts: 20841
Been fitting loads of these new diff breathers lately. I should really remember the part number by now My D3 Build Thread
As I have a 2010 D4 3.0 HSE with 103k I'd be grateful for some pictures of where the breather is, what it looks like and what I need to replace LRs are a fond memory, apart from the maintenance.
20th Mar 2017 9:08 pm
DSL Keeper of the wheelie bin
Member Since: 11 May 2006
Location: Off again! :-)
Posts: 73085
+1.
20th Mar 2017 9:10 pm
robpenrose
Member Since: 12 Jan 2016
Location: Surrey / SW London
Posts: 2138
+ 2
Current: D4 HSE
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20th Mar 2017 9:38 pm
JPW
Member Since: 19 Mar 2007
Location: Essex
Posts: 217
This is the TSB for the D3 - but I'm surprised that MY10 are still using the old style
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