Front diff failure?

[FONT=&quot]I am relatively new to RR's and I was wondering if anyone would be kind enough to give me some advice before my mechanic feeds me more language I don't understand and have to part with more and more cash. [/FONT][FONT=&quot][/FONT]
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[FONT=&quot]I have a L322 2004. For the past month or so I have heard a clunking noise from under the car when changing from drive to reverse and back again. Today my wife was driving along and all of sudden there was very loud grinding noise. The car would not drive forward but it would move in reverse? I have called the mechanic to get a flatbed as I don't want to do any more damage. I have done a little reading and it sounds similar to a diff failure only thing that confuses me is if it was a diff failure then would it reverse?

Any ideas? Thanks[/FONT][FONT=&quot][/FONT]
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If it's a diesel, think gearbox.

Thanks. It is a diesel. It has 68k on the clock which isn't that much. Is it normal for that to fail? Assuming it is the gearbox will I need a new one? Or are there alternatives?

Datatek said:

If it's a diesel, think gearbox.

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Sorry to hear that Pietro - I'm with Datatek, sounds like Gearbox failure....

Unfortunatly it happens without warning in most cases....

The TD6 GM Gearbox was/is prone to sudden failure - the petrol 'box not so much....

The problem being that the 'box is supposedly 'Sealed for Life' and no maintenance was needed on them - problem with that is as the fluid gets old it drags crap into the torque convertor and it starts to gum everything up then bang, they just let go.....

Only possible soultion now is to have the Box replaced or refurbed - and you ain't gonna like the price either...reports of over £2k if not more.....

Sorry Bud....

Ohh crap! That aint good news. I'm starting to think me and the l322 aren't meant to be. I'll keep you posted once the mechanic has looked at it.

Ok some goodish news, the mechanic says its not the gearbox but the drive shaft. Apparently the full kit as he refferee to it is about £625. Then charging me £150 labour. All in including vat just over £900. Does this sound a reasonable amount?

Pietro said:

Ok some goodish news, the mechanic says its not the gearbox but the drive shaft. Apparently the full kit as he refferee to it is about £625. Then charging me £150 labour. All in including vat just over £900. Does this sound a reasonable amount?

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Which drive shaft? Prop or half shaft? If it's the prop it's way too much

What surprises me is if you don't have forward drive but you have reverese - how does a Prop or Drive shaft only want to work in one direction??

Fingers crossed it is just a shaft and not the GB - save a few pennies there!

Still Island List a Front Prop at £60+VAT and there is also a splined coupler for £104+VAT so I would want to know what he is supplying in this 'kit' for £625 before I shell out on it.

im with saint v8 on this, how does a shaft work one way but not the other. and sounds very expensive for a shaft. a recon box is about 1200 quid. and to me it looks like thats what you will be replacing. 150 an hour labour, really????? must be a main dealer at that price???

If it is just the 'shaft or the lack of front diff recall (I'm with the others that think gearbox!) then take the sign as a warning and get the gearbox serviced by an auto specialist such as stephens engineering. Auto Gearbox Specialists | Automatic Gearbox Repairs | Automatic Gearbox

£200 may just add 20-30K to the life of the box. 68K is on the the margin of no point of return where oil changes can just spread sludge around the 'box! Service these boxes every 25K IMHO.

I'm a happy past customer - I don't work for them!

Good luck, hope the wallet isn't bashed too much.

Again I'm only repeating what they told me. He pointed it out as we were under the car. It's the long black shaft at the front which slots into a 'coupler' ( excuse me if the words I use are incorrect) Apparently the splines wear out hence the grinding of metal. When it arrived there they also tested reverse and that now no longer works either. They showed me one they changed on a bwm a few weeks ago which is similar. However without looking like a know it all and seriously winding up my mechanic I can't see how this costs £600+. Are there other parts that need replacing with this sort of failure? That perhaps I've missed? Having done some reading it appears there was a recall of exactly this problem a few years ago. I've also sen reference made that if the splines have excessive wear then They suggest replacing the entire Differential assembly. Could that be the 'kit' they are referring to?

Pietro said:

Again I'm only repeating what they told me. He pointed it out as we were under the car. It's the long black shaft at the front which slots into a 'coupler' ( excuse me if the words I use are incorrect) Apparently the splines wear out hence the grinding of metal. When it arrived there they also tested reverse and that now no longer works either. They showed me one they changed on a bwm a few weeks ago which is similar. However without looking like a know it all and seriously winding up my mechanic I can't see how this costs £600+. Are there other parts that need replacing with this sort of failure? That perhaps I've missed? Having done some reading it appears there was a recall of exactly this problem a few years ago. I've also sen reference made that if the splines have excessive wear then They suggest replacing the entire Differential assembly. Could that be the 'kit' they are referring to?

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Ahhhh makes sense....

Yes there is a coupler that the Prop Shaft fits into....

The Front Prop Shaft is £60 and the Coupler is £104.....most places will replace the Front Diff - depending on condition of it you can get away with replacing the prop and coupler as it is the coupler than strips....

Check out Island 4x4 (no affiliation just a satisfied customer)

Propshaft Front 02-07 TVB000370 TVB500290 Island 4x4 - Specialists in Land Rover and Range Rover Parts and accessories for all models. UK and worldwide mail order.

Front Diff Splined Coupling Joint Island 4x4 - Specialists in Land Rover and Range Rover Parts and accessories for all models. UK and worldwide mail order.

Thanks Saint! So is it safe to assum that if indeed the Splines are worn/damaged in the diff input drive then they would replace the differential assembly? I had a look on Island and I can see a differential assy Front 24 Spline which starts from around £330 + vat. is that the part? Also I noticed on another website - Shukerparts (not sure if they are any good as I'm still learning) and saw a drive shaft for £351 + vat. Is this different again? See link

Drive Shaft - Shukers Parts

No thats the Drive Shaft (or half shaft) and is for the P38!! You need a Prop Shaft....

Island don't list a Diff for the L322 - Famous Four do at £699 (which includes a £200 exchange surcharge - so once you replace and hand back your diff they give you back £200)

Saint.V8 said:

Island don't list a Diff for the L322 - Famous Four do at £699 (which includes a £200 exchange surcharge - so once you replace and hand back your diff they give you back £200)

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Assuming your old diff isn't a pile of scrap!

StuckAgainSteve said:

Assuming your old diff isn't a pile of scrap!

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True..!!

Car is back, argued original price of £ 900+, the mechanic then shouted at the guy on the front desk asking how he got to that figure. They argued a bit more then revised the bill down to £690.... How very strange, i think they were caught out and realised they were taking the ****. Thanks to you all for your advice and indicative costs it really helped and saved me over £250. So the breakdown was as follows new prop shaft - £245, coupling - £155, labour - £175 total including vat £690. Apparently a genuine prop shaft from LR is £245 i didnt argue it any more as they do always pick up the car, drop it off and give me a courtesy car. However I can still here a clunking coming from under the car when I drive, brake and switch to reverse. Any ideas? Could it be they haven't done the work properly? Unfortunately don't have a ramp but might try and slide under to check both parts have been replaced. Any suggestions welcome. Thanks

Sounds about right for a genuine Prop for LR - Island stock an aftermarket jobby....

Yes £900 would take the p!ss - Prices seem very reasonable - remember £104 for the coupler doesn't include the VAT mans cut so would have been closer to £130 - so £155 ain't bad from a garage....

£175 labour is about 3 hours work, which again is close enough depending on how stubborn some bolts can be on an 8yo car....

Clunking noises could be from the suspension bushes - my front end knocks and clunks a bit when travelling slow enough to hear them, is it just a dull clunk - or a metallic clunk???

Sorry to hear you first foray into RR ownership as set you back £690 in the first few weeks, but once she is sorted, you'll have a great motor...!!

Thanks Saint - always very helpful!

Glad to have her back. Re the Clunk it is indeed a dull clunk when a slow speeds, i.e approaching a speed bump or just shifting from park to drive to reverse. Would you suggest I have the bushes checked/changed?

Diff?