Front Diff Leak - Is this normal?

[The Beanster]

My 2007 TT has been in for service to fix a front diff leak five times (two times at a Porsche dealer and three times at an independant performance shop). Yesterday, while prepping my car for a DE at Watkins Glen (June 18-19) I found the diff fluid on my garage floor again.

The tech looked at it this morning and found a hole on the front diff about 5mm wide and 1 to 2 inches below the fill bolt. We are thinking this is a weep hole by why is it below the fill plug and why would it leak? Is something missing?

Here are pictures taken of a cut-away diff that show the location of my leak.

Any thoughts on this? Even the Porsche is unsure and I'd hate to miss the DE event this weekend.

Thanks!

Edited June 16, 2011 by The Beanster

[The Beanster]

Just a follow up for anyone interested. A leak from this particular weep hole (there are two on the front diff) indicates a leak at one of the internal seals. Porsche does not offer parts to fix it. Instead, the entire differential has to be replaced. The differential is $6000 and the labor is estimated at around $900. My car is 7 months out of warranty but its been leaking for a coule of years according to the service documentation from the previous owner. The car is currently at the dealer waiting for the leak to be inspected again. We'll see if Porsche will honor some sort of warranty on this since it was problematic before the warranty expired.

Previous "fixes" from Porsche service tickets say "Could not find source of leak. Cleaned differential housing and bottom tray."

Fixes from non-Porsche shops say "Changed/Added washer" and "Applied sealant to threads on sensor."

I dont know if it matters to anyone but I'll follow up later with the results from the dealer.

I didn't get to go to Watkins this weekend! Insult to injury... the Hampton Inn would not offer a refund or a credit towards a future stay. D'oh!

[coleta]

We care. Keep us updated. Hope it works out for you

[The Beanster]

This additional info was just emailed to me by a Porsche tech...

There are two separate chambers in the front diff of your Turbo. Both are separated by a chamber that only houses a bearing. On either side of the bearing are seals. If there is a seal leak, the weep hole is there to protect from fluid cross-contamination. Both chambers have different fluids. There are two weep holes. The one were talking about and the one on the bottom side of the diff. One is repairable and one is not, yours is not and must be replaced.

:cursing:

Edited June 22, 2011 by The Beanster

[fingal]

This additional info was just emailed to me by a Porsche tech...

There are two separate chambers in the front diff of your Turbo. Both are separated by a chamber that only houses a bearing. On either side of the bearing are seals. If there is a seal leak, the weep hole is there to protect from fluid cross-contamination. Both chambers have different fluids. There are two weep holes. The one were talking about and the one on the bottom side of the diff. One is repairable and one is not, yours is not and must be replaced.

:cursing:

[coleta]

Beanster, Where did you get the picture of the cutaway diff? Do you have a long shot of the weep holes on the diff? I can't get orientated with the close ups. Thanks

[The Beanster]

Beanster, Where did you get the picture of the cutaway diff? Do you have a long shot of the weep holes on the diff? I can't get orientated with the close ups. Thanks

The tech from the dealership where this car originated has been very helpful. He was the first to find this leak back in 2009 (though no fix was applied). It just so happened that he was at a tech class when I emailed him about the continued leaking problem and luckily Porsche had a cut away differential there at the class so he snapped those pictures for me.

Edited June 24, 2011 by The Beanster

[The Beanster]

Another follow up. I just called about my car and the Porsche dealer still has not looked at it. As of tomorrow, it will have been sitting on their lot for a week. He said they would probably get to it by Monday. This is so frustrating.

The schmucks at Hampton Inn would not offer me refund or credit for my hotel stay from last weekend's missed Watkins Glen event.

Edited June 25, 2011 by The Beanster

[The Beanster]

The dealer called today and they contacted Porsche who agreed to replace the part under warranty. The part is now estimated at $7000. This is pretty annoying considering it could be just a bad bearing in the housing. Anyhow, I have to pay the labor for the job which is $680. All in all, I guess I can't complain. I should have the car by Friday.

[SVTHorsnake]

My wastegates went out two days before my warranty ran up, but it was a long weekend and I couldn't get it in until the following tuesday (a day after the warranty ran up). It requires replacing both turbos. Porsche honored the warranty minus $120 for diagnosing. It was strange but I'm not complaining. I think they want to ensure the right stories are getting out about them. They certainly didn't leave me high and dry.

[phillipj]

Beanster and SVThorsnake,

I'm so glad to hear that Porsche came through for you. Especially you Beanster. $680 is not bad.

[Alberta Alex]

I heartily agree with Phillipj's comment. I'm so pleased to hear that Porsche is stepping up and covering these niggling little problems (to them) under warranty. It makes me feel just a bit better in my decision to not purchase aftermarket warranty coverage.

[yllwturbo]

good to hear they stood behind their products.

Beanster and SVThorsnake,

I'm so glad to hear that Porsche came through for you. Especially you Beanster. $680 is not bad.