D2 5HP19 gearbox leaks. Where to go?

[notorious]

Noticed today a gearbox leak.
Looks like driveshaft seal leak on the right hand side.






And the prop shaft seal that I fixed at Chester Transmissions in 2013 is leaking again. The fix included changing flange to upgraded part number.



Where should I go?
Mackies, Germany?

[oldnick]

where are you ?

swindon maybe ?

[Sir WIll]

My D2 is leaking in a very similar way from the diff seal against the gearbox on the front and centre diffs.

This is on a car that had £3000 worth of work from Mackies on the gearbox in the last couple of years.

It's going to go in this month to see a very nice chap near Swindon.

[notorious]

I'm from Reading area.

Guy, do you specialise in replacing seals / fixing leaks?

[oldnick]

Originally Posted by Sir WIll

My D2 is leaking in a very similar way from the diff seal against the gearbox on the front and centre diffs.

This is on a car that had £3000 worth of work from Mackies on the gearbox in the last couple of years.

It's going to go in this month to see a very nice chap near Swindon.

half way between swindon and andover if I understand correctly

[daviesbike]

Hi Guy's

It is indeed diff oil leak. The parts are not expensive in fact I'd imagine less than £50 for both seals.

I have done this job on many D3s but only 1 D2 and that was a couple of years ago. It seems far less commen on a D2 .. and now this is the second one I've seen in 2 weeks

I certainly can do it that's not a problem

[Adrian E]

I wonder with the rear seals whether it's the difficulty in meeting the installation depth with the box installed in the car that makes failures so common? ElsaWin states to install new seals 1.7mm below top of cover and lists a special tool (part number T40105) to use, which looks like it has a shoulder on it to prevent it being pushed too far in. I can't imagine the tool is expensive so might be worth enquiring just to see if it does make a difference?

Rear diff seals seem to age more quickly than fronts - I've got a seal waiting to be fitted here for the back of the car, which will be the 2nd in my ownership. Don't think I've needed to do a front yet.

ETA - ElsaWin page added for info

[notorious]

Cheers everyone!

About the offside driveshaft leaking seal: Because this is right side of the car I have a theory that the bearing behind it is worn and kind of wobbles in place which kills the seal. I have no data to prove it though! Is there any 'best practice' wisdom that the bearing needs to be replaced as well? Or perhaps I am just 'thinking too much'?

And thanks for your reply Guy! I'll keep in touch.

[Adrian E]

I would imagine a bearing worn enough to do that would result in some pretty substantial vibrations through the car? They've never been a particularly strong point of design on Audis - I've always treated the seals as consumables on age grounds when they've gone. I seem to recall now that I've needed more of them doing on our old A6 than the S8, although the mechanicals are pretty much identical in running gear terms.

The bearing for the right side appears to be integral to the differential, so is a pretty meaty piece of kit and I suspect involves a full refurb of the diff to change, as a new bearing would require different shimming. There may be one on the left side which forms part of the speedometer drive, according to ElsaWin, but wear in that bearing shouldn't cause a problem with the oil seal as the bearing is between the output flange and the shaft.

[HPsauce]

Leaking transmission seals (any and all of the above) are common place. In nearly 14 years of D2 S8 ownership I've had a fair few fixed.

Personally I tend to wait until the smell of burning oil dripping onto the exhaust becomes unbearable, but then my driveway is rubbish!